u/AdWorried2804's SOTDs for challenge 'Mammoth Mafia 2024'

u/AdWorried2804 submitted 31 SOTDS.
  1. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-01 10:08:41-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 1, 2024 - AA24 Day 1

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (1)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (7)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (5)
    • Fragrance: Paco Rabanne - 1 Million EdT
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin u/EldrormR $MammothMafia24 u/Mammoth_Don

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 31th Consec / 427th Overall SOTD

    Here's the unboxing picture collage of my virgin Zenith 507N unbleached boar selected for the AA24 RawHoggin challenge. Here's the Day 1 bristle break-in progress picture taken just before the shave.

    I am also attempting to join the Mammoth Mafia. I chose Rumble for soap/post because it is the only Tusk soap I have that gives me difficulty when lather-building and AA is the perfect opportunity to figure out how to make a good lather with Rumble. In addition to the 507N unbleached boar, my MM24 with a new Personna PTFE SS GEM blade are my hardware choices. 1 Million is a fave of Mrs Worried so it gets the frag nod.

    The unbleached boar behaved and didn't smell too bad. The GEM was a little rough, but I expect it to smooth out after a few shaves. An overall uneventful shave and good start for AA24. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  2. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-02 09:00:33-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 2, 2024 - AA24 Day 2

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (2)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (8)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (6)
    • Fragrance: Paco Rabanne - 1 Million EdT
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 31th Consec / 427th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    Here's the Day 2 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Another uneventful shave with the unbleached boar and MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode hard/software. The boar is a bit scritchy, but it's nothing I can't handle. As it breaks in, I'm sure the tips of the 507N XSE will become as pillowy as my white-labeled Zenith 506U tips. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  3. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-03 07:31:03-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 3, 2024 - AA24 Day 3

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (3)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (9)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (7)
    • Fragrance: Paco Rabanne - 1 Million EdT
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 32nd Consec / 428th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    I got careless and accidently dropped my MM24. Prior to the drop the left side of the comb appeared to droop a little, but I ignored it sense I didn't think it affected my shave results. After the drop, the droop was significantly greater. Luckily, I have a jeweler's pliers, so after a little tweaking the droop was gone. I was concerned that my realignment effort would affect the shave, and it did... in a good way. Today was the smoothest shave I've had with the MM24! If the next couple of shaves are as smooth as this one, then I'll be able to take credit for improving my MM24's alignment.

    The 507N has smelled quite acceptable so far. Not sure if I got lucky, or if Rumble is masking the funk. Here's the Day 3 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  4. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-04 09:04:51-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 4, 2024 - AA24 Day 4

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (4)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (10)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (8)
    • Fragrance: Paco Rabanne - 1 Million EdT
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 33nd Consec / 429th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    The 507N is treating me well so far. The tips have a long ways to go before they can be considered broken in, but so far, the scritchiness is very tolerable. I'm very happy with both its backbone and splay, and hoping that as the tips break in, the backbone and splay remain unchanged.

    Here's the Day 4 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  5. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-05 08:45:31-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 5, 2024 - AA24 Day 5

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (5)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (11)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (9)
    • Fragrance: Paco Rabanne - 1 Million EdT
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 34th Consec / 430th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    We're 5 days into AA RawHoggin and still no funky smells have emanated from the Unbleached Boar. The bristles are slowly starting to split, but the knot's still dropping two to three bristles each shave. Overall progress is a little behind last AA's 506U break-in, but since the 506U was bleached and this 507N is unbleached, the delayed progress is understandable.

    Here's the Day 5 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  6. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-06 09:39:14-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 6, 2024 - AA24 Day 6

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (6)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (12)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (10)
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; DFS Result; 35th Consec / 431st Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    With the bristle tips starting to split the boar no longer feels scritchy, although now I can feel that a few of the bristles are inverted. They don't bother me so I'm not going to worry about them, however if they're still noticeable after the knot is fully broken in, I'll pluck them.

