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Prep: Splash of Cool Water
Razor: Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 Open Comb
Blade: Gillette - Nacet (Marathon) (543)
Lather: 345 Soap Co - General Patton
Brush: Declaration Grooming - B7 Viking Ivory (4 uses)
Post Shave: Barrister and Mann - Diamond

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Gear Pic :: Video

䷀ General Notes

Trying out 345 soap with the Slurry method and it was inconclusive. Need to get more soap involved.

䷀ Razor and Blade Notes

(Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 - Open Comb ::: Gillette - Nacet - M ‹543 uses›)

As usual, with this blade now: a little tuggy at first, but fine after, and giving a close shave.

Razor and Blade Performance/Comfort Rating: 2 out of 5 (Okay)

䷀ Soap Notes

(345 Soap Co - General Patton)

Them: "In what seems like a lifetime ago, I was in the 82nd Airborne. So we wanted to do something special for the August soap, General Patton. Our namesake. A long time ago my late grandfather said that somewhere down the line uncle George and I were related. One day I'll make that lineage. We will be donating 10% of all General Patton sales in August to them."

Scent notes: Tonka bean, amber, powder, guaiac wood, cedar, sandalwood, dash of vanilla. "This is a warm, complex scent. A scent of Victory!"

345 also says, "We wanted to give back to those that have served our great nation, and the charity ‘Mission 22’ would be a great place to start. Their mission is to help all veterans with suicide prevention, and any mental health help that they need."

Scent: My first use of this one was a blind one, and I picked up the amber and tonka type scent, and woodiness. I also thought I got some leather, but I guess it was something else. I can see how there was a touch of vanilla in there, but it wasn't much, and didn't feel food-like at all. Just right.

An at-home kind of warmth, and manliness, is the vibe I got from this soap. I enjoyed it a lot.

Lather... soap hadn't been used in a while and didn't give itself to the brush too easily. So lather was watery and thin. Will try again later, probably with another brush.

Got the job done, though. But no residual slickness like this slurry lather method usually gives.

Hydration: Dry End of Perfect (for me)

• = 4 passes of lather

Bowl: No Bowl

䷀ Brush Notes

(Declaration Grooming - B7 Viking Ivory ‹4 uses›)

Not as much soap was picked up, so the lather was very wet, but not much substance. That needs to be adjusted. So the backbone of the brush was in full display.

---

During the Shave Feel:
  Cheeks: Just a little tugging
  Neck: Just a little tugging
After the Shave Closeness:
  Cheeks: Close Shave
  Neck: Several hairs are showing some tip length (still a pretty good shave)

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Ending of Blades Ledger - entry form and the data spreadsheet

Prep: Splash of Cool Water
Razor: Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 Open Comb
Blade: Gillette - Nacet (Marathon) (542)
Lather: Black Ship Grooming - X Tenth Anniversary
Brush: Declaration Grooming - B7 Viking Ivory (3 uses)
Post Shave: Summer Break Soaps - History 101

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Gear Pic :: Video

䷀ General Notes

Will the base from Blackship Grooming work with the Slurry Lather method? Yep, sure enough. Works great.

䷀ Razor and Blade Notes

(Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 - Open Comb ::: Gillette - Nacet - M ‹542 uses›)

As usual for the Nacet: tuggy on pass 1, then fine after. Close shave.

Razor and Blade Performance/Comfort Rating: 2 out of 5 (Okay)

䷀ Soap Notes

(Black Ship Grooming - X Tenth Anniversary)

Them: "Pineapple, bay rum, and cedarwood"

Me: fruity, yes, and I'm glad to say I didn't pick up much of the bay. light woody to balance it out. Very pleasant, but not complex.

Scent Strength: 4/10, lightly present during shaving.

Lather... This base worked well with the Slurry Lather method.

On the third or fourth pass, I did add a bit more water. and my last pass was able to be worked into that final creamy lather to top it off with some luxury feel.

With all the hydration this method uses, I think it puts this base in a very good light.

• 16 sec load with a Very Wet brush
• = 5 passes of lather

Bowl: No Bowl

䷀ Brush Notes

(Declaration Grooming - B7 Viking Ivory ‹3 uses›)

Comfy and pretty easy to splay.

---

During the Shave Feel:
  Cheeks: Just a little tugging
  Neck: Just a little tugging
After the Shave Closeness:
  Cheeks: Close Shave
  Neck: Several hairs are showing some tip length (still a pretty good shave)

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Ending of Blades Ledger - entry form and the data spreadsheet

You're not going to have too many soap buddies with War!!

Good to be back!!

