Safety Razors

Uriel.

Risteard wrote: »

Hey guys,

I ordered a DE razor and other assorted stuff recently and will have it when I get home from college at the end of the week.

I've basically had a beard of some sort for the last 2 years and even then was only clean shaven for a few weeks.

Anyway, I've trimmed my beard recently to about 5mm, would ye recommend trimming further before starting the shave (particularly as I'm only beginning DE shaving) or would the razor cope with that length fine?

While you certainly Could jump straight in with the DE, I think if you have an electric shaver you might be best off giving a once over with that first and try reduce the stubble a bit before using the DE.

Welcome to DE shaving. Take it slow and get used to the feel of the blade and razor. Remember keep pressure light, letting the weight of the razor apply the pressure for you.

Risteard

Yeah was thinking it myself will probably set it to the lowest setting and then start.

Looking forward to it. I've never liked being clean shaven partly because I used to get red bumps and burn (and still do when shaving my neck) with a Mach 3.

Uriel.

Risteard wrote: »

Yeah was thinking it myself will probably set it to the lowest setting and then start.

Looking forward to it. I've never liked being clean shaven partly because I used to get red bumps and burn (and still do when shaving my neck) with a Mach 3.

In my view, the pre and post shave routine is as important as the actual shave itself, so make sure to prep your face properly and take care to use a post shave soothing balm/lotion/cream. Might be no harm in your early days of shaving to avoid going against the grain on your neck if it is a problem spot.

If you study the growth on your neck you will likely find that hair grows in different direction on different parts of the neck. Instead of going against the grain on your neck to begin with, use your second past to go across the grain rather than against.

To be honest the bottom half of my neck years on from starting DE shaving is largely a no go for me on the against the grain front. Going against the grain there, while not as bad a result as it was following cartridge shaving is still left tender and bumpy so I usually just go against the grain about half way down and just to an across the grain pass the rest of the way and it does the job for me.

Everyone is different though, so you just have to experiment a bit until you find the best approach for your face.

Check out Mantic58 youtube videos for some excellent tutorials, if you haven't already.

Risteard

Yeah have looked at a lot of his videos. Had never really examined what direction my neck hair grew before, always just shaved downwards. Having looked at it it goes sideways pretty much the whole way apart from a small part in one side.

Insect Overlord

I had a 3 pass DE shave today after a fortnight using my new straight. It felt amazing. Very little irritation compared to how I used to feel if I did 3 passes.

I like the straight, but I haven't mastered getting very close with it yet. Great for the first pass, still slightly terrifying after that. It's nice to be able to combine it with the DE though. And I think it's helped to improve my technique with the DE too, especially with regards to stretching the skin properly. Happy days.

hitemfrank

So the Stahly Stroke Saver DE razor (1941-56) that I traded with waraf for, arrived today. Unfortunately it wasn't in time for me to shave with today so that will have to wait until tomorrow.

It was a pleasent surprise to find that the vibrating mechanism still worked on the Stahly. It is supposed to vibrate the razor head from side to side and help reduce irritation. The main thing I noticed about the razor was just how heavy it is. It weighs in at 175g which is just about 100g more than my other DE razor, a Merkur 34C. When you look at the razor you can see why it's so heavy. The handle is enormous compared to the razor head.

This isn't my picture but one I grabbed from Badger&Blade

I'm looking forward to the shave with it tomorow but I hope the weight of the razor doesn't lead to some irritation.

hitemfrank

I used the Stahly this morning with a Bolzano blade in it. I have to say it's quite a mild shaver despite the weight of it. I never felt like I was likely to nick myself with it.

I tried using it with the vibrating mechanism active and I cant say I noticed any difference from when it was off. Interesting idea though.

waraf

hitemfrank wrote: »

I used the Stahly this morning with a Bolzano blade in it. I have to say it's quite a mild shaver despite the weight of it. I never felt like I was likely to nick myself with it.

I tried using it with the vibrating mechanism active and I cant say I noticed any difference from when it was off. Interesting idea though.

I have to agree. I never found that the vibrating mechanism had any effect whatsoever. Interesting piece of razor history nonetheless.

hitemfrank

Yeah deifintely a cool bit of razor history. I find it funny that when Gillette introduced their vibrating Mach 3 about ten years ago as a new innovation in shaving, it was pretty much just a copy of an idea thought up 60-odd years previous.

waraf

hitemfrank wrote: »

Yeah deifintely a cool bit of razor history. I find it funny that when Gillette introduced their vibrating Mach 3 about ten years ago as a new innovation in shaving, it was pretty much just a copy of an idea thought up 60-odd years previous.

Yep - and it made feck all difference on the Mach 3 too as far as I remember

Risteard

So today marked my first foray into DE shaving.

First impression, definitely room for improvement on my part.

Was using an Edwin Jagger DE89L and Derby blades. I have a load of others so will start trying out others, though staying away from the feathers for quite a while!

I used green Proraso pre-shaving cream and shaving cream. That pre-cream would wake you up in the morning fairly lively.