    Here's the Day 6 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

    Note: As I was preparing today's images, I realized I uploaded the wrong images for my Aug 4 and 5 AA SOTD's. On Aug 4 I uploaded Aug 3's pics, and on Aug 5 I uploaded Aug 4's pics. Here are the correct pics for Aug 4 & 5:

    Aug 4: SOTD, bristle break-in progress pictures
    Aug 5: SOTD, bristle break-in progress pictures

  7. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-07 08:09:48-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 7, 2024 - AA24 Day 7

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (7)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (13)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (11)
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBSS Result; 36th Consec / 432nd Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    No signs of shedding over the last few days. Using the break-in of my 506U as reference, that means I'm one step closer to breaking in the 507N.

    Here's the Day 7 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  8. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-08 07:48:45-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 8, 2024 - AA24 Day 8

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (8)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (14)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (12)
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 38th Consec / 434th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    My goal when loading my brush is to have enough soap to build 4 passes worth of lather. For the first few days of AA I needed to load 2.1g of soap to have 4 passes of lather. Today I loaded 1.7g and had at least 5 passes of lather. Today's lather quantity is a good sign that the bristle break-in is progressing nicely, but as a precaution I'll continue to load on the heavy side until the unbleached boar is completely broken in.

    Here's the Day 8 bristle break-in progress pictures. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  9. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-09 07:48:02-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 9, 2024 - AA24 Day 9

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (9)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (15)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (13)
    • Fragrance: Paco Rabanne - 1 Million EdT
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 39th Consec / 435th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    Very enjoyable shave today. The GEM blade was noisy but was as smooth as butter. This is my 54th shave with the MM24 and I'm just now dialed in the blade angle, head pressure and amount of buffing that gives an efficient shave without causing irritation. If I can keep this up, 31 days with this GEM blade will be a breeze.

    Here's the Day 9 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

    Edit: corrected bad pic links

  10. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-10 09:52:19-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 10, 2024 - AA24 Day 10

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (10)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (16)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (14)
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 40th Consec / 436th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    I played being a good Dad and watched/supported my son's soccer team participate in a one-day tournament (they won the championship in their age group - Yea!). What I didn't do so good was protect myself from the sun. For most of the tourney the bleacher area was shielded from the sun, but for the championship game the sun had a spotlight on me. While I started the day pasty white, now I'm the same color as a Maine lobster after taking a boiling water bath. You'd think after 61 years I'd know how to protect myself from the sun, but today proved once again that I'm a very slow learner. Luckily the burn doesn't hurt, so I was able to complete today's shave without any discomfort.

    Here's the Day 10 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  11. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-11 08:42:57-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 11, 2024 - AA24 Day 11

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (11)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (17)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (15)
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 41th Consec / 437th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    Timing is everything, and today my timing was good. Shortly after I finished shaving/showering, we lost water pressure in our subdivision. This happens every other month or so here in the PI, and it typically takes 6 to 12 hours for water to be restored. We keep an emergency reserve of water so that we can function during a water outage, but it's still a pain in the ass.

    Here's the Day 11 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  12. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-12 07:25:32-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 12, 2024 - AA24 Day 12

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (12)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (18)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (16)
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 42nd Consec / 438th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    I don't know what it is about this tub of Rumble, but it requires significantly more water during face lather-building than the other 15 varieties of HoM Tusk-based soaps that I've used. This tub is from the original production of Rumble and is a bit dried out, but so is my tub of Fú Dào and it still behaves similarly to my other HoM soaps. While it takes longer to get Rumble fully hydrated, that means I'm spending more time face-lathering and that should benefit the breaking-in of the Unbleached Boar.

