this post was submitted on 25 Nov 2024

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Monday SOTD Thread - November 25th, 2024 (#533) (sub.wetshaving.social)

submitted 16 hours ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

16 comments fedilink hide all child comments

Share your shave of the day!

all 17 comments

sorted by: hot top controversial new old

[–] [email protected] 1 points 39 minutes ago

GEM Days 9b/14: Ever-Ready Streamline – Pretty Regression – Mon 25 Nov 2024

Brush: Zenith 506B MB (27 mm × 51 mm Manchurian badger)
Razor: Ever-Ready Streamline
Blade: Personna GEM PTFE
Lather: Barrister and Mann – Atomic Holiday
Post Shave: Ariana & Evans – L'Orange Verte

I haven't used L'Orange Verte in a while. Very enjoyable finish after Atomic Holiday.

This was shave 18 of my run through all 14 generations of GEM-style razors:

~~1906-1953: GEM 1912/Star Cadet/Junior/Damaskeene~~
- FLS
- SLS
~~1914-1927: 1914~~
- FLS
- SLS
~~1924-1933: 1924 Shovelhead~~
- FLS
- SLS
~~1930-1932: Micromatic Open Comb Gen 1 (Bumpless baseplate)~~
- FLS
- SLS
~~1932-1941: Micromatic Open Comb Gen 2 (double-edge Micromatic GEM blades)~~
- FLS
- SLS
~~1940-1943: Micromatic Clog-Pruf~~
- FLS
- SLS
~~1945-1946: Micromatic Clog-Pruf Peerless~~
- FLS
- SLS
~~1947-1950: Micromatic Flying Wing/Bullet Tip, with guiding eye until 1948, with plastic knob in the last year~~
- FLS
- SLS
1949-1953: GEM Jewel/Streamline/Ambassador (The beginning of the end IMHO) ← We are here
- FLS
1950: New GEM Feather Weight, renamed to "Slim-V Flat Top" in 1953, British version sold as "Natural Angle" by Ever-Ready
1955-1958: GEM V-Slim "Heavy Flat Top" (G-Bar, shiny chrome), New V Natural Angle Heavy Flat Top (E-Bar, less shiny nickel)
1958-1965: Push Button
1965-1973: Contour
1973-1979: Contour II (The last GEM razor)

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 hour ago (1 children)

Quintidi 5 Frimaire an 233 de la Révolution, jour du Cochon

Preshave: Proraso Green Preshave
Brush: Zenith 506U XS Horse 🐎
Razor: GEM MMOC
Blade: Personna GEM PTFE (13)
Lather: Barrister & Mann Plague
Postshave: Naissance 702 Witch Hazel
Postshave: Epsilon Blue Mediterranean
Postshave: Nivea After Shave Balm

I coughed so much, I hurt my rib, and as a consequence, I don't feel confident using a straight for the moment. @[email protected]'s series increased my appreciation of GEM razors, so I used my MMOC (2nd generation). A good and close shave.

Have a good evening!

~Shared via emacs & sotd.el~

[–] [email protected] 3 points 58 minutes ago

Ugh, that sounds rough! Get well soon!

I coughed so much,

Seems like that BaM scent is way too realistic 😱

MMOC++;

[–] [email protected] 4 points 2 hours ago

November 25, 2024

Brush: Muninn Woodworks w/AP Shave Co 24mm Titanium Synthetic
Blade Holder: Smart Helix Apollo (setting: 0.5mm Plate)
Blade: Gillette Nacet (3)
Lather: Barrister and Mann - Hallows - Soap
Aftershave: Barrister and Mann - Hallows - Aftershave
Fragrance: Barrister and Mann - Hallows - Eau de Toilette

2 passes. Face lather. Excellent shave.

