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The Shaving Cadre
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- Thread starter CBLindsay
- Start date
Sorry @ CBLindsay I reread the original part of your post and now feel like a dummy because you said in it what you wanted us to note.. Sorry...and I look forward to being part of your test.
That’s ok, I did prepare a note anyway just so everyone will know what I’m looking for. I’m not really testing a new CBL formula, just illustrating how simple changes to a simple soap does/doesn’t impact certain subjective qualities. I DO suspect a new CBL formula will show up in the next decade but it will have nothing to do with this test.
I sent out Christmas cards stuffed with 3 samples on Monday so if the postage is correct and the mail person is not too cranky about the way the cards feel several of you should be getting something in the mail soon. @HMan yours May take a little longer due to distance but I don’t think it should have too many delays.
GearNoir
“The Disney Princess’s Apprentice”
Shave #347 (382 Open Blade Shaves) of 2019:
Gear: Feather AC SS folding, Feather Pro blade, RR GC .68, Wizamet blade, generic witch hazel, Thayer’s Medicated, RR Big Bruce synth brush, CBL Blind Test #2 soap, Lucky Tiger AS, and Cypress/Melaleuca/Siberian Fir EO to finish!
Today’s shave was focused on beginning use of the 3 mystery test soaps @CBLindsay sent out solely in the name of shave science. The testers don’t know where the product is from or what it’s made of, but there are 4 observations we need to make for each sample, using each at least a couple of times:
- Basic lather character
- Basic post shave qualities
- Post shave feel
- Other observations
I’ll be subjecting each sample to at least 2 shaves in a row, using my normal gear to reduce variables - a RR Big Bruce synthetic, Feather AC SS w/ Feather Pro blade, and RR GC .68 w/ Wizamet blade. Each sample will be bloomed for at least a couple minutes and loaded for about 15 seconds, then face lathered. I’ll be doing a normal, basics post shave routine which includes a lather-soak, generic witch hazel, Thayer’s Medicated, and Lucky Tiger.
Writing this up at work and forgot to take a picture of what each section should detail, so I’m winging it here.
Today’s 1st shave with Sample #2:
- Basic lather character: creamy, slightly transparent, felt slick working it up but during shave slickness felt barely adequate
- Basic post shave qualities: washed off fairly cleanly and easily, little residual slickness, hard to do no-relather spot clean up
- Post shave feel: skin felt slightly dried before post shave routine, after it felt just under “normalized”, could still feel some roughness
- Other observations: everything felt really nice until the shave started, then it just felt average, felt lesser than the tonsorial line, is put this sample on par with a classic drug store soap
Just waiting for the part now where, after this is al done, Chris comes and tells us we’re all fools and this was all the same soap of his premium line.
Anyway...back to work!
Have a great Saturday all!
Gear: Feather AC SS folding, Feather Pro blade, RR GC .68, Wizamet blade, generic witch hazel, Thayer’s Medicated, RR Big Bruce synth brush, CBL Blind Test #2 soap, Lucky Tiger AS, and Cypress/Melaleuca/Siberian Fir EO to finish!
Today’s shave was focused on beginning use of the 3 mystery test soaps @CBLindsay sent out solely in the name of shave science. The testers don’t know where the product is from or what it’s made of, but there are 4 observations we need to make for each sample, using each at least a couple of times:
- Basic lather character
- Basic post shave qualities
- Post shave feel
- Other observations
I’ll be subjecting each sample to at least 2 shaves in a row, using my normal gear to reduce variables - a RR Big Bruce synthetic, Feather AC SS w/ Feather Pro blade, and RR GC .68 w/ Wizamet blade. Each sample will be bloomed for at least a couple minutes and loaded for about 15 seconds, then face lathered. I’ll be doing a normal, basics post shave routine which includes a lather-soak, generic witch hazel, Thayer’s Medicated, and Lucky Tiger.
Writing this up at work and forgot to take a picture of what each section should detail, so I’m winging it here.