    Here's the Day 12 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  13. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-13 07:00:51-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 13, 2024 - AA24 Day 13

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (13)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (19)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (17)
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 43rd Consec / 439th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    Here's the Day 13 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  14. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-14 07:30:12-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 14, 2024 - AA24 Day 14

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (14)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (20)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (18)
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 44th Consec / 440th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    Here's the Day 14 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  15. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-15 08:04:37-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 15, 2024 - AA24 Day 15

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (15)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (21)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (19)
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 45th Consec / 441st Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    Here's the Day 15 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  16. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-16 08:22:38-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 16, 2024 - AA24 Day 16

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (16)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (22)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (20)
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 46th Consec / 442nd Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    Today is AA hump day. The unbleached boar is still slowly-but-steadily breaking-in, with tips starting to split, knot splaying just enough for the bristles to be scrubby without being scritchy, and the backbone being right where I like it. If the current splay and backbone are retained when the knot becomes fully broken in, I can see this becoming my favorite brush. Time will tell.

    Here's the Day 16 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  17. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-17 09:37:43-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 17, 2024 - AA24 Day 17

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (17)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (23)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (21)
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 47th Consec / 443rd Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    Prior to AA my tub of Rumble without cover weighed 174.8g. Today the Rumble soap started detaching from the tub, so I popped it out and weighed the tub sans soap. My empty tub without cover weights 79.3g, thus I started AA with 95.5g of soap. Today my soap without tub weighs 63.9g, so I've used 31.6g of Rumble during the first 17 days of AA and am averaging 1.86g of soap per shave. This reflects how heavy I was loading the soap during the first few days of AA. I was loading 2.1g+ of soap in order to build my desired amount of lather (4+ passes of lather) but am currently loading around 1.75g per shave. I'm producing an over-abundance of lather so I could probably get away with loading around 1.6g of soap but I don't want to risk it before the unbleached boar fully breaks in. I'll weight my soap again after the final shave of AA to see what my final average daily use ends up being.

    Here's the Day 17 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  18. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-18 07:03:11-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 18, 2024 - AA24 Day 18

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (18)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (24)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (22)
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 48th Consec / 444th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    This GEM blade continues to surprise me. For the last few shaves, the blade was starting to feel scrapy, but today the blade was as smooth as butter. The blade remains as efficient as it was during its first few shaves. Here's hoping that this GEM continues to shine for the remainder of AA.

    Here's the Day 18 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  19. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-19 09:17:33-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 19, 2024 - AA24 Day 19

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (19)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (25)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (23)
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 49th Consec / 445th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    Here's the Day 19 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  20. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-20 07:42:24-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 20, 2024 - AA24 Day 20

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (20)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (26)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (24)
    • Fragrance: Paco Rabanne - 1 Million EdT
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 50th Consec / 446th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    Here's the Day 20 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  21. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-21 07:47:40-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 21, 2024 - AA24 Day 21

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (21)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (27)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (25)
    • Fragrance: Paco Rabanne - 1 Million EdT
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 51st Consec / 447th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    Here's the Day 21 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  22. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-22 08:00:08-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 22, 2024 - AA24 Day 22

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (22)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (28)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (26)
    • Fragrance: Paco Rabanne - 1 Million EdT
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 52nd Consec / 448th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    Here's the Day 22 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  23. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-23 10:01:46-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 23, 2024 - AA24 Day 23

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (23)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (29)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (27)
    • Fragrance: Paco Rabanne - 1 Million EdT
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 53rd Consec / 449th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    I've previously pushed GEM blades to 22 shaves, so starting today I'll be setting my personal best for blade longevity. Blade efficiency has been steadily dropping off over the last few shaves, but the blade is not tuggy and I'm not experiencing any irritation from over-buffing. I'm too stubborn to end Ultra Nightmare Mode before the end of AA, but I can easily handle 8 more days like today's shave.

    Here's the Day 23 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  24. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-24 08:25:11-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 24, 2024 - AA24 Day 24

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (24)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (30)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (28)
    • Fragrance: Paco Rabanne - 1 Million EdT
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 54th Consec / 450th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    Blade efficiency continues to decline. I'm overcompensating by increasing buffing in the chin and jawline areas, so it's only a matter of time before irritation sets in. I may need to lower my shaving result expectations to keep my face happy for the rest of AA, but today's not that day.