Prep: Splash of Cool Water
Razor: Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 Open Comb
Blade: Gillette - Nacet (Marathon) (540)
Lather: Wholly Kaw Vegan - 1776
Brush: Semogue - Owner's Club Boar (Shedder) (21 uses)
Post Shave: Barrister and Mann - Full Measure of Man

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Gear Pic :: Video

䷀ General Notes

A quick shave with the Slurry lather using the Wholly Kaw Vegan base today.

Using the phone's camera, instead of my fogged up mirror to shave.

䷀ Razor and Blade Notes

(Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 - Open Comb ::: Gillette - Nacet - M ‹540 uses›)

A little tuggy on first pass, since I skipped a day of shaving. But fine after that.

Razor and Blade Performance/Comfort Rating: 2 out of 5 (Okay)

䷀ Soap Notes

(Wholly Kaw Vegan - 1776)

Them: "a summer blend perfect for saluting the Fourth of July. It is a refreshing green aroma with notes of osmanthus, benzoin, labdanum, grapefruit, artemisia, tarragon, patchouli, musk, tonka bean, cedarwood."

Me: I did a blind shave with it first, not knowing the notes. I just know that i really enjoyed it.

Scent Strength: 4/10, present during shaving.

Lather... Likely my final verification that the WK Vegan base is very compatible with the slurry lather method.

Nice, sloppy slick slurry for passes 1 & 2. 3rd is still highly wet, but was still super slick.

Hydration: Perfect (for me)

• = 3 passes of lather

Bowl: No Bowl

䷀ Brush Notes

(Semogue - Owner's Club Boar - Shedder ‹21 uses›)

The SOC is a great brush, espeically for the slurry lather method. This one has had a year of uses by someone else, but is not nearly as split as mine that has many less uses, but has been treated with the hair dryer.

---

During the Shave Feel:
  Cheeks: Just a little tugging
  Neck: Just a little tugging
After the Shave Closeness:
  Cheeks: Close Shave
  Neck: Several hairs are showing some tip length (still a pretty good shave)

---

Ending of Blades Ledger - entry form and the data spreadsheet

Prep: Splash of Cool Water
Razor: Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 Open Comb
Blade: Gillette - Nacet (Marathon) (538)
Lather: Wholly Kaw Vegan - 1776
Brush: Stirling - Finest CravingtShaving Blue Slate 26mm (42 uses)
Post Shave: Barbedeaux - Razor Bump Therapy

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Gear Pic :: Video

䷀ General Notes

Trying the Slurry Lather again with the Stirling Finest Badger and Wholly Kaw vegan formulation. STill not quite right.

I also tried a couple of Barbedeaux products for the first time. I tried the shaving foam as a pre-shave face wash, and I hated the slime it left on my hands.

I also used the splash at the end, and did not like the nasty rubbing alcohol scent... that I've never experienced with folks like Stirling, BaM, Mammoth, Summer Break, Declaration, Proraso .. well, anyone. And the way it conditioned my skin with the food that it has in it (hey, at least there is some) didn't seem to be any better than any of these others. At full price, buying 2 bottles of Stirling is a way better deal, because no alc hit, and you can get scent choice (Barb is basically unscented).

䷀ Razor and Blade Notes

(Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 - Open Comb ::: Gillette - Nacet - M ‹538 uses›)

Tuggy since i was shaving off two days of growth. But after the first pass, allw as comfy. Got a close shave.

Razor and Blade Performance/Comfort Rating: 2 out of 5 (Okay)

䷀ Soap Notes

(Wholly Kaw Vegan - 1776)

Them: "a summer blend perfect for saluting the Fourth of July. It is a refreshing green aroma with notes of osmanthus, benzoin, labdanum, grapefruit, artemisia, tarragon, patchouli, musk, tonka bean, cedarwood."

Me: I did a blind shave with it first, not knowing the notes. I just know that i really enjoyed it.

Scent Strength: 4/10, present during shaving.

Lather... I'd guess I loaded for 80 swirls: 70 at start, and then a refresher later.

So I did have to go back and get more soap and a little more water, but with the Slurry method, that's really a small thing.

But it still is not coming together how The SL method usually does. I see two possible culprits: the brush may be so dense that it doesn't hold as much water as needed, which I think is less likely than... or that the soap just needs more product than usual. That is something I've experienced wtih WK in the past, but I can't remember whether it was vegan or tallow at the time.

I'm going to change one of those variables for next time.

