December 4, 2023

• Brush: Oumo Warhammer Iceberg 27mm Meri-2

• Razor: C.V. Heljestrand MK 31 11/16 Söderfors Extra Specialstål Full Hollow

• Lather: Murphy and McNeil - The Great Bear - Soap

• Toner: Thayers - Rose - Toner

• Aftershave: Murphy and McNeil - The Great Bear - Aftershave

• Talc: Yardley Gold

2 passes. Face lather. Good shave.

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For my 400th straight razor shave in the last 18 months, I thought I would have a straightforward Murphy & McNeil Monday. Not at all. The soap demons were, once again, against me. I had an almost identical experience today to the one I had yesterday with Declaration Grooming Opulence. This was my fifth use of The Great Bear. I purchased it about a 1¾ years ago. I could not get it to build anything more than a damp, gooey paste.

When I opened the tub, the puck was dry and very hard so I floated a ¼ teaspoon of hot water on top of it while I showered. I brought a damp brush to it to lather, and got almost nothing in the brush. No suds in the tub at all. Like yesterday, I worked to get enough paste on the brush to spread on the face, add water to and shave with, but it would not build into a lather. It is similar to lathers I had when I shaved with bar soap back in the day, but it maintained its moisture longer.