Today’s 1st shave with Sample #2:
- Basic lather character: creamy, slightly transparent, felt slick working it up but during shave slickness felt barely adequate
- Basic post shave qualities: washed off fairly cleanly and easily, little residual slickness, hard to do no-relather spot clean up
- Post shave feel: skin felt slightly dried before post shave routine, after it felt just under “normalized”, could still feel some roughness
- Other observations: everything felt really nice until the shave started, then it just felt average, felt lesser than the tonsorial line, is put this sample on par with a classic drug store soap
Just waiting for the part now where, after this is al done, Chris comes and tells us we’re all fools and this was all the same soap of his premium line.
Anyway...back to work!
Have a great Saturday all!
i got my samples also and will start backwards from mystery sample 3 later today and will post my thoughts after that using a basic SOTD formula of the setup and include the 4 characteristics we were asked to include so basically
- Prep:
- Brush:
- Razor:
- Blade:
- Lather:
- Basic lather character :
- Post Shave:
- Basic post shave qualities:
- Post shave feel :
- Fragrance:
- Other observations :
Also will send this via PM to @CBLindsay as he requested us to do about each sample..... also if anyone wants to just copy the number list to post their individual observations of # 1-11 that is fine also if it makes it easier for you guys...... hope everyone has as much fun with this as i think i will........
GearNoir
“The Disney Princess’s Apprentice”
Shave #348 (383 Open Blade Shaves) of 2019:
Gear: Feather AC SS folding, Feather Pro blade, RR GC .68, Wizamet blade, generic witch hazel, Thayer’s Medicated, RR Big Bruce synth brush, CBL Blind Test #2 soap, Lucky Tiger AS, and Dior Sauvage to finish!
Today was the second and final use of the CBL #2 test soap. After it dries out some, it gets a one way ticket to the Clown Puke tub!
- Basic lather character: very creamy, maybe even silky, moderate density, a little fluffy
- Basic shave qualities: little protectiveness, just-enough slickness, little residual slickness, washed off fairly cleanly
- Post shave feel: little to no post-shave feel, feels a little “rough” from the shave, skin feels slightly dried and less conditioned than normal
- Other observations: surprisingly I felt really good about the lathering today, the soap exploded into a light, creamy lather in seconds, my 15 second load got me enough for 5+ passes and I didn’t need to add any extra water today for whatever reason (bloomed soap and moderately wet brush); once again felt like almost all the “soap stuff” was removed with each stroke of the razor, barely enough slickness for a pass, cleared skin dried fairly quickly after each stroke, skin required re-wetting to coax out any leftover slickness
Gear: Feather AC SS folding, Feather Pro blade, RR GC .68, Wizamet blade, generic witch hazel, Thayer’s Medicated, RR Big Bruce synth brush, CBL Blind Test #2 soap, Lucky Tiger AS, and Dior Sauvage to finish!
Today was the second and final use of the CBL #2 test soap. After it dries out some, it gets a one way ticket to the Clown Puke tub!
- Basic lather character: very creamy, maybe even silky, moderate density, a little fluffy
- Basic shave qualities: little protectiveness, just-enough slickness, little residual slickness, washed off fairly cleanly
- Post shave feel: little to no post-shave feel, feels a little “rough” from the shave, skin feels slightly dried and less conditioned than normal
- Other observations: surprisingly I felt really good about the lathering today, the soap exploded into a light, creamy lather in seconds, my 15 second load got me enough for 5+ passes and I didn’t need to add any extra water today for whatever reason (bloomed soap and moderately wet brush); once again felt like almost all the “soap stuff” was removed with each stroke of the razor, barely enough slickness for a pass, cleared skin dried fairly quickly after each stroke, skin required re-wetting to coax out any leftover slickness
well after the kids and wife and myself being sick yesterday i didnt try the testers yet but todays shave was dedicated to @The Monkey , so it will be the next shave i try the mystery samples... have a great Birthday @The Monkey . since its @The Monkey birthday today and the shave was dedicated to @The Monkey today.. see i was trying to see how many times i can say @The Monkey in this post so i keep putting @The Monkey in here.. well have a great birthday @The Monkey and i hope @The Monkey has many more enjoyable birthdays !!!!!!!!