Hydration: Dry End of Perfect (for me)

• 27 sec load with a Very Wet brush
• = 4 passes of lather

Bowl: No Bowl

䷀ Brush Notes

(Stirling - Finest in CravingShaving Blue Slate 26mm ‹42 uses›)

Firm backbone, but somewhat soft tips, as usual. Brush seemed to start out with enough water, but when I needed it in the second pass, not much was there.

---

During the Shave Feel:
  Cheeks: Tuggy
  Neck: Tuggy
After the Shave Closeness:
  Cheeks: Close Shave
  Neck: Several hairs are showing some tip length (still a pretty good shave)

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Ending of Blades Ledger - entry form and the data spreadsheet

Prep: Splash of Cool Water
Razor: Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 Open Comb
Blade: Gillette - Nacet (Marathon) (537)
Lather: Barrister and Mann Omnibus - Smoking Bishop
Brush: Maggard Razors - Plisson-type Synth 22mm (4 uses)
Post Shave: Pre de Provence - No. 63

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Gear Pic :: Video

䷀ General Notes

Final confirmation of the Maggards Plisson Synth doing a great Slurry Lather with Omnibus base.

䷀ Razor and Blade Notes

(Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 - Open Comb ::: Gillette - Nacet - M ‹537 uses›)

Same as usual with this old Nacet: maybe a tiny bit tuggy on first pass, but great afterwards. more passes were necessary if I wanted a better shave today, but I was fine with 3. Decent shave. Comfy. No irritation.

Razor and Blade Performance/Comfort Rating: 2 out of 5 (Okay)

䷀ Soap Notes

(Barrister and Mann Omnibus - Smoking Bishop)

Them: "A Christmas Carol creates a particular image: cobbled London streets, swollen with carts and men in top hats and street urchins, all milling and shouting and running in the cold December air. You can practically feel the chill, see the clouds of steam as the crowds breathe, and hear the din of a thousand lives all playing out in the same space. It's a vivid, intensely nostalgic picture, one almost irrevocably associated with its author. ~ The story makes particular reference to a Victorian mulled wine known as 'Smoking Bishop,' so named because it's served heated to steaming, but not boiling, and drunk from warmed bowls or glasses (before you ask, we have no idea where the bishop part comes in). It's one of our favorite holiday punches here at Barrister and Mann"

"The soap version is a smooth, warm blend of wine, orange, grapefruit, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and pipe tobacco that conjures images of sipping a stiff drink near a roaring hearth, the air redolent with the scents and sounds of food and drink and good company. Effortlessly charming and good-natured"

Me: I enjoyed it. I picked up on a little vanilla, and some spices, which I assume are the cinnamon and nutmeg. They were well-blended and not so spicy that I didn't like it.

I didn't pick up on any tobacco or wine notes in the fairly blind first impression, so those notes are not strong. But I did notice something like anise or oud, or in that family, that may have been the blend of those two. It grounded the whole thing and kept it interesting and from being just a flavor focused, monotone scent. I liked it.

But on my second shave with this soap, I did pick up the wine around the 3rd pass. A note has to gradually open up, it seems.

Scent Strength: 6/10, nicely present during shaving.

Lather... Great slurry lather today with the pair, the brush and this soap. Slurry in pass 1 and then it got more mature as we went through 3 passes. Super slick and fast.

I tried the new method of loading until the soap overflowed the tub a little, and that worked out great for getting enough soap for the shave.

Hydration: Perfect (for me)

• 13 sec load with a Very Wet brush
• = 5 passes of lather

Bowl: No Bowl

䷀ Brush Notes

(Maggard Razors - Plisson-type Synth 22mm ‹4 uses›)

Not too bad with this brush this time. I still like my naturals better, though. Since this knot doesn't hold as much water as some, I made sure to load without shaking any water out of it. That's the secret with this one.

---

During the Shave Feel:
  Cheeks: Felt blade but comfortable
  Neck: Felt blade but comfortable
After the Shave Closeness:
  Cheeks: Close Shave
  Neck: Several hairs are showing some tip length (still a pretty good shave)

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Ending of Blades Ledger - entry form and the data spreadsheet

Prep: Splash of Cool Water
Razor: Wolfman - WR2 Solid Bar .85 Brushed
Blade: Gillette - Platinum (10)
Lather: Barrister and Mann Omnibus - Four Horsemen - War
Brush: Thater - 4125-6 Fan Ivory (9 uses)
Post Shave: Pre de Provence - No. 63

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Gear Pic :: Video

䷀ General Notes

Slurry Lather with Omnibus today, and trying a huge badger as well. I'll load more next time, but I have full faith that these are great.

