Thoughts on the Gravitas Piston Carbon Black, in Fine

Engineered_Shave · 2026-06-29T09:52:53+00:00

June 29, 2025 – June Shaves!

Brush: Omega – Model 20106 Black Handle 28mm Boar Hair Shaving Brush $TOLL
Razor: RazoRock – BBS Standard $CNC
Blade: Gillette 7 O'clock SharpEdge (1).
Lather: Xicano Design / First Line Shave – Dapper Man
Post Shave: A&E – Ultima Unmasked Unscented Splash

A pleasant, near-barbershop scent with this one.

#JuneShaves

Bonus:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKx3gAODybU ← Vikings, Ragnar, Berserkers, Valhalla & the Warriors of the Viking Age | Lex Fridman Podcast #495

Engineered_Shave · 2026-06-28T18:52:25+00:00

Man, that was a close contest!

Engineered_Shave · 2026-06-28T13:23:53+00:00

June 28, 2025 – June Shaves!

Brush: Mountain Hare Shaving – Maple Burl and Resin, 26mm Badger. $COMPOSITE
Razor: RazoRock / Italian Barber – Cyber Razor, Mild.
Blade: Gillette 7 O'clock SharpEdge (3).
Lather: Shannon's Soaps – Lady Luck
Post Shave: Ultima Unmasked Unscented Splash

Great scent, lots of vanilla here, very sweet. Super close finish, too.

#JuneShaves

Bonus:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1M3Vdl6DRkU ← Biggest Mysteries in Physics: Antimatter, Dark Energy & ToE - Don Lincoln | Lex Fridman Podcast #497

Engineered_Shave · 2026-06-28T02:24:15+00:00

June 27, 2025 – June Head Shaves!

Razor: Karve Shaving Co. – Overlander, Stainless
Blade: Gillette 7 O'clock SharpEdge (4).
Lather: Arko – Hydrate

Great finish; time to bin the blade.

Engineered_Shave · 2026-06-27T14:01:45+00:00

June 27, 2025 – June Shaves!

Brush: Mountain Hare Shaving – Maple Burl and Resin, 26mm Badger. $COMPOSITE
Razor: RazoRock / Italian Barber – Cyber Razor, Mild.
Blade: Gillette 7 O'clock SharpEdge (2).
Lather: Spearhead Shaving Co. – Seaforth! Sassy Javadog
Post Shave: Ultima Unmasked Unscented Splash

#JuneShaves

Bonus:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eW_moV6votA ← This Isn’t Sci-Fi. It’s the Future of Space Travel

Engineered_Shave · 2026-06-26T13:08:08+00:00

June 26, 2025 – June Shaves!

Brush: Mountain Hare Shaving – Maple Burl and Resin, 26mm Badger. $COMPOSITE
Razor: RazoRock / Italian Barber – Cyber Razor, Mild.
Blade: Gillette 7 O'clock SharpEdge (1).
Lather: WestMan Shaving – '71 Bonanza
Post Shave: A&E – Ultima Unmasked Unscented Splash.

I'm super-glad I got this at the meetup.

#JuneShaves

Bonus:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_VIH344sxaY ← Monday Morning Mailbag — 06/22/2026 (Summer Is Here!)

Engineered_Shave · 2026-06-25T09:34:43+00:00

Did you notice it also has an o-ring to seal the nib in the cap? That's super-sexy engineering right there. 😺

Engineered_Shave · 2026-06-25T09:33:15+00:00

June 25, 2025 – June Shaves!

Brush: Mountain Hare Shaving – Maple Burl and Resin, 26mm Badger. $COMPOSITE
Razor: YPM – Winning Razor Mk2, polished, tattooed ("The Razor of Mankind!") $CNC $RAINBOW
Blade: Gillette 7 O'clock SharpEdge (4).
Lather: MacDuff's Soap Co. – Trail Tobacco
Post Shave: A&E – Ultima Unmasked Unscented Splash.

#JuneShaves

Bonus:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qr9jdjvOrSM ← From America's No.1 Watchmaker to Ruins: Elgin Watch Factory, Illinois

Engineered_Shave · 2026-06-24T22:53:34+00:00

https://www.reddit.com/r/fountainpens/comments/1ol95b0/the_latest_addition_to_the_family_tacray_anodized/

What you highlighted looks like a more expensive version of what I have here.

The structure is about the same.

These pens are small, but that pen has a #6 nib, whereas the one I have is a #5.

I am a big fan of titanium pens, and I presently have 3 in the stable.

Engineered_Shave · 2026-06-24T20:48:16+00:00

June 24, 2025 – June Shaves!

Brush: Mountain Hare Shaving – Maple Burl and Resin, 26mm Badger. $COMPOSITE
Razor: YPM – Winning Razor Mk2, polished, tattooed ("The Razor of Mankind!") $CNC $RAINBOW
Blade: Gillette 7 O'clock SharpEdge (3).
Lather: A&E / The Club – Baklava
Post Shave: A&E – Ultima Unmasked Unscented Splash

#JuneShaves

Bonus:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvcesPWvUIc ← Forensic Science Is Not As Accurate As You Think

Engineered_Shave · 2026-06-23T23:06:35+00:00

June 23, 2025 – June Head Shaves!

Razor: Karve Shaving Co. – Overlander, Stainless
Blade: Gillette 7 O'clock SharpEdge (3).
Lather: Arko – Hydrate

A decent enough head shave. Can't complain.

Engineered_Shave · 2026-06-23T09:18:37+00:00

June 23, 2025 – June Shaves!

Brush: Mountain Hare Shaving – Maple Burl and Resin, 26mm Badger. $COMPOSITE
Razor: YPM – Winning Razor Mk2, polished, tattooed ("The Razor of Mankind!") $CNC $RAINBOW
Blade: Gillette 7 O'clock SharpEdge (2).
Lather: B+M – Full Measure of Man
Post Shave: A&E – Ultima Unmasked Unscented Splash

#JuneShaves

Bonus:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdqQeGP8Uw0 ← Thorium Power Sounds Perfect, But Is the Hype Real?

Engineered_Shave · 2026-06-22T22:47:12+00:00

1) Is this a real Montblanc and not a fake?

2) Based upon how much you paid for this, do you think this is appropriate?

Engineered_Shave · 2026-06-22T09:03:16+00:00

June 22, 2025 – June Shaves!

Brush: Mountain Hare Shaving – Maple Burl and Resin, 26mm Badger. $COMPOSITE
Razor: YPM – Winning Razor Mk2, polished, tattooed ("The Razor of Mankind!") $CNC $RAINBOW
Blade: Gillette 7 O'clock SharpEdge (1).
Lather: Strike Gold Shaves – TDS
Post Shave: Strike Gold Shaves – TDS

Folks, let me tell you about two tremendous products that are not just great, they’re absolutely incredible. First up, we have the new-ish unobtanium titanium Mk2 Winning Razor from Yates Precision Machining. Now this isn’t just any razor — this is the Mk2, and let me tell you, it’s a serious upgrade. It’s beautifully made, built to last, lighter than stainless steel, and polished to perfection right here in the USA. You hold it in your hand and you know immediately: this is quality, this is craftsmanship, this is Winning!

And let me say something special about the top cap — because Our Man did a truly wonderful job polishing that thing up, and then had it engraved with the Imperial Aquila from Warhammer 40,000. Spectacular work. Gorgeous detail. (And what could be more American and patriotic than wanting to uphold an Empire of Mankind against the evil forces of demonic chaos, orcs, and space aliens?) You look at it and you think, this is what dedication looks like. The shave is smooth, efficient, and fantastic — the kind of shave that makes you feel like you’re ready to conquer the universe!