About 5 or 6 small nicks/cuts but nothing a styptic pencil didn't cope with.

Also had to redo my lather, thought it looked fine on the brush but when applied to m y face seemed watery and could see through it, particularly on my neck. Though I'm not sure if that was because I would have had a bit of growth which poked through.

Had most problems with my jawline and cut myself there. Fell into he trap of treating it like a cartridge razor and tried to 'curve' it around.

Did 3 passes, 1 with and two across the grain in opposing directions.

So, what is my impression? Could probably get closer but that will probably come with experience (and it's still close, it's not like I have stubble or anything)

But the major thing, is my neck. Over the last few years the only area I would have shave would have been my neck and that was with a Mach 3. Consistently got heavy razor burn in one patch. Today however, even allowing for rookie technique, I have no razor burn in that area. At all.

Big win. I now have the comfort of knowing that if I do grow my beard back eventually (and being honest I probably will in a few months) I can use my DE to shave my neck without cutting it to ribbons.

Cabaal

Risteard wrote: »

Consistently got heavy razor burn in one patch. Today however, even allowing for rookie technique, I have no razor burn in that area. At all.

I used to always get razor burn and spots when i shaved my neck, since taking up a DE in 2009 I've never had anymore problems,

Goes to show all that marketing crap Gillette come out with is just that.....crap!

beardybrewer

Risteard wrote: »

Was using an Edwin Jagger DE89L and Derby blades. I have a load of others so will start trying out others, though staying away from the feathers for quite a while!

Even though blades are a personal preference thing, Derbys are one of the least popular blades on the big shaving forums. Work through you're blade sampler and you will surely find a better blade quickly. Also typically I do just 2-3 shaves per blade as they are so cheap.

Also had to redo my lather, thought it looked fine on the brush but when applied to m y face seemed watery and could see through it, particularly on my neck. Though I'm not sure if that was because I would have had a bit of growth which poked through.

Getting a good lather was the hardest thing for me. No one listens because it's too exciting to try everything at once, but I wish I'd stuck with canned goo for the first week and then added soap and brush later.

There difference between a good and bad lather is just a few drops of water and each soap is different so try to stick to one for now. One technique which helped me was to start with a relatively dry brush and build a few drops at a time. You know you've gone too far when you start seeing lots of microbubbles.

But the major thing, is my neck. ... even allowing for rookie technique, I have no razor burn in that area. At all.

Awesome. This was the big win for me too. After a week my wife noticed how much better it looked. I was too cheap to change my mach3s often but now can always afford a sharp shave.

Gran Hermano

Canned foam or gel whilst.convenient is not recommended.
It tends to offer poorer protection (cushion) when shaving.
You're more likely to end up with small nicks/weepers if when starting out you use foam/gel rather than a traditional soap/cream lather.

Spend around 15 euro on a Semogue or Omega boar. They break in after a short period and work well. A cheap tub of Proraso and some Palmolive shaving cream/soap stick from supermarket and you are good to go.

uncle_sam_ie

newkie wrote: »

Also typically I do just 2-3 shaves per blade as they are so cheap.

I just curious, how many shaves could you get from a DE blade if they were the same price as a Fusion blade.

Gran Hermano

I'd get 6 satisfactory shaves from a Gillette cartridge like Fusion or Mach 3. Pushing for extra shaves with same blade would cause irritation and ingrowing hairs.

With DE blades, I'd get away with 3-5 shaves per blade.
DE blades are so cheap there is no need to push for an extra sub par shave to justify cost.

Blade life will depend on your own beard, in particular how coarse it is.

Feather blades are the one exception for me. I rarely get more than 2 shaves from one blade.


I've head of people getting around 10 shaves from the one blade
(persona meds or the Gillette black Indian blades).

CrowdedHouse

newkie wrote: »

Getting a good lather was the hardest thing for me. No one listens because it's too exciting to try everything at once
There difference between a good and bad lather is just a few drops of water and each soap is different so try to stick to one for now. One technique which helped me was to start with a relatively dry brush and build a few drops at a time. You know you've gone too far when you start seeing lots of microbubbles.

Agreed

I'd recommend a beginner to use Palmolive cream to start with.

It's a very good cream in its own right and because it's inexpensive if you go wrong just sling it out and start again, not be worrying about 'wasting' your expensive cream

uncle_sam_ie

Gran Hermano wrote: »

I'd get 6 satisfactory shaves from a Gillette cartridge like Fusion or Mach 3. Pushing for extra shaves with same blade would cause irritation and ingrowing hairs.

With DE blades, I'd get away with 3-5 shaves per blade.
DE blades are so cheap there is no need to push for an extra sub par shave to justify cost.

Blade life will depend on your own beard, in particular how coarse it is.

Feather blades are the one exception for me. I rarely get more than 2 shaves from one blade.


I've head of people getting around 10 shaves from the one blade
(persona meds or the Gillette black Indian blades).

