I know what you mean, trying new stuff is a great idea. For me though, I have no intention of using soap who's scent I am not enamoured with. Same goes for performance. I also want matching splash so that narrows down my choices quite dramatically - which I have no problem with. I wasn't always this way but I these days, the only things in my drawer that don't have matching splash are Shaver Heaven, or were gifts.
I used to share the same view but I found there were too many superb soaps I was missing out on due to requiring the whole 'paired soap and splash' thing. i.e. Martin de Candre, S.M Novella Crema Di Barba, Valobra, Mystic Water, Acqua Di Palma etc none of which have paired splashes, in the case of the MdC my current puck is unscented, I just find an aftershave balm and an aftershave I feel like wearing for the day and use it.
If a soap has a rank smell then obviously I wont use it, but I find I get to use a lot more top tier soaps by breaking free of the paired splash restraint personally, many of the paired soap and splash combos fall into the definitely mid tier soap category.
An almost complete boxed Gem Micromatic joins the den for $30 delivered from the US in 7 days. AusPost you are just silly. And yes, it's full of genuine US dust. No attempt to pretty this up was made
Any suggestions on modern blades for this SE classic?
I added a D1 Toggle to the collection today, thanks to a generous private seller. There are some odd tooling marks on it's toggle lever, but at <$100 I can live with that!
Nice! The best blades are the Gems from Connaught - http://connaughtshaving.com/gemss.html
At less than $100 for a Toggle you should live with a lot - nice pickup!
Great score @huntereyes_ - the Toggle is a beautiful razor. Looks like someone attacked yours with a pair of pliers - madness
I added a D1 Toggle to the collection today, thanks to a generous private seller. There are some odd tooling marks on it's toggle lever, but at <$100 I can live with that!
Great pickup @Greenpike - the blade stops look perfect which is critical. It will clean up very nicely! These are probably the most aggressive GEM, so be interested to hear what you think.
An almost complete boxed Gem Micromatic joins the den for $30 delivered from the US in 7 days. AusPost you are just silly. And yes, it's full of genuine US dust. No attempt to pretty this up was made
Any suggestions on modern blades for this SE classic?
Great score @huntereyes_ - the Toggle is a beautiful razor. Looks like someone attacked yours with a pair of pliers - madness
It's hard to fathom why someone did that, isn't it?!
Lovely brush @Mark1966 - great find!! I think you should only use it on HRH Queen Elizabeths birthday
They have their fans, so to speak, and their critics. I'm a bit of a history tragic so the heritage of Simpson gets me AND their MD, Mark Watterson, has been great to deal with over some reknots etc