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Post by davelewis on Aug 16, 2017 17:18:41 GMT -6
So after about 7 years of wearing a beard, I decided to shave for at least the rest of the Summer, lol. I remember the hassle of running out of blades, and going to the store, and them not having the kind I wanted, and about how much they had gone up in price since I last bought them, etc, and decided to go a different rout. I ordered up a shave ready straight razor, and the supplies necessary to support this endeavor, and the stuff came today.
First shave ever with a straight razor, and have to say it went pretty well. I wasn't expecting a baby's butt type shave first time out of the box, but it turned out not too bad. There is certainly a learning curve with this. Do we have any other straight razor guys here?
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Post by gaseousclay on Aug 16, 2017 17:43:34 GMT -6
I used to want to try it out but have always feared nicking myself pretty badly. Have had a beard for at least 6 months now and kinda like not having to deal with it so much
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Post by davelewis on Aug 16, 2017 18:27:26 GMT -6
I used to want to try it out but have always feared nicking myself pretty badly. Have had a beard for at least 6 months now and kinda like not having to deal with it so much I hear ya on the not wanting to deal with it. My job as a firefighter, wouldn't allow facial hair, other than a mustache, because the hair would prevent you from getting the proper seal on your face mask while wearing an SCBA. That's why I quit shaving, after I retired, because it was a nice change. From the research I did, they key to a straight razor is to purchase from a reputable dealer, where they make sure the blade is shave ready, because they are not properly prepared from the factory. If they are not sharp enough, you run into problems. Razors are actually delicate instruments, and have to be stropped before every use, which is why you see the barber doing this on the leather strap, and then eventually you have to hone the blade. Definitely a skill level required, but I'm willing to give it a go, plus it gives me a new endeavor to try, AND when the wife is getting under my skin, I can excuse myself to go strop my blade. |
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Post by gaseousclay on Aug 16, 2017 18:30:31 GMT -6
I opened the DE razor can of worms 7 yrs ago and went hog wild on gear. I don't want to do that again with more shaving gear.
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Shaving.
Aug 16, 2017 18:34:42 GMT -6
via mobile
Post by bentin on Aug 16, 2017 18:34:42 GMT -6
Same, DE works for what I need, so haven't tried straight. But probably will one day. Just like I just started doing pour over coffee after more than a decade of press.
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Post by davelewis on Aug 16, 2017 19:40:16 GMT -6
Same, DE works for what I need, so haven't tried straight. But probably will one day. Just like I just started doing pour over coffee after more than a decade of press. I haven't tried the pour over method, but it seems like a good method since I would filter the coffee out of the press anyway. I usually take my shots of espresso, and run them through a filter also, as I drink quite a bit of coffee, and the oils in strong brewed coffee supposedly can raise the LDL in your blood, which I don't need. I also tell myself that a nightly shot or two of whiskey strips the bad crap out of your blood, lol |
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Post by davelewis on Aug 16, 2017 19:44:10 GMT -6
I opened the DE razor can of worms 7 yrs ago and went hog wild on gear. I don't want to do that again with more shaving gear. You are correct on that front. I have been checking out some of the shaving forums, and was astonished at the amount of gear some of the shaving gurus acquire. I would say between having a collection of many razors, and a dozen shave brushes at a couple of hundred a pop, and creams, and lotions, etc, and your talking about the dough you would spend on a closet full of IH gear, lol |
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Post by bentin on Aug 16, 2017 20:01:39 GMT -6
I opened the DE razor can of worms 7 yrs ago and went hog wild on gear. I don't want to do that again with more shaving gear. You are correct on that front. I have been checking out some of the shaving forums, and was astonished at the amount of gear some of the shaving gurus acquire. I would say between having a collection of many razors, and a dozen shave brushes at a couple of hundred a pop, and creams, and lotions, etc, and your talking about the dough you would spend on a closet full of IH gear, lol There are a lot of good fats in those oils too. So I mentally call it a wash. Some bad, some good. Pour over is good, but different. I love high tannin, highly acidic red wines with higher alcohol content. Zinfandel and Nebbiolo. French press strikes me like that. The pourover is a lighter, cleaner, more sophisticated cuppa. More like a bright Pinot Noir or even a fresh Beajoulais. Or compare an Islay like Laguvullin to a Moray like the Glens. I like the raw edges and the bite. So I may give the metal filters a go with the pourover, as they let more acids through and don't result in quite as clean of a cup. And coming back around, have we discussed Mike's Shave Soaps? After years of the British 3 T's, I couldn't be happier with Mike's soaps. Good stuff! |
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Post by gaseousclay on Aug 16, 2017 20:33:27 GMT -6
I opened the DE razor can of worms 7 yrs ago and went hog wild on gear. I don't want to do that again with more shaving gear. You are correct on that front. I have been checking out some of the shaving forums, and was astonished at the amount of gear some of the shaving gurus acquire. I would say between having a collection of many razors, and a dozen shave brushes at a couple of hundred a pop, and creams, and lotions, etc, and your talking about the dough you would spend on a closet full of IH gear, lol Exactly. Besides, i'd rather spend some dough on IH gear than more razors and such. Luckily for me the DE novelty wore off for me after 2 yrs and I stopped buying gear...just didn't see the point. |
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Shaving.
Aug 16, 2017 20:50:19 GMT -6
via mobile
Post by bentin on Aug 16, 2017 20:50:19 GMT -6
Agreed. I buy blades by the 100, they last about four years. I'm happy with my razor and my brush and a bar of soap lasts me about a year. So there's not much expenditure now that I know what I like. Really the only expense I have is buying a three pack of disposable razors when we fly places. Amusingly those cost more than what I spend to shave the rest of the year.
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Post by davelewis on Aug 16, 2017 23:22:57 GMT -6
I bought a Dovo full hollow ground razor, a brush, strop, and soap to start. I figure that is really all I should need for quite some time, and when I need more soap down the road, I'll probably experiment with others. I figure the only thing I'll have to pick up in the future, is a honing stone for when I need to resharpen the blade, but that's about it. If it all becomes too much, I can always grow back the beard. The only caveat is that although my wife tolerates my beard and loves me for me, she really prefers me shaven, as that is how I came when she met me, lol
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Post by hopsbreath on Aug 17, 2017 8:24:24 GMT -6
DE razor, blades, and a single brush was all I bought (for about $50) when I "opened that can of worms" a couple years ago. Must have been lucky out of the gate and got some decent gear. Fully bearded at the moment though, rocking the dad beard for while my wife is pregnant; plan on shaving when she gives birth in February.
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Post by ickes on Aug 17, 2017 13:20:12 GMT -6
So after about 7 years of wearing a beard, I decided to shave for at least the rest of the Summer, lol. I remember the hassle of running out of blades, and going to the store, and them not having the kind I wanted, and about how much they had gone up in price since I last bought them, etc, and decided to go a different rout. I ordered up a shave ready straight razor, and the supplies necessary to support this endeavor, and the stuff came today. First shave ever with a straight razor, and have to say it went pretty well. I wasn't expecting a baby's butt type shave first time out of the box, but it turned out not too bad. There is certainly a learning curve with this. Do we have any other straight razor guys here? damn you jumped right to the straight razor? I use a DE razor. I love shaving that way and considering I only shave my neck since I have a beard, a puck of soap will last me well over a year. I've never gotten super hardