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• Prep: Splash of Cool Water
• Razor: Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 - Open Comb
• Blade: Gillette - Nacet (Marathon) (526)
• Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag (White Label)
• Brush: Zenith - r/wetshaving MOAR BOAR B35/508A XL (51 uses)
• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag (White Label)
• Fragrance: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag

Austere August: Day: 28
MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode
Midnight Stag Challenge

Gear Pic :: Video

䷀ General Notes

After trying some variations on the Slurry method over the last few days, I go back to old faithful, original Slurry, and was rewarded with that next-level luxury slickness again.

䷀ Razor and Blade Notes

(Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 - Open Comb ::: Gillette - Nacet - M ‹526 uses›)

Same: First pass has some tugginess to it. But no irritation that lasts longer than a little tuggy stroke. Latter passes feel fine and give a reasonably close shave. 3 pretty quick passes.

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

䷀ Soap Notes

(Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - White Label)

I just love all the aspects of this scent!

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

Lather... Slurry lather. 10 swirls.

With needing to take longer load times when on a drier soap (because I tested leaving the cap off), I wondered if the slurry lather would be a good approach to smaller load times, even if your tub was almost empty.

It worked great.

Was a superb slurry lather today, and was back to the old super-top-notch kind of slickness.

I did not have to load as much as I did.

Hydration: Perfect (for me)

• 3 sec load with a Very Wet brush
• = 6 passes of lather

Bowl: No Bowl

䷀ Brush Notes

(Zenith - r/wetshaving MOAR BOAR B35/508A XL ‹51 uses›)

Same: Comfortable soft tips that do flex some, but that are supported by a base with strong backbone. As with all young boars, I look forward to the tips splitting with more uses and getting softer with use.

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)

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) (524)
• Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag (White Label)
• Brush: Zenith - r/wetshaving MOAR BOAR B35/508A XL (49 uses)
• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag (White Label)
• Fragrance: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag

Austere August: Day: 26
MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode
Midnight Stag Challenge

Gear Pic :: Video

䷀ General Notes

Kinda-not-really-a slurry lather today as we see if the bowl can work with this method some how.

䷀ Razor and Blade Notes

(Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 - Open Comb ::: Gillette - Nacet - M ‹524 uses›)

Same: First pass has some tugginess to it. But no irritation that lasts longer than a little tuggy stroke. Latter passes feel fine and give a reasonably close shave. 3 pretty quick passes.

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

䷀ Soap Notes

(Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - White Label)

I just love all the aspects of this scent!

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

Lather... Not as wet as a normal slurry lather, so I had to add more water. Third pass looked gloriously hydrated.

But all passes were slick and workable.

Again, the bowl doesn't seem to offer much that's positive to the slurry lather method.

Hydration: Perfect (for me)

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

Bowl: Roger Quintero 3D Printed Bowl
I use the XL version of this bowl.

䷀ Brush Notes

(Zenith - r/wetshaving MOAR BOAR B35/508A XL ‹49 uses›)

Same: Comfortable soft tips that do flex some, but that are supported by a base with strong backbone. As with all young boars, I look forward to the tips splitting with more uses and getting softer with use.

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)

Ending of Blades Ledger - entry form and the data spreadsheet

Why so many abandon?

Is the angle hard to find?

• Prep: Splash of Cool Water
• Razor: Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 - Open Comb
• Blade: Gillette - Nacet (Marathon) (522)
• Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag (White Label)
• Brush: Zenith - r/wetshaving MOAR BOAR B35/508A XL (47 uses)
• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag (White Label)
• Fragrance: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag

Austere August: Day: 24
MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode
Midnight Stag Challenge

Gear Pic :: Video

䷀ General Notes

Slowing down for today's shave, from the quickies over the last two days.

Adding in a bowl again, with the slurry lather technique to see what happens.

䷀ Razor and Blade Notes

(Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 - Open Comb ::: Gillette - Nacet - M ‹522 uses›)

Same: First pass has some tugginess to it. But no irritation that lasts longer than a little tuggy stroke. Latter passes feel fine and give a reasonably close shave. 3 pretty quick passes.

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

䷀ Soap Notes

(Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - White Label)

I just love all the aspects of this scent!

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

Lather... Slurry lather and 8 swirls, on a tub that had little soap, but it was just a little damp from yesterday.

As I'm bringing in the bowl, what falls on my shirt duirng the first pass is wet suds and not water. This one wasn't as slick as a slurry, but still slick enough to shave well.

Plenty enough lather for 4-5 passes.

Hydration: Perfect (for me)

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

Bowl: Roger Quintero 3D Printed Bowl
I use the XL version of this bowl.

䷀ Brush Notes

(Zenith - r/wetshaving MOAR BOAR B35/508A XL ‹47 uses›)

Same: Comfortable soft tips that do flex some, but that are supported by a base with strong backbone. As with all young boars, I look forward to the tips splitting with more uses and getting softer with use.

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)

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) (521)
• Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag (White Label)
• Brush: Zenith - r/wetshaving MOAR BOAR B35/508A XL (46 uses)
• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag (White Label)
• Fragrance: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag

Austere August: Day: 23
MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode
Midnight Stag Challenge

Gear Pic :: Video

䷀ General Notes

Trying for a speed shave record again, and I did improve on my time a little. 2:43 to get the three passes done, with a theme/concept of "late for work."

I'll paste in the givens/criteria from last time, since they're the same:

I did not apply splash and frag during the timed portion, because I felt that in an emergency/"late for work" situation, those could/should be skipped, or applied as one was driving to work, etc.

However, I thought that rinsing one's face properly should be included, as well as cleaning a natural hair brush (synth users can skip that) to prevent excessive soap exposure from damaging the knot.

(Again, this time is only relevant to the category of "guys with goatees", since it is likely easier than also shaving your chin and stash.)

䷀ Razor and Blade Notes

(Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 - Open Comb ::: Gillette - Nacet - M ‹521 uses›)

Same: First pass has some tugginess to it. But no irritation that lasts longer than a little tuggy stroke. Latter passes feel fine and give a reasonably close shave. 5 pretty quick passes.

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

䷀ Soap Notes

(Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - White Label)

I just love all the aspects of this scent!

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

Lather... Well, it was nothing to brag about, but that's okay, because it was only meant to be fast, and slick enough. And it was that.

Hydration: Wet End of Perfect (for me)

• 2 sec load with a Very Wet brush
• = 3 passes of lather

Bowl: No Bowl

䷀ Brush Notes

(Zenith - r/wetshaving MOAR BOAR B35/508A XL ‹46 uses›)

Same: Comfortable soft tips that do flex some, but that are supported by a base with strong backbone. As with all young boars, I look forward to the tips splitting with more uses and getting softer with use.

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) (520)
• Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag (White Label)
• Brush: Zenith - r/wetshaving MOAR BOAR B35/508A XL (45 uses)
• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag (White Label)
• Fragrance: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag

Austere August: Day: 22
MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode
Midnight Stag Challenge

Gear Pic :: Video

䷀ General Notes

Today was a speed shave! 3 passes in less than that many minutes. I'm sure I could fine tune it and shorten it, but I think 2:49 is a respectable first effort.

What else to do in Austere August!?

I did not apply splash and frag during the timed portion, because I felt that in an emergency/"late for work" situation, those could/should be skipped, or applied as one was driving to work, etc.

However, I thought that rinsing one's face properly should be included, as well as cleaning a natural hair brush (synth users can skip that) to prevent excessive soap exposure from damaging the knot.

(Again, this time is only relevant to the category of "guys with goatees", since it is likely easier than also shaving your chin and stash.)

䷀ Razor and Blade Notes

(Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 - Open Comb ::: Gillette - Nacet - M ‹520 uses›)

Same: First pass has some tugginess to it. But no irritation that lasts longer than a little tuggy stroke. Latter passes feel fine and give a reasonably close shave. 3 very quick passes.

While being fast, I definitely was careful around the ears and neck.

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

䷀ Soap Notes

(Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - White Label)

I just love all the aspects of this scent!

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

Lather... Had a quick, slick-enough and serviceable lather in this very short duration shave.

Hydration: Wet End of Perfect (for me)

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

Bowl: No Bowl

䷀ Brush Notes

(Zenith - r/wetshaving MOAR BOAR B35/508A XL ‹45 uses›)

Same: Comfortable soft tips that do flex some, but that are supported by a base with strong backbone. As with all young boars, I look forward to the tips splitting with more uses and getting softer with use.

The feel of the brush is much less a factor in these speed shave attempts!

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

I go for smoothness, so 2-3

• Prep: Splash of Cool Water
• Razor: Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 - Open Comb
• Blade: Gillette - Nacet (Marathon) (519)
• Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag (White Label)
• Brush: Zenith - r/wetshaving MOAR BOAR B35/508A XL (44 uses)
• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag (White Label)
• Fragrance: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag

Austere August: Day: 21
MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode
Midnight Stag Challenge

Gear Pic :: Video

䷀ General Notes

Slurry lather in a bowl today. 5 swirls off a dry puck. A bit thin. Fast. And let's bring in a bowl, and see what happens.

䷀ Razor and Blade Notes

(Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 - Open Comb ::: Gillette - Nacet - M ‹519 uses›)

Same: First pass has some tugginess to it. But no irritation that lasts longer than a little tuggy stroke. Latter passes feel fine and give a reasonably close shave. 3 quick passes.

䷀ Soap Notes

(Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - White Label)

I just love all the aspects of this scent!

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

Lather... A slurry lather today. It got the job done, but I should have loaded for longer. I used the bowl to mix it up just a bit before starting, but with the lack of load, it didn't help much.

A little too wet, but still slick and effective.

Hydration: A Little Too Wet (for me)

• 1 sec load with a Very Wet brush
• = 3 passes of lather

Bowl: Roger Quintero 3D Printed Bowl
I use the XL version of this bowl.

