Did 2 passes on my face and 3 + cleanup on my neck. Didn't do a straight ATG pass (just went south to north) and it turned out good. Not quite as smooth, but very close with less fuss. Still not completely sold on Nacet blades, though, which is a shame.
Due to the Spearhead sale, I will not be using another soap until I kill this tub so that my purchase of another SIL tub can be justified.
Lather: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Shaving Soap
Post Shave: Chiseled Face - Midnight Stag - Aftershave Balm
I rarely use my Muhle brush because I've realized I don't really like my knots this small. The times I do use it I'm really only using it because I have it. It's of good quality though, so I'll probably end up getting myself a larger Muhle brush eventually.
Yeah it’s a kinda silly reason to use a piece of gear, but otherwise it would just be sitting on my shelf collecting dust. I’ll probably PIF it to a good home eventually, but in the meantime I keep hoping that one day I’ll magically decide I like it.
I went back to the TI, and it's a very good shaver. War in combination with the Yaqi synthetic produced a thick Hollywood lather, with a good boom-shakalaka. I probably still have 2 shaves with this soap. I'm committed to the kill, but I caught myself sniffing at Narcisse - looking forward to using it.
I'm also looking forward to the Sparschweinchen. I spent the day working at home, and according to the postal app, they tried unsuccessfully to deliver the letter 🤬. There was no notification in my letterbox, and I wonder why they systematically pretend to deliver things when they don't.
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
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)