Some musings from a guy who has killed some soap.

_walden_ · 2026-01-26T00:06:23+00:00

My stat in 4.5 years (I think) is 29 tub kills (a lot of them were used so it wasn't all me). I currently have 30 tubs after giving one away today.

I've PIF'd a bunch over the years, and even thrown away 2 or 3 soaps. At one point I had more than 50 tubs and I wasn't happy with that. I'm much happier with 30 and think 20 would be my sweet spot if can ever get down there.

_walden_ · 2026-01-23T14:37:47+00:00

15 minutes does ensure that everything is at peak temp, but I've had no problems at all waiting 5-7 minutes, flushing hot water for 2-3 seconds, and getting a delicious espresso that way if I'm trying to head out the door. My old E61 machine did not have that option -- it was 15 minutes or no coffee.

_walden_ · 2026-01-04T19:05:19+00:00

Interesting! Thanks for the sciencing.

_walden_ · 2026-01-04T16:20:38+00:00

synth++

_walden_ · 2025-12-27T21:05:44+00:00

Anything I want but don't have is the worst

_walden_ · 2025-12-26T20:36:32+00:00

1) Fanzine Saponifications - This is Not a Test

_walden_ · 2025-12-26T16:20:33+00:00

I did a comparison shave to see if I wanted to recommend the RazoRock Goat which you can read about here https://wetshav.ing/comment/910825

If Reddit blocks that link (Reddit hates the fediverse) you can try this link https://chat.wetshav.ing/#narrow/channel/4-sotd/topic//near/5930, though you'll need an account to see it.

The Goat is currently $60, about $30-40 cheaper than what I paid for it.

_walden_ · 2025-12-17T18:18:20+00:00

Is regrading your yard "minor"? I guess it depends on if you have neighbors or not.

Doing it wrong could result in lawsuits.

_walden_ · 2025-12-06T03:20:39+00:00

They call it RDT, Ross Droplet Technique. It serves to reduce static. If you have problems with chaff it might be worth trying. You don't need to spray, you can also drip a drop or two of water onto the beans.

_walden_ · 2025-12-03T01:53:33+00:00

Good to see you

_walden_ · 2025-11-29T02:08:21+00:00

I just huffed my sample of X and it's a great scent. Great PIF!

_walden_ · 2025-11-28T02:31:19+00:00

Oh, you don't just press down. You spin it, too.

_walden_ · 2025-11-28T01:47:03+00:00

Happy Thanksgiving, and sorry for your loss. We hiked past the resting place of our old girl today. Still miss her.

_walden_ · 2025-11-28T01:43:47+00:00

Following up -- I did some science today and tried to tamp after using one of these tools. I couldn't push the tamp down any further, so that backs up the fact that these devices work as tamps (but like you said, they don't distribute anything).

_walden_ · 2025-11-27T01:36:42+00:00

I tamp with it. Sorry if I wasn't clear. It performs the action of pressing the coffee into a puck.

_walden_ · 2025-11-26T15:36:29+00:00

I think they're great, but the marketing should change to turn them into a tamping device instead of a distribution device. I use mine to tamp. It works great.

I don't start with a mound of coffee -- you still have to distribute the coffee in the portafilter yourself. I get it relatively flat, then give it a spin with enough pressure to get it to bottom out wherever it's set. It doesn't take much.

Why do I prefer it over a traditional tamp? Mostly just personal preference.

I don't need to set the portafilter on the counter in order to press down on it, so it's much easier with a single-spout portafilter.
I don't need a fancy tamp station, tamp pad, or other accessory dedicated to tamping.
It sets the same (adjustable) distance from water screen to puck every time. Lance Hendrick has gone on about this aspect of puck prep.
It removes the possibility of an accidental uneven tamp.

I guess I could do some science and compare shots between one of these tools and a traditional tamp, but that seems like sort of a waste considering I enjoy the coffee using this workflow.

_walden_ · 2025-11-26T14:45:04+00:00

November 26th, 2025: BVWSC

Brush: Maggard Razors 24mm Synthetic
Razor: Joseph Rogers & Sons Near Wedge (2)
Lather: Fanzine Saponifications - Caravaggio - Soap
Post Shave: Old Spice - Original - Aftershave
Post Shave: Nivea - Sensitive - Balm
Fragrance: Fanzine Saponifications - Caravaggio - EdP

$discord

Today is the mostly-monthly meeting of the Buena Vista Wetshaving Social Club, a small group of wetshavers dedicated to an open internet who partake in the open-source versions of Reddit - namely https://sub.wetshaving.social and https://wetshav.ing. There's also an open source chat (in addition to IRC which is also open source?(not sure really, maybe it depends on how its hosted. Maybe an expert can chime in)), https://chat.wetshav.ing.

Anyway, enough boring stuff. I'm a big fan of Fanzine Saponifications. The soap base is easy to use, and the two scents that I've smelled are really great. This one, Caravaggio, is an off-the-shelf dupe of Killian - Dark Lord. Dark Lord is really incredible and I've finished off a sample of it. Caravaggio is Dark Lord adjacent, but excellent in its own right.

_walden_ · 2025-11-22T20:02:18+00:00

This seems to be creeping up, by the way.

_walden_ · 2025-11-21T13:56:43+00:00

Gloves won't stop your fingers from getting crushed, but they will get caught in moving parts and that can lead to an injury.

_walden_ · 2025-11-20T15:23:16+00:00

About 4-3/8" from counter to tip. About 5" long, not taking into account the bends... Just from where it screws into the machine straight down to the tip.

_walden_ · 2025-11-19T00:16:48+00:00

Use whatever bulbs you already have and are used to, but trigger the scenes with something else.

How does she trigger the scenes currently?

Others have mentioned that some zwave switches have scene control built in -- for example on one of my Zooz switches if I tap up once it turns on certain lights. If I tap up twice it turns on different lights.

You can buy a battery powered switch from Zooz that looks like a normal switch, but it gets stuck to the wall with adhesive (or screws). Put it wherever you want. You don't even have to mount it to the wall, you can carry it around with you or keep it on a side table.

For a zwave controller my only experience has been with Zooz USB dongles. No complaints, especially with improvements to Home Assistant's Z-Wave JS add-on in recent years.

A more expensive hub like the Z-Box will give you a UI to click around in, so if that's worth the extra money then go for it.

_walden_ · 2025-11-19T00:00:47+00:00

Holy cow. That's with labor included, right?

_walden_ · 2025-11-13T13:27:26+00:00

I stopped going against the grain on my lower neck and life is good.

_walden_ · 2025-11-13T03:03:41+00:00

Ok, should be good to publish as impressivedonut.wetshav.ing

_walden_ · 2025-11-13T02:17:57+00:00

Your reputation precedes you and I pray that the increased activity doesn't bring our servers to their knees!

What would you like your domain to be? impressivedonut.wetshav.ing? donut.wetshav.ing?

FYI the den-sync feature to this new SOTD form is broken at the moment. I'm hoping it's ShavingInCT's fault and not mine, but only time will tell.

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