    Here's the Day 24 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  25. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-25 08:31:20-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 25, 2024 - AA24 Day 25

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (25)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (31)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (29)
    • Fragrance: Paco Rabanne - 1 Million EdT
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 55th Consec / 451st Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    The blade was a bit tuggy when going ATG on the sides of the chin along the jaw line, but otherwise performed better than I would expect a 25-shave blade to do. With blade efficiency falling off, I focused on using short, light strokes in an effort to deliver a close shave without irritation. I'm very happy with the results.

    Here's the Day 25 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  26. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-26 08:44:03-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 26, 2024 - AA24 Day 26

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (26)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (32)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (30)
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; DFS Result; 56th Consec / 452nd Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    Once again, I focused on using short, light strokes and again was rewarded with a close shave without irritation. I didn't expect this kind of results after 26 shaves on the GEM, but I'm not arguing!

    Here's the Day 26 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  27. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-27 08:16:58-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 27, 2024 - AA24 Day 27

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (27)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (33)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (31)
    • Fragrance: Paco Rabanne - 1 Million EdT
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; DFS Result; 57th Consec / 453rd Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    Here's the Day 27 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  28. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-28 09:41:44-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 28, 2024 - AA24 Day 28

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (28)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (34)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (32)
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 58th Consec / 454th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    Here's the Day 28 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  29. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-29 06:43:36-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 29, 2024 - AA24 Day 29

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (29)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (35)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (33)
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 59th Consec / 455th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    Here's the Day 29 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  30. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-30 09:08:11-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 30, 2024 - AA24 Day 30

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (30)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (36)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (34)
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 60th Consec / 456th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    Here's the Day 30 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.

  31. u/AdWorried2804 posted on 2024-08-31 08:32:28-07:00 (Pacific Standard Time). Reddit Comment (See markdown)

    August 31, 2024 - AA24 Day 31

    • Brush: Zenith 507N XSE 27.5mm x 57mm Unbleached Boar Bristle w/ Retro Black handle
    • Razor: EldrormR Industries MM24
    • Blade: Personna PTFE Stainless Steel GEM (31)
    • Lather: House of Mammoth - Rumble (37)
    • Post Shave: House of Mammoth - Rumble AS Balm (35)
    • Tags: $Discord $RawHoggin $MammothMafia24

    Precision Load; Face Lather; WTG/ATG/Cleanup Passes; BBS Result; 61st Consec / 457th Overall SOTD; MRTNG's Ultra Nightmare Mode AA rules

    AA D-Day has arrived! For 30 days I've avoided razor burn, but not today. The irritation was minor compared to some of the self-mutilation I've given myself shaving, but relative to my previous AA shaves, it was a stark difference. Today's irritation was worth it because now I know that I can push a blade 30+ shaves if I consistently use the short stroke/light touch technique I developed this AA with the MM24. I'm looking forward to further developing this technique with my injector and AC SE's and my DE's.

    The breaking in of the Zenith unbleached boar is coming along nicely. IIRC, someone commented that it takes around 60 shaves for an unbleached boar to fully break in, and considering how far along my Zenith is to being broken in, 60 shaves seem about right.

    I started AA with 95.5g of Rumble and after today's shave I had 39g remaining. I used 56.6g of soap during AA, which averages out to 1.82g of soap per day. For comparison, when using synthetics like the G5C I typically use 1.5g of soap per shave, and when using SHD's like the Fanchurian I typically use 1.7g per shave. I'm curious to see how much soap the Unbleached Boar will need once it's fully broken in, but for now I'll continue with the heavy loads to ensure I have sufficient lather for the shave.

    Here's the Day 31 bristle break-in progress pictures taken just before the shave. Happy shaving and have a wonderful day.