This is one of those scents that is greater than the sum of its parts. The scent notes are vetiver, oakmoss, black pepper, cocoa, labdanum, and cedar, and the overall blend feels well-suited for fall/winter. Nothing citrus or light-floral about it. It is supposed to be reminiscent of a graveyard, or churchyard. Oddly, I kind of get that vibe from it, but there's warmth to it as well that makes it pleasing and something I'm happy to smell like until the EdT wears off.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 4 hours ago

Monday, November 25, 2024: FLS

Brush: Grizzly Bay - v24 Fanchurian 26mm badger
Razor: GEM - Micromatic Clog-Pruf
Blade: Personna - GEM PTFE (3)
Lather: Southern Witchcrafts - Samhain
Post: Chiseled Face - Ghost Town Barber Aftershave splash
Post: Ginger's Garden - Unscented Aftershave balm (+ menthol)
Post: Stirling - Stirling Gentleman EdT

Samhain is a great scent for a gray, rainy morning. This was perhaps the best lather I've gotten from SW so far. I don't know what I did differently -- quite likely I just loaded heavier and used more water -- but it was lovely.

Praise a short week. Have a good one y'all!

🍳 Created with Neovim & sotd.nvim 🍳

[–] [email protected] 4 points 6 hours ago (2 children)

November 25, 2024

Brush: AP Shave Co. handle w/26mm Maggard SHD
Razor: Ever-Ready Streamline Jewel Gen 2
Blade: Personna GEM PTFE (2)
Lather: London Razors/Summer Break Soaps - Mountain Laurel - Soap
Post Shave: London Razors - Mountain Laurel - Aftershave
Post Shave: Goodfellow & Co. - Face Lotion - Kelp & Sea Mineral

I can't help but follow along with @[email protected] 's GEM calendar the past couple of days. The Streamline (mine is a Jewel) is pure luxury as far as I'm concerned. The build quality, especially the quality of the chrome plating, is superb.

u/120inna55 made a reddit post a while ago regarding the different variations of this razor. I copied his work into a wiki format and added his wonderful pictures in line so you don't have to click away to imgur to look at them. It's worth it just for the pictures. https://wiki.wetshaving.social/Curated_Articles/Streamline

This handle/knot combo is new to me. I used to have a 24mm Maggard 2-Band Badger knot in this handle, but after auditioning this knot for use in another handle I decided that I love this knot, but not enough for the other handle. I lofted it pretty much as high as it'll go, so it has pretty low backbone. Now I have a 24mm (bulb, meh), 26mm (this one), 28mm, and a 30mm SHD in my brush collection. This 26mm might be my favorite. My second favorite is the 30mm, but this one has a bit more texture to it while still be soft and comfy.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 hours ago (1 children)

I can't help but follow along with @[email protected] 's GEM calendar the past couple of days.

The more, the merrier! Grab your Featherweight for tomorrow if you have one!

Yeah, inna's posts with and about the Streamlines are great.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 hours ago (1 children)

I don't have a Featherweight or a Contour. You can bet I'll use the Pushbutton, though.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 hour ago

Excellent, looking forward to it!

[–] [email protected] 5 points 5 hours ago

Definitely an interesting read, thanks for sharing. I’m also glad this is preserved somewhere other than just Reddit.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 12 hours ago (2 children)

GEM Days 9a/14: Ever-Ready Streamline – Pretty Regression – Mon 25 Nov 2024

Brush: Zenith 506B MB (27 mm × 51 mm Manchurian badger)
Razor: Ever-Ready Streamline
Blade: Personna GEM PTFE
Lather: Geo. F. Trumper – Rose
Post Shave: Noble Otter – Two Kings
Fragrance: Mäurer und Wirtz – Tabac Man Gravity

This is shave 17 of my run through all 14 generations of GEM-style razors, and I have reached the Ever-Ready Streamline, or when things started going south IMO.

The Jewel/Streamline/Ambassador

A little bit of context. We're in 1949, the height of shaving technology is the Micromatic Flying Wing, and the 1912 is a about 4 decades old at this point. It is still being produced. Engineers of the American Safety Razor Company have since improved upon it by decoupling the blade alignment and clamping with the 1914 and 1924, both of which went out of production since. The engineers further improved upon it by developing the Micromatic twist-to-open mechanism that keeps your fingers nicely distanced from any spring-loaded top caps and sharp edges, but still the 1912 is being produced. It seems like ASR wants to produce fancy high-tech razors like the beautiful Flying Wing, they want to shake he legacy and limitations of the 1912 design, but something (likely economic pressure from the Gillette competition) keeps them in the low cost-low tech business of the 1912.