So a Fusion blade will only last just a few shaves more than a DE. Meaning if your shaving for a month on a Fusion cartridge your shaving most of the time with a dull blade( blades). Which is exactly what I've been doing.

Gran Hermano

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=55nPk2l2WIQ

I hadn't seen these adverts until I came across them on http://sharpologist.com/2014/03/proraso.html

Fakman87

Hey Lads,

I'm planning on buying a de razor, brush and shaving soap tomorrow.

My one question is, why do a lot of people on here say to get shaving soap AND shaving cream?

Thanks

Uriel.

Fakman87 wrote: »

Hey Lads,

I'm planning on buying a de razor, brush and shaving soap tomorrow.

My one question is, why do a lot of people on here say to get shaving soap AND shaving cream?

Thanks

No, not for use at the same time. For newcomers to DE /straight shaving it might be recommended to get both to try them out to see which you prefer/works best for your face, skin etc.

Personally I use cream (just started Geo F Trumper's almond.. Nice) for my normal home use and I use soap(bowled) when travelling - mostly so I don't lug my scuttle around with me.

Overall I probably favour cream shaving though.

Welcome To DE shaving.. At the beginning you'll probably find it more expensive as you try different creams, post and pre shaves etc etc. But that's half the joy :-)

Fakman87

I ordered from Shaving.ie yesterday afternoon and it came this morning. That's incredible service. Had my first de shave there. A few nicks and not the closest shave but I know it'll take time.

One question lads, is there a specific way of cleaning the lather off the brush when you're finished, or is it ok to just run water through it and leave it to dry naturally?

Michael G

Fakman87 wrote: »

I ordered from Shaving.ie yesterday afternoon and it came this morning. That's incredible service. Had my first de shave there. A few nicks and not the closest shave but I know it'll take time.

One question lads, is there a specific way of cleaning the lather off the brush when you're finished, or is it ok to just run water through it and leave it to dry naturally?

That's all you need to do. Then just give it a shake to get rid of some of the water. However they do recommend letting it dry upside-down and to do that you need a brush-stand.

Gran Hermano

This provides a good overview on brush usage and care.

http://www.shaving101.com/index.php/education/shaving-brush-basics/219-avoid-brush-damage-and-maximize-your-investment.html

Uriel.

Gran Hermano wrote: »

This provides a good overview on brush usage and care.

http://www.shaving101.com/index.php/education/shaving-brush-basics/219-avoid-brush-damage-and-maximize-your-investment.html

definitely worth taking care of the brush, especially when you spend serious money on one...

Fakman87

Thanks again lads. For the first 2 days I used Astra blades without many cuts or irritation. Today I tried a Gillette blade and when I shave up against the grain on my neck I had a good few cuts.

Is this usually an indication that the blade you are using is wrong for you?

Gran Hermano

Fakman87 wrote: »

Thanks again lads. For the first 2 days I used Astra blades without many cuts or irritation. Today I tried a Gillette blade and when I shave up against the grain on my neck I had a good few cuts.

Is this usually an indication that the blade you are using is wrong for you?

It might just be an indication that your technique needs a little more 'honing'.
Which Gillette blade type was it? The Gillette yellows are sharp and i find more likely to cause nicks. Astra's are a good beginners blade as they are sharp enough but also forgiving enough if your technique slips a tad. Another good blade range when starting out are the Personna blades, especially the reds.
http://www.shaving.ie/search.php?search_query=personna&x=0&y=0

Watch how much pressure you're using, go as light as possible. Relather between passes. Watch the angle of the razor head against your face. Normal to have a period where you go from being over cautious for the first few shave to getting a tad over complacent a few shaves in. :-)

uncle_sam_ie

In the last week of DE shaving I've used the Derby, Astra, Gillette Super Edge(yellow) and Timor. The best for me so far has been the Derby and Astra. With these the shave felt smooth and I got no skin irritation. The Timor was the worst. I could feel the blade cutting and I got mild skin irritation below my lower lip and neck. The Gillette was only a small bit better than the Timor. Am I right in thinking my skin doesn't favor the sharper blades? Is it the blades though? I been very careful with the pressure and angel.
Also, I've bought an old Gillette SS https://www.etsy.com/transaction/187787513 will I find a big differance in the way it shaves from the Muhle R89 Grande classic that I've been using?

hitemfrank

It will probably be a lot lighter than the R89 Grande. Super Speed razor are pretty nice shavers so it should serve you just fine.

beardybrewer

uncle_sam_ie wrote: »

Am I right in thinking my skin doesn't favor the sharper blades?

That is a possibility. You're the first person I've seen admit they like Derbys (and that's fine). I definitely like sharp blades. I disliked Feathers in the beginning but despite myself quickly progressed from Astra -> 7 o'clock yellows -> Feathers / Voskhods. Thing is I don't shave every day and have a coarse beard so after a couple of days need something sharp. Just goes to show it's a personal preference thing.

This is why the answer to every "what razor?" post is buy a sampler pack.

Also, try blades again in case your tastes change as your technique evolves.