Back in the Blade post, I mentioned that I hadn’t shaved with the blades that came with my 3 best (and most recent) razors. The reason was basically was that I’d already had favored blades that I wanted to try in the new hardware to see how it performed. But you’ve got to think that the manufacturers of the razors either worked with a blade maker or developed their own and tested it in their designs to see if it met with their standards.
So my SOTD for Sunday, May 18 is this one:
- Razor: Rockwell 6C, plate 3
- Blade: Rockwell
- Pre-Shave: Proraso Sensitive Pre-Shave
- Soap: Proraso Sensitive Shaving Soap (commonly referred to as Proraso White)
- Alum: Stirling Soap Co. Alum Block
- Post Shave: Proraso Sensitive After Shave Balm
- Beard Oil: Stirling Soap Co. Unscented Beard & Pre-Shave Oil
From the ratings I’ve been able to find, the Rockwell blade is pretty mild–milder than most blades. Generally, my face likes mild blades, but for this shave, I’ve paired it with a medium aggressive plate on the Rockwell 6C razor (remember that the plates offer increased aggressiveness from a mild on plate 1 to a medium to more aggressive plate 6). Sunday shaves see my stubble at its longest, as my last shave usually would have been on the previous Thursday. So instead of the standard two-day stubble, this is a three-day growth. For me, generally a mild blade on a third day shave can cause some tugging as the blade has a hard time cutting through the hairs, and that can make for an uncomfortable shave.
There was a little bit of tugging as I started on my cheeks, but after that, there were no further issues. I did my standard two passes on my cheeks and was surprised that my neck only needed three passes, which helps limit razor burn.
Today’s Proraso lather was very good–thick and rich, not too watery and not too dry. It clung to the hairs well after brushing it on and working it in a bit. I’m confident that I’ve got my Proraso lathering locked in. It doesn’t take too much water loaded in the brush, and doesn’t take a whole lot of effort.
After the shave, I did notice one small nick on my neck, but I applied the wet alum block to the cheeks and neck, and after the stinging went away on the neck after a minute or so, I rinsed it off and it felt fine. I applied the Proraso Sensitive After Shave Balm in my usual thick coat, and my neck settled right down and almost immediately felt soft and smooth and well moisturized.
I’m writing this two hours after shaving, and I can confidently say this joins the list as one of the best shaves of this journey. Just to refresh your memory on the rating scheme, I rate comfort and quality each on a 1-5 scale broken into .25 point increments, and then average those ratings for the overall shave rating. Today’s shave rates a 4.5/5 for comfort, mostly because while it was comfortable during the shave, the amount of post-shave sting with the alum block was more than for other more comfortable shaves. And I’m giving it a 5/5 for closeness, as there is very little stubble left on my neck The average for this shave is a 4.75/5. My 21st shave out of 58 logged that have had an overall rating of 4.75 or higher. There have been no 5/5 shaves.