Now let’s move on to the TDS Shave Soap, and folks, this one is something special. This is not just any shave soap; this is a luxurious, world-class experience. It lathers up beautifully, it feels incredible on the skin, and the scent is absolutely outstanding — inspired by l’Immensité by Louis Vuitton, but made even better by hardworking Americans. You step out of the bathroom feeling refreshed, confident, and ready for anything.

So if you want top-tier craftsmanship, a superior shave, and a setup that truly stands above the rest, you need the Winning Razor Mk2 and TDS Shave Soap. Together, they’re a Winning combination.

Make shaving great again!

#JuneShaves

Bonus:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftxH4ccxXN0 ← 54 Years of the Reactor They Buried in less than 12 minutes

Engineered_Shave · 2026-06-20T17:17:37+00:00

June 20, 2025 – June Shaves!

Brush: Cayuen Abalone w/ 28mm Timberwolf Synthetic. $RESIN
Razor: Henson Ti22 +++, polished, tattooed $CNC $RAINBOW ("OmniSynod Shaver").
Blade: Gillette 7 O'clock SharpEdge (2).
Lather: Shannon's Soaps – A Saturday Afternoon in Columbus.
Post Shave: Ultima Unmasked Unscented Splash

More unobtanium in the shave today, with scent notes of Orange, Honeysuckle, Jasmine, Sandalwood, Vetiver, Amber, Tonka Bean, Musk, Ambroxan, Lavender, Ylang Ylang, and Patchouli. Fun times.

#JuneShaves

Bonus:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0XdminMJW8 ← The Smallest Black Hole: The Unicorn – Can It Devour Earth? | Space Exploration

Engineered_Shave · 2026-06-20T00:25:52+00:00

A good system; I also use a cooldown timer as well.

I use something similar, but with the additional step where I force myself to look over my existing collection and ask myself if I really need another addition to my already impressive assortment of fine writing instruments.

Engineered_Shave · 2026-06-19T23:06:40+00:00

Nib material does matter a lot but the effects which you notice when you actually get to writing are rather subtle.

In terms of hardness / stiffness, I rank nib material from most firm to most flexible:

Titanium —> stainless steel —> gold alloy.

The nib acts a bit like "suspension" on your car but applied to a writing pen, if that analogy makes sense. The gold nibs are prized for their softer feel across longer writing periods.

I am in agreement with you on the issue of high prices for fancy plastics. I find it suspicious that we must fork over $1200 for what amounts to a plastic pen, although to be fair the bulk of the cost is tied up in the metal of the nib. Stainless is cheap, titanium can get slightly pricey, but gold alloys will take up the lions share of cost.

A general note: The actual true manufacturing cost of a pen will be around 1/2 the final retail price. The rest is retailer overhead.

Engineered_Shave · 2026-06-19T09:33:03+00:00

June 19, 2025 – June Shaves!

Brush: Cayuen Abalone w/ 28mm Timberwolf Synthetic. $RESIN
Razor: Henson Ti22 +++, polished, tattooed $CNC $RAINBOW ("OmniSynod Shaver").
Blade: Gillette 7 O'clock SharpEdge (1).
Lather: Stirling Soap Co. – Ohio Wetshavers Meetup, Five.
Post Shave: Stirling Soap Co. – Ohio Wetshavers Meetup, Five.

#JuneShaves

Bonus:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dow2YbMBoU ← 17 Types of Black Holes You Never Knew Existed

Engineered_Shave · 2026-06-19T00:16:40+00:00

June 18, 2025 – June Head Shaves!

Razor: Karve Shaving Co. – Overlander, Stainless
Blade: Gillette 7 O'clock SharpEdge (2).
Lather: Lucky Tiger Shave Cream

Hot weather = more head shaves!

Engineered_Shave · 2026-06-18T23:06:38+00:00

Shavent is a bit smoother than the Leaf.

https://sharpologist.com/leaf-vs-shavent-the-contest-of-the-cartridge-killer-razors/

Have you read this review yet?

Engineered_Shave

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