䷀ Brush Notes

(Zenith - r/wetshaving MOAR BOAR B35/508A XL ‹44 uses›)

Same: Comfortable soft tips that do flex some, but that are supported by a base with strong backbone. As with all young boars, I look forward to the tips splitting with more uses and getting softer with use. I am generally using a hair dryer to gently treat the tips and age them just a bit faster than normal.

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)

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) (518)
• Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag (White Label)
• Brush: Zenith - r/wetshaving MOAR BOAR B35/508A XL (43 uses)
• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag (White Label)
• Fragrance: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag

Austere August: Day: 20
MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode
Midnight Stag Challenge

Gear Pic :: Video

䷀ General Notes

A speedy, and slightly groggy shave before my day begins!

Slurry lather.

Glad I had this method in my tool kit, because time was super short.

䷀ Razor and Blade Notes

(Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 - Open Comb ::: Gillette - Nacet - M ‹518 uses›)

Same: First pass has some tugginess to it. But no irritation that lasts longer than a little tuggy stroke. Latter passes feel fine and give a reasonably close shave. 3 quick passes.

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

䷀ Soap Notes

(Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - White Label)

I just love all the aspects of this scent!

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

Lather... This was 4 swirls on a pretty dry puck.

It started off well.

And I ended up with plenty of lather for 3 good passes.

Pass two though, was a little more skimpy than when I have longer load times, but it was still very functional and slick.

super wet stuff was in the brush at the end, and so when I extracted it to use as the third pass of lather, it dripped everywhere.

Hydration: A Little Too Wet (for me)

• 1 sec load with a Very Wet brush
• = 3 passes of lather

Bowl: No Bowl

䷀ Brush Notes

(Zenith - r/wetshaving MOAR BOAR B35/508A XL ‹43 uses›)

Same: Comfortable soft tips that do flex some, but that are supported by a base with strong backbone. As with all young boars, I look forward to the tips splitting with more uses and getting softer with use.

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)

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) (517)
• Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag (White Label)
• Brush: Zenith - r/wetshaving MOAR BOAR B35/508A XL (42 uses)
• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag (White Label)
• Fragrance: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag

Austere August: Day: 19
MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode
Midnight Stag Challenge

Gear Pic :: Video

䷀ General Notes

I let the soap dry out mostly between the last shave and this one, so such small loads, like half a swirl, would not fly any more. So this was a 4 swirl shave.

䷀ Razor and Blade Notes

(Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 - Open Comb ::: Gillette - Nacet - M ‹517 uses›)

Same: First pass has some tugginess to it. But no irritation that lasts longer than a little tuggy stroke. Latter passes feel fine and give a reasonably close shave. 3 pretty quick passes.

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

䷀ Soap Notes

(Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - White Label)

I just love all the aspects of this scent!

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

Lather... 2 swirls wasn't enough, when starting with a drier soap, so I went for a total of 4 today.

SEcond pass was a bit drier than my usual with the Slurry method.

Just did 3.

Hydration: Dry End of Perfect (for me)

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

Bowl: No Bowl

䷀ Brush Notes

(Zenith - r/wetshaving MOAR BOAR B35/508A XL ‹42 uses›)

Same: Comfortable soft tips that do flex some, but that are supported by a base with strong backbone. As with all young boars, I look forward to the tips splitting with more uses and getting softer with use.

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)

Ending of Blades Ledger - entry form and the data spreadsheet

That's very cool man!!

• Prep: Splash of Cool Water
• Razor: Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 - Open Comb
• Blade: Gillette - Nacet (Marathon) (514)
• Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag (White Label)
• Brush: Zenith - r/wetshaving MOAR BOAR B35/508A XL (39 uses)
• Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag (White Label)
• Fragrance: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag

Austere August: Day: 16
MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode
Midnight Stag Challenge

Gear Pic :: Video

䷀ General Notes

Let's see if the 1 swirl load was a fluke. Well, it wasn't.

䷀ Razor and Blade Notes

(Timeless - Stainless Steel .68 - Open Comb ::: Gillette - Nacet - M ‹514 uses›)

Same: First pass has some tugginess to it. But no irritation that lasts longer than a little tuggy stroke. Latter passes feel fine and give a reasonably close shave. 3 pretty quick passes.

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

䷀ Soap Notes

(Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - White Label)

I just love all the aspects of this scent!

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

Lather... Ha ha! Today we continue with a slurry lather, and we again confirm that with this soap, having used it over and over, it's retaining enough moisture that one swirl with the boar brush is enough to give me a, in this case, four pass shave. And good lather too. Slick and ultra wet.

This time I just did three passes, and didn't even have to extract the lather from the brush to get the last pass done.

Hydration: Perfect (for me)

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

Bowl: No Bowl

䷀ Brush Notes

(Zenith - r/wetshaving MOAR BOAR B35/508A XL ‹39 uses›)

Same: Comfortable soft tips that do flex some, but that are supported by a base with strong backbone. As with all young boars, I look forward to the tips splitting with more uses and getting softer with use.

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)

Ending of Blades Ledger - entry form and the data spreadsheet