The return of the prodigal wetshaver

chilliman64

... bring the fattened calf and kill it.
Joined
Jan 17, 2021
Location
Sydney
hi all

it's so great to see such a terrific resource for Aussie and Kiwi wetshavers, thanks to site owners/admin for building P&C. this looks like a really active well run site.

my name is Mark and I'm a wetshaver.

having been a former lover of Mach 3 blades and wondering why I was continually getting ingrown hairs I felt the internet would enable me to find the path to shaving nirvana. that was about 2011.

thus started my journey down the wetshaving rabbithole. I was a regular on B&B and other sites for some time and immersed myself in the gentle(manly/womanly) art of wetshaving (face and head). it opened my eyes to a whole different world. I learned a lot and tried many different razors, soaps/creams, brushes etc - so good.

fast forward to about 2015 and I thought a beard would be a good idea. the regular wetshaving stopped, I had done a full 180 and gone to the hairy side, just trimming cheeks and neckline with a g-bar and doing the odd headshave.

then in October a few of us at work thought we'd do Movember so the beard and mo came off and since then I've been getting back into SE and DE shaving and have been loving it, sometimes having to resist the urge to shave twice daily. sadly though I found my face and neck had become unaccustomed to having a live blade run across them and I'm like a sensitive newb all over again. time to relearn smooth irritation free shaving. currently working on two pass weeper free perfection, no ATG just yet.

why did I call myself the 'prodigal wetshaver' in the title of the thread? the meaning of prodigal loosely translates to being wasteful and excessive and those of you with RAD will know that when the bug hits you tend to acquire much but not all of it is done wisely. at least not in my case, ymmv. I've spent hours over the last week or two going through all of my razors, cleaning some, sorting bagging and labelling ALL of them. tbh I have too many, most of them I've never used but would struggle to part with any.

anyway, just wanted to say hi and introduce myself. a few names on here I recognise from other sites and I'm pretty sure I've done a BST from at least one member here. answers to standard intro questions below:
  • Are using double edge (DE or safety) razors or straight (or cut-throat) razors?
    • in order of preference DE, SE, straight
  • What soaps / creams / aftershaves you have and/or like?
    • I prefer creams like TOBS/Wahl Traditional Barbers SC but have been known to use Proraso/Arko tube and stick soaps - no canned soap thanks, if it won't work with a brush then it's a hard pass
  • How long you have been wet shaving?
    • 4-5 years spread out over the last nine years
  • Where you are in the world?
    • based in Sydney
  • Why did you start and how you have found the process so far?
    • in-growns and irritated 'shaver's neck' got me started but the friendly community, the ceremony of shaving like they did in the old days, and of course the great results have kept me doing it. SWMBO thinks I'm a lunatic for being so obsessed but I love it.
 
Well you have the finest name in al the land - so off to a great start!

Welcome @chilliman64
 
Well you have the finest name in al the land - so off to a great start!...[/USER]
yes indeed
Welcome @chilliman64, the other half just don't understand do they :)
Join us on SOTD or Lather Shots and show off some of your gear
no they don't but not sure I want her to know too much about it in case I get questioned... :censored:

I was looking at the 2021 SOTD thread so will get onto that, using an Ever-Ready SE later tonight so might have something to contribute
 
G’day @chilliman64 welcome to P&C :happy:

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Welcome back Prodigal son, let the festivities commence. Nice to see another straight shaver on-board.
thanks mate.

my straight razor shaves are generally rare and unexceptional. my straight razor of choice, if there is one, is my fixed blade Feather SS as my attempts to hone and strop have been pretty ordinary. I've got to put some time into it if I want to improve, but, so many razors so little time...
 
Me too. My greenhouse is mostly devoted to chillies. Finally got my Carolina Reapers to germinate, looking forward to getting some fruit... :dead:
yeah the Reapers take a long time to get started. I'm just doing habs and bhut jolokias this year. always reliable and enough heat for me and then some.
 
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