GearNoir
“The Disney Princess’s Apprentice”
Shave #349 (38 Open Blade Shaves) of 2019:
Gear: Feather AC SS folding, Feather Pro blade, Gillette Slim, Astra SP blade, RR Big Bruce synth brush, CBL Blind Test #3 soap, generic witch hazel, Thayer’s Medicated, Lucky Tiger, and Chatillion Lux Lavande Poivre to finish!
Today was the first use of the CBL #3 test soap!
- Basic lather character: slightly thicker/more substantive lather than #2, seemed to take more water, slightly more difficult to wash off, left behind slickness layer
- Basic shave qualities: felt a touch more protective than #2, slightly slicker for passes than #2, slightly better residual slickness than #2, surprisingly lather did not feel as light/silky as #2
- Post shave feel: skin did not feel as dried or “worn” post shave, skin felt more “healthy” and “nice” than #2
- Other observations: overall, first use, I would call #3 a “better” soap right off the bat, the differences from #2 were noticeable, though still slight, soap would be categorized as likely on par with decent artisan soap vs classic drug store
Gear: Feather AC SS folding, Feather Pro blade, Gillette Slim, Astra SP blade, RR Big Bruce synth brush, CBL Blind Test #3 soap, generic witch hazel, Thayer’s Medicated, Lucky Tiger, and Chatillion Lux Lavande Poivre to finish!
Today was the first use of the CBL #3 test soap!
- Basic lather character: slightly thicker/more substantive lather than #2, seemed to take more water, slightly more difficult to wash off, left behind slickness layer
- Basic shave qualities: felt a touch more protective than #2, slightly slicker for passes than #2, slightly better residual slickness than #2, surprisingly lather did not feel as light/silky as #2
- Post shave feel: skin did not feel as dried or “worn” post shave, skin felt more “healthy” and “nice” than #2
- Other observations: overall, first use, I would call #3 a “better” soap right off the bat, the differences from #2 were noticeable, though still slight, soap would be categorized as likely on par with decent artisan soap vs classic drug store
Dave in KY
Shave Newbie
You should be home more
That's odd, I think I only sent a thick card. Unless the contents really shifted to one side the card should have been well within the limits allowed and I put extra postage on it for the added weight...? I wonder if your postmaster is going to try to ding you for extra postage like Chad's did once. If so let me know, I'll make it up to you.
Yeah, it's postage due.... no worries though, not enough to quibble over. I just haven't had time to go pick it up. Will be getting it tonight. It's happened to me a couple times with "thick" envelopes. My post office must not be very lenient.
GearNoir
“The Disney Princess’s Apprentice”
Shave #350 (385 Open Blade Shaves) of 2019:
Gear: Feather AC SS folding, Feather Pro blade, Gillette Slim, Astra SP blade, RR Big Bruce synth brush, CBL Blind Test #3 soap, generic witch hazel, Thayer’s Medicated, Lucky Tiger, and Le Labo Bergamote 22 to finish!
Today was the second use of the CBL #3 test soap!
- Basic lather character: slightly thicker/more substantive lather than #2, seemed to take more water, slightly more difficult to wash off, left behind slickness layer
- Basic shave qualities: felt a noticably more protective than #2, slightly slicker for passes than #2, noticeably better residual slickness than #2, surprisingly lather did not feel as silky as #2
- Post shave feel: skin did not feel dried or “worn” post shave, skin felt more “healthy” and “nice” than #2
- Other observations: overall second use confirms and solidifies thoughts, especially since my Slim shaves (used yesterday) are more rough than my GC (used today) shaves, I would call #3 a superior soap over #2, the differences from #2 were better noticeable today, soap would be categorized as likely on par with decent artisan soap
Gear: Feather AC SS folding, Feather Pro blade, Gillette Slim, Astra SP blade, RR Big Bruce synth brush, CBL Blind Test #3 soap, generic witch hazel, Thayer’s Medicated, Lucky Tiger, and Le Labo Bergamote 22 to finish!
Today was the second use of the CBL #3 test soap!