In this context, the Streamline/Jewel/Ambassador enters the scene. It's shiny, its hefty, it looks solid, and... It's a fancy 1912. A full regression to their first design. See for yourself †: closed and open

This is just a cast version of the 1912 and could have been produced as is in 1912. ASR just fully gave up on being a technology brand for this one and went for 100% nostalgia. This is the second generation of the Streamline, but this time it sticks and it marks the end of the Micromatic era. Starting with this second gen Streamline, all future razors by ASR will be less technologically advanced than the Micromatics (or mimic it with cheap plastic parts).

† There is also a rare early first generation 1936 Streamline, but the historical context is the same (substitute high tech MMOC for high tech Flying Wing).

The shave

Luckily, the 1912 is a great shaver, and the Streamline has inherited that. It's disappointing that this thing was made after the Micromatics, but as an as earlier GEM ad says, "So What? It's the shave that counts!"

I always enjoy the rose cream, and the combo with Two Kings and Gravity works well.

The timeline

~~1906-1953: GEM 1912/Star Cadet/Junior/Damaskeene~~
- FLS
- SLS
~~1914-1927: 1914~~
- FLS
- SLS
~~1924-1933: 1924 Shovelhead~~
- FLS
- SLS
~~1930-1932: Micromatic Open Comb Gen 1 (Bumpless baseplate)~~
- FLS
- SLS
~~1932-1941: Micromatic Open Comb Gen 2 (double-edge Micromatic GEM blades)~~
- FLS
- SLS
~~1940-1943: Micromatic Clog-Pruf~~
- FLS
- SLS
~~1945-1946: Micromatic Clog-Pruf Peerless~~
- FLS
- SLS
~~1947-1950: Micromatic Flying Wing/Bullet Tip, with guiding eye until 1948, with plastic knob in the last year~~
- FLS
- SLS
1949-1953: GEM Jewel/Streamline/Ambassador (The beginning of the end IMHO) ← We are here
1950: New GEM Feather Weight, renamed to "Slim-V Flat Top" in 1953, British version sold as "Natural Angle" by Ever-Ready
1955-1958: GEM V-Slim "Heavy Flat Top" (G-Bar, shiny chrome), New V Natural Angle Heavy Flat Top (E-Bar, less shiny nickel)
1958-1965: Push Button
1965-1973: Contour
1973-1979: Contour II (The last GEM razor)

[–] [email protected] 3 points 5 hours ago* (last edited 3 hours ago) (2 children)

This one really piques my curiosity. There’s something compelling about its design that appeals to me.

I might try to pick one up if I come across one.

Just to clarify: these don’t have a TTO mechanism, but the head levers open with that tab along the spine?

Great write up as always!

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 hours ago* (last edited 3 hours ago)

Let's see whether the attachments fix in lemmy is already live on this instance. If not, you'll have to look at this reply on mastodon

Edit: alas, doesn't seem to work. Check the video out here: https://wetshaving.social/@djundjila/113544935341588382

#Wetshaving #GEM

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 hours ago

Just to clarify: these don’t have a TTO mechanism, but the head levers open with that tab along the spine?

That's right. It work just like the 1912 and the top cap is held down by a buckling spring in the closed state. When you press down the little lever on the spine side of the top cap, the sitting resists until it buckling somewhere near mid opening and snaps open. Then you can change the blade, press down on the cap, and when the spring buckles back, it snaps shut. I'll upload a video later today, because it's easier to see than to read.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 7 hours ago* (last edited 7 hours ago) (2 children)

I love the Streamline, technology be darned!

The late 120inna55 had a really good writeup comparing the two versions of it, which I painstakingly copied to the wiki (and added his wonderful pictures so you don't have to click over to imgur).

Shameless plug for anyone interested:
https://wiki.wetshaving.social/Curated_Articles/Streamline

[–] [email protected] 3 points 4 hours ago

I love the looks, and I like the shave, and the engineer in me is unnecessarily and irrationally aggrieved and personally offended by the regression. IMO, MOIMO, YKMV.

One of if the best parts of pursuing a hobby is that we get to be unreasonable while doing it 🙃