䷀ Razor and Blade Notes

(Wolfman - WR2 SB .85 Brushed ::: Gillette - Platinum ‹10 uses›)

Great combo! Just a tiny bit of blade feel, and excellent glide for the close cut.

Confirming here that for me, the Platinum works great in the Wolfman WR2 after just a day's growth.

Razor and Blade Performance/Comfort Rating: 4 out of 5 (Very Good)

䷀ Soap Notes

(Barrister and Mann Omnibus - Four Horsemen - War)

Them: "War is the strangest and, in some respects, the darkest of the four fragrances. Characterized by the aromas of hot metal and gunpowder laid over the core chypre accord that represents Death, the full fragrance encompasses notes of metal, aldehydes, gunpowder, leather, citrus, resins, clary sage, and amber. The peculiar, unsettlingly clean aroma of ozone and gun oil hangs over the scent of War like smoke on a battlefield, belying the foul, elemental hunger beneath."

Scent: The first time I used this soap, I had not heard that this soap smells like a certain herb to a bunch of people. Knowing that, the second time I used it, that still didn't bother me. It wasn't an exact match, and my brain was able to keep it separate, and focus on the elements of hot metal, gunpowder, resins, and moss. It seems that all those together smell like that herb, as it turns out.

That odd situation, where the sum of some parts makes something totally unintentional, reminds me of that other soap he made a couple of years ago, that smelled exactly like Copenhagen chewing tobacco.

Staying power: I did not notice anything different than other soaps by Will.

Scent Strength: 7/10, nicely present during shaving.

Lather... This soap hadn't been used in a while. So 50 swirls was not quite enough to gather enough soap with this brush.

I loaded a bit more, and gave it a little more water too.

I had three slick passes in pretty short order, but I'll increase load time to make the process a bit smoother next time.

Omnibus here is not going to be a problem for Slurry Lather fans, I'm certain.

Hydration: Dry End of Perfect (for me)

• 17 sec load with a Very Wet brush
• = 4 passes of lather

Bowl: No Bowl

䷀ Brush Notes

(Thater - 4125-6 Fan Ivory 35mm ‹9 uses›)

Not loading quite enough is very evident with such a big brush. It felt good, and I think proved that it won't take much for this thing to work well with the Slurry Lather technique.

However, one thing jumps out at me. The chief advantage of the Slurry Lather is speed in your shave. For guys who are short on time, and just need to get on to the next thing. Well, a super thick/dense/big brush like this one might be the opposite of what you would normally want for speed! Takes a while to rinse out all the suds at the end of the shave.

---

During the Shave Feel:
  Cheeks: Almost Smooth
  Neck: Almost Smooth
After the Shave Closeness:
  Cheeks: Near BBS - About as close as I'll ever get
  Neck: Cut flush to where I just see the tips (above average for me)

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Ending of Blades Ledger - entry form and the data spreadsheet

Well, if you're going to try to find a razor to match the blade, the Personna 74 is the one, for sure.

And the cool thing is that you end up learning different things by doing that.

LOL!!

Prep: Splash of Cool Water
Razor: Weck - Sextoblade
Blade: Kismet - Hair Shaper (2)
Lather: Noble Otter - Oudyood
Brush: Zenith - Horse Extra Soft (507N XS) (16 uses)
Post Shave: Stirling - Agar

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Gear Pic :: Video

䷀ General Notes

We work with the Weck, w'again. Keeping with the horse brush, and trying Noble Otter with the Slurry Lather method. Though requiring a little more loading, it went very well.

䷀ Razor and Blade Notes

(Weck - Sextoblade ::: Kismet - Hair Shaper ‹2 uses›)

I discovered that my daughter was naughty and used my weck and the Kismet blade to cut on one of our towels (and probably more that she's not fessing up to). I think I really felt that lack of sharpness today.

A lot of stubble was removed, but I attacked several spots from multiple angles, with little success. I'll bet she would have dulled the center of the blade, because I think the toe and heel were still pretty sharp, because they trimmed up near my ears and goatee edge quite well.

But, all in all I'm happy with my Weck shave and burgeoning technique. No weepers or cuts. No nicking near the ears or on high spots. And good comfort. A nice, conservative shave, with this risky tool.

Razor and Blade Performance/Comfort Rating: 2 out of 5 (Okay)

䷀ Soap Notes

(Noble Otter - Oudyood)

Scent: To me, a light oud and woody scent. I guess that's the intention. I did enjoy it.

Scent Strength: 4/10, lightly present during shaving.

Lather... If I would have started with more loading, I think this would have been fine from the start as a Slurry Lather. The horse is also affecting things, but the lather worked out just fine.

