Shaving notes of the MaineYooper

In today's mail, the Trotter Handcrafts Dark Side of the Moon handle! Thanks, Paul Stubble Daddy!

Here with the SynBad


And with the 2BED knot


So which do you like?!

For me the 2 BED looks better out of those 2. I liked the Timberwolf though.

2BED is actually what I was thinking originally. Great minds?!

For me the 2 BED looks better out of those 2. I liked the Timberwolf though.

2BED is actually what I was thinking originally. Great minds?!

Yep, definitely the 2BED. The black fits in well with the handle.

It looks great with the 2BED.

Thanks for the opinions on knots and handles. I have a few days off coming up and am excited to try my hand setting the knots!

Today was an NCS shave: not comfortable shave. And adding insult to injury, it was with my favorite razor, the Christopher Bradley Karve, with baseplate B.  Eight, count them, eight leaks!!  WTH!  At most, I've had 2 with the Vector. In defense of my trusy Karve, I had pulled the blade out of the last DE razor and put it, unwrapped, in one of those little plastic bags we get stuff in. Maybe it got dulled in that bag, from jostling in the shave drawer?  Tomorrow I will put a fresh, pristine blade in go at it again. The first pass was great, one leak from and area around a corner of my mouth, and I am pretty sure it was user error. But the other 7, I can't explain. Good thing my mask is covering my face/mouth, where most leaking occurred. 

So, hope we all have a great day!  Cold pizza for lunch at work, yum! 

Thanks for the opinions on knots and handles. I have a few days off coming up and am excited to try my hand setting the knots!

Today was an NCS shave: not comfortable shave. And adding insult to injury, it was with my favorite razor, the Christopher Bradley Karve, with baseplate B.  Eight, count them, eight leaks!!  WTH!  At most, I've had 2 with the Vector. In defense of my trusy Karve, I had pulled the blade out of the last DE razor and put it, unwrapped, in one of those little plastic bags we get stuff in. Maybe it got dulled in that bag, from jostling in the shave drawer?  Tomorrow I will put a fresh, pristine blade in go at it again. The first pass was great, one leak from and area around a corner of my mouth, and I am pretty sure it was user error. But the other 7, I can't explain. Good thing my mask is covering my face/mouth, where most leaking occurred. 

So, hope we all have a great day!  Cold pizza for lunch at work, yum! 

I'm sorry to hear you had a bad shave Eric. That always sucks and sets a bad theme for the day. Tomorrow will likely be better.

One thing I personally feel... A blade that sits out of use for a while does feel dull / off to me. One hypothesis, the crap in our water dried and adheres to the edge, and even if it is well cleaned off with alcohol, it probably dulls the blade.

If I'm leaving a blade out for a while, I just pitch it. Not worth a bad shave for a 10-20 cent loss.

I liked the Timberwolf though. 

Guess what? I had to place an order at Maggard Razors, and a Timberwolf knot landed in the cart. The groovy orange striped handle has a larger diameter hole, so I had to get a large diameter knot. Had to, it is like a law, or something!

I had some time this afternoon, so I went to my dungeon laboratory (alright, it's only the laundry room in the basement, but it has a countertop on an old cabinet that I use for projects).  Last night I reread posts and watched videos again. Today, I gathered all the pieces and parts, and gingerly started to set the cashmere into a beautiful handle. I gained some confidence, and decided I would do another. And then another. The advice was correct, after doing one, and getting a real idea of the work, it became easier!  I used Paul's Stubble Daddy tip on a sleeve (I sacrificed a disposable face shield from the pharmacy (clean, never used!)) and made some sleeves. I had one moment were the stick (no kids, no popsicles, so $2 for a couple hundred from craft store) tried to put silicone where it wasn't wanted, but easy clean up. Well, mostly. I still feel like I have a small bit on a finger!

Prepping the socket, with a Paul recommended beer gasket!


The Cashmere base gooped up


Waiting for 24 hours now!


Action photo!


The 28 mm SynBad, the knot that started this whole thing.


The 3 Amigos, waiting. This photo panicked me, as it warps the edges and made me think the knots were crooked (yes, I did go check to make sure!).

I had some time this afternoon, so I went to my dungeon laboratory (alright, it's only the laundry room in the basement, but it has a countertop on an old cabinet that I use for projects).  Last night I reread posts and watched videos again. Today, I gathered all the pieces and parts, and gingerly started to set the cashmere into a beautiful handle. I gained some confidence, and decided I would do another. And then another. The advice was correct, after doing one, and getting a real idea of the work, it became easier!  I used Paul's Stubble Daddy tip on a sleeve (I sacrificed a disposable face shield from the pharmacy (clean, never used!)) and made some sleeves. I had one moment were the stick (no kids, no popsicles, so $2 for a couple hundred from craft store) tried to put silicone where it wasn't wanted, but easy clean up. Well, mostly. I still feel like I have a small bit on a finger!

Prepping the socket, with a Paul recommended beer gasket!


The Cashmere base gooped up


Waiting for 24 hours now!


Action photo!


The 28 mm SynBad, the knot that started this whole thing.


The 3 Amigos, waiting. This photo panicked me, as it warps the edges and made me think the knots were crooked (yes, I did go check to make sure!).

Looks really good Eric! I think you did a perfect job, can't wait for the unveiling.