Shaving notes of the MaineYooper

Heats working, problem was solved once the propane tank was topped off. 
Now warming up from 62F!

William's Wednesday 



Thanks again, Dave in KY! The GEM Damaskeene and the vintage William's Mug Soap are from him. A wonderful shave with warm lather and hot water!

I'm sorry I missed the excitement Eric, but glad your heat is back online.

In my effort to finish the tub of Ethos Clean I am putting my big boars to work on it! There was just this ring, a thin donut of soap, left in the tub. And after consolidation it grew, I swear to you, into a sample sized puck! I had figured maybe a week left. But now, maybe in early February I will finish it? So newer big boars that will need heavy loading are being called up for action.

In anticipation of of a new Karve razor, the Overlander, I am putting the Christopher Bradley razor to the front, loaded with a new Kai blade. It has been years, probably 5, since I last used one. This is from a tuck I bought in 2016 while I was trying to get a nice shave from an Old Type. Moved that razor out during the Saint Sue auction that November. But never used the blades again. Given how much time has passed, and hopefully more improvement to my technique, I am looking forward to trying it again.

Karve Christopher Bradley, B solid bar plate
Kai DE blade (new)
Ethos Clean
Omega Jade boar
Communion (purple handle) Maggard Razors 28mm boar
Cascadia Line 27mm TGN boar

In my effort to finish the tub of Ethos Clean I am putting my big boars to work on it! There was just this ring, a thin donut of soap, left in the tub. And after consolidation it grew, I swear to you, into a sample sized puck! I had figured maybe a week left. But now, maybe in early February I will finish it? So newer big boars that will need heavy loading are being called up for action.

In anticipation of of a new Karve razor, the Overlander, I am putting the Christopher Bradley razor to the front, loaded with a new Kai blade. It has been years, probably 5, since I last used one. This is from a tuck I bought in 2016 while I was trying to get a nice shave from an Old Type. Moved that razor out during the Saint Sue auction that November. But never used the blades again. Given how much time has passed, and hopefully more improvement to my technique, I am looking forward to trying it again.

Karve Christopher Bradley, B solid bar plate
Kai DE blade (new)
Ethos Clean
Omega Jade boar
Communion (purple handle) Maggard Razors 28mm boar
Cascadia Line 27mm TGN boar

Wow, well that's surely a testament to Frank's great soap. Don't kill it too quick and then miss it afterwards.

Yea, it's almost Overlander time. I don't have any definitive prep other than watching the mailbox ferociously. Lol. I'm Sure you are like me... Very anxious to give it a test run.

I’m excited to see what you guys think of the Overlander! If for some strange reason you don’t love it, I’ll bail ya out

According to DHL tracking, my Overlander is still in Boston, but marked ready to depart! Still shows a Thursday delivery date. But will it come sooner?

Ethos Clean
Kai DE blade (3)
Omega Jade
Karve Overlander

TL;DR It lived up to the hype.

A 60 sec load time yields plenty of lather with the bigger boars I am using this week. I could have gone less, but I wanted everything as ideal as possible for the first outing of the Overlander. I used my Christopher Bradley with the B plate the last two days and had great shaves. I love the comfortable feel of the SB-B plate, and if I am careful with maintaining the proper angle (versus over shaving!) I can get a glass smooth finish. That is where I want to start from.

The Overlander was very easy for me to find and keep the proper angle, and I really didn't have to think about it. That reminds me of the injector shaves. I tried "riding the cap" and that resulted in the blade lifting too high off of my face. Other DE razors that didn't get along with me had best angles that I found hard to maintain without really focusing on the shave. And too much blade feel. That combo reduces my enjoyment of the shave. YMMV. 

And it shaves very close, without that blade feel. After 2 passes I could have stopped with a DFS, but I have grown accustomed (thanks to single edge shaving!) to having glass-like smoothness over the majority of my face with minimal irritation or discomfort. Only a couple of swirly growth spots prevent the classic BBS. So I strive for RCS, Really Comfortable Shave. The C should probably be squared to include Close, but Comfort is the main goal. [Note: I totally stole the RCS acronym, and I wish I could remember who from in order to give him credit. I believe he posted it on B&B some years ago.]

Three passes and I have achieved my goal and exceeded my expectations! While many have posted that the Overlander shaves like a SB-B plate, it gives the closeness of a SB-C or SB-D plate. Both those plates got me closely shaven, but comfort was diminished, sometimes greatly. The SB-B plate, for me, shaves how Marko had described one of the Rockwell 6S plates as "Look ma, no hands!" (I have always loved that comment, and there are only a few razors I can be so care-free with and get a great shave.) I had feared that the shave comparison would be hype, or that my face wouldn't agree. I mean, some folks say the Vector is a pussy cat! Yet try as I might, I couldn't get it to purr for me. I didn't get scratched, but shaving had my on my toes! Whereas the General and the Hawk purr for me.  I am happy to report that for my face, no drama, not edge of the seat "am I gonna live through this," just a very close and very comfortable shave. That is bliss to me, and what I want for daily shaves. 

The next step is to shave for the rest of the week with the Overlander and make sure it stays comfy as a daily shaver. I will report back this weekend, life permitting! Carry on, my friends, and may you have a great remainder of the week!