I'll do more with Noble Otter and other brushes for sure, just to confirm that it works well with the Slurry style.

Hydration: Perfect (for me)

• 40 sec load with a Very Wet brush
• = 4 passes of lather

Bowl: No Bowl

䷀ Brush Notes

(Zenith - Horse Extra Soft - 507N XS ‹16 uses›)

So the horse brush again started out a little weak. This time, it was due to not enough soap in it. Easy enough to fix, right? I loaded for a total of 120 swirls, or roughly 40 seconds.

I think the easy splay of this brush was part of the problem, but I did switch soaps to one that hasn't been used for a while. That's what you get when you change too many variables at once! :-)

But it was easy to save the lather by revisiting the tub for that third 40 swirls.

Obviously, will need more testing with Noble Otter, just to confirm, but I'm sure it'll be fine with the Slurry Lather method.

---

During the Shave Feel:
  Cheeks: Felt blade but comfortable
  Neck: Felt blade but comfortable
After the Shave Closeness:
  Cheeks: Bad Shave
  Neck: Many hairs show whisker tips with a little length to them

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Ending of Blades Ledger - entry form and the data spreadsheet

Prep: Splash of Cool Water
Razor: Timeless - Titanium .68 Solid Bar
Blade: Wilkinson Sword (India) (1)
Lather: Fine Accoutrements - Aquamarine
Brush: Zenith - Horse Extra Soft (507N XS) (15 uses)
Post Shave: Stirling - Dunshire

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Gear Pic :: Video

䷀ General Notes

Testing the Slurry Lather method with a Horse brush, and the excellent classic hard puck from Fine Accoutrements. Spoiler: an excellent shave.

䷀ Razor and Blade Notes

(Timeless - Titanium .68 - Solid Bar ::: Wilkinson Sword - India ‹1 uses›)

This was a great use, because the WS blade is a really cheap one, and the Timeless head design grips so well, that it makes sure I get a great shave, even on a budget blade.

Barely any blade feel, and super close result!

Razor and Blade Performance/Comfort Rating: 4 out of 5 (Very Good)

䷀ Soap Notes

(Fine Accoutrements - Aquamarine)

Them: "an exceptionally relaxing green-aquatic fragrance developed in collaboration with West Coast Shaving"

"Aquamarine evokes the carefree feeling of relaxing sea-side, under a warm sun, accompanied only by the rhythmic sound of the surf."

"Notes: lemon, sweet orange, rosemary, algae, oakmoss, driftwood, amber, musk"

Scent (Me): citrus, rosemary, wood, musk. fresh green aquatic.

Scent Strength: 4/10, lightly present during shaving.

Lather... Yes, the horse and Fine Accoutrements classic hard puck soap work very well with the Slurry Lather method.

Slurry on pass one, then pass two was almost a mature lather, and then pass 3 needed a bit more water, since I don't think I started out with quite enough.

Super slick lather at each stage, providing the excellent glide that the Fine base always gives me. Just the kind of slickness that I love.

I did have to dip the tips in pass 1 because I don't think I started out with enough water in the brush.

Hydration: Perfect (for me)

• 13 sec load with a Very Wet brush
• = 5 passes of lather

Bowl: No Bowl

䷀ Brush Notes

(Zenith - Horse Extra Soft - 507N XS ‹15 uses›)

So, today I learned that the Slurry lather is going to tell you the brutal truth about your brush.. at least in terms of the tip feel.

Lather with any kind of viscosity will hide exactly how firm your tips are by a certain degree. And there's nothing wrong with that.

But I felt a little prickle with this horse brush, that I only felt before at the very start. So I added that little note to my growing data for the Slurry Lather method.

This horse, and probably most horse brushes, are more regular density, and it performed similarly as my regular density badgers, which is to say that it worked with the slurry method very well.

But on average, it seems that horses don't have as many tips as badgers, so the water wasn't as concentrated toward the tips, so a quick dip in water was needed during the first pass. Maybe not shaking out as much water would have the same result.

But the brush had plenty of lather for three passes, probably four or more.

A more mature lathering method is going to be more comfy with the horse, but at least now we know that if you need to whip up a slurry lather for a speedy shave, a horse is a quick option, pun intended.

---

During the Shave Feel:
  Cheeks: Almost Smooth
  Neck: Felt blade but comfortable
After the Shave Closeness:
  Cheeks: Near BBS - About as close as I'll ever get
  Neck: Near BBS - About as close as I'll ever get

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Ending of Blades Ledger - entry form and the data spreadsheet