- Basic lather character: slightly thicker/more substantive lather than #2, seemed to take more water, slightly more difficult to wash off, left behind slickness layer
- Basic shave qualities: felt a noticably more protective than #2, slightly slicker for passes than #2, noticeably better residual slickness than #2, surprisingly lather did not feel as silky as #2
- Post shave feel: skin did not feel dried or “worn” post shave, skin felt more “healthy” and “nice” than #2
- Other observations: overall second use confirms and solidifies thoughts, especially since my Slim shaves (used yesterday) are more rough than my GC (used today) shaves, I would call #3 a superior soap over #2, the differences from #2 were better noticeable today, soap would be categorized as likely on par with decent artisan soap
okay here goes......
- Prep: warm towel
- Brush: VDH boar ( using it to test all 3 samples )
- Razor: Bevel head on gillette new handle
- Blade: VDH (new)
- Lather: Mystery sample 3
- Basic lather character : built up decent in test bowl but not well on face
- Post Shave: W.H
- Basic post shave qualities: face feels dry almost like plain shower/ body soap
- Post shave feel : face still feels like it has stubble on it where blade "stuck" and jumped on face... after about 10 minutes now i am going to have to wash my face off because it feels like cement was poured on it.
- Fragrance: none just a plain alcohol splash
- Other observations : when i first put blade to face the blade was very jumpy and wanted to stick to face not a very good glide. when i did the alcohol splash it felt like i had gunk on my face because whatever remained on my face sort of balled up with a consistency of wet tissue..
okay i had to get one of my kids baby wipes and gentle cleansing body wash and thoroughly wash my face off because my face was not liking the after feel...
makes me wonder if based on others views of #3 if maybe chris made it a true blind test and either sent out different test samples or if my # 3 could be someone else's # 2 or # 1 ... i guess maybe we will see after all the reviews are in because we really dont need to know especially before its done.......thanks for allowing all of us to be your testers @CBLindsay
makes me wonder if based on others views of #3 if maybe chris made it a true blind test and either sent out different test samples or if my # 3 could be someone else's # 2 or # 1 ... i guess maybe we will see after all the reviews are in because we really dont need to know especially before its done.......thanks for allowing all of us to be your testers @CBLindsay
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GearNoir
“The Disney Princess’s Apprentice”
Shave #351 (386 Open Blade Shaves) of 2019:
Gear: Feather AC SS folding, Feather Pro blade, Gillette Slim, Astra SP blade, RR Big Bruce synth brush, CBL Blind Test #1 soap, generic witch hazel, Thayer’s Medicated, Lucky Tiger, and Jean Philippe 1 Million clone to finish!
Today was the first use of the CBL #1 test soap!
- Basic lather character: not as silky as #2 but maybe more so than #3, probably most substantive/most structure of the trio, took more water than #2 but slightly less perhaps than #3, washed off a tad easier than #3
- Basic shave qualities: good in-shave slickness, residual slickness was good enough for limited light touch up (slightly improved with a little wetting)
- Post shave feel: face feels very similar to how it did for #3, maybe slightly less, a little more dry/worn from shave (both blades have a lot of shaves on them), skin still feels supple though
- Other observations: interesting to note with soap #2 & #3 - scraping #2 out of the bowl, it was flaky/semi-crumbly, scraping #3 out of the bowl, it was much more like putty and easier to manipulate, overall I might say that #3 is ever so slightly superior
Gear: Feather AC SS folding, Feather Pro blade, Gillette Slim, Astra SP blade, RR Big Bruce synth brush, CBL Blind Test #1 soap, generic witch hazel, Thayer’s Medicated, Lucky Tiger, and Jean Philippe 1 Million clone to finish!
Today was the first use of the CBL #1 test soap!
- Basic lather character: not as silky as #2 but maybe more so than #3, probably most substantive/most structure of the trio, took more water than #2 but slightly less perhaps than #3, washed off a tad easier than #3
- Basic shave qualities: good in-shave slickness, residual slickness was good enough for limited light touch up (slightly improved with a little wetting)
- Post shave feel: face feels very similar to how it did for #3, maybe slightly less, a little more dry/worn from shave (both blades have a lot of shaves on them), skin still feels supple though
- Other observations: interesting to note with soap #2 & #3 - scraping #2 out of the bowl, it was flaky/semi-crumbly, scraping #3 out of the bowl, it was much more like putty and easier to manipulate, overall I might say that #3 is ever so slightly superior