Any success with purely topical regiments?

[Sir Derp]

I'm starting a daily routine of 1 ml of minoxidil and a few dabs of S5 along parts in my hair and along my hairline, hopefully I'll be throwing emu oil in the mix by the end of the week.

I use Nizoral EOD, I use tea tree shampoo on my 'off' days. I occasionally take saw palmetto and soy isoflavone supplements, generally about once a week, though I doubt they do anything.

So has anyone had much success using just minoxidil and topical spironolactone or am I just blowing my time and cash on false hope?
Any side effects with minoxidil/S5?
Major shedding?
Should I eventually seek to move to a bi-daily routine?
Any topicals you'd recommend?

 

[der29]

i used nizoral mixed with liquid gel saw palmetto capsules. thickened my crown after 7 months not as great finasteride though.

 

[The Far Side]

I've been doing something similar and had some mild success by the 3 month mark: http://www.hairlosstalk.com/interact/showthread.php/77993-A-final-attempt

I'd be surprised if I got much regrowth considering the areas I'm targetting but we'll see what happens. I wrote about sides there too, none from spironolactone and some from minoxidil. I wasn't applying to much of the existing hairline but I got a bit of shedding I guess. You're supposed to use minoxidil twice a day (every 12 hours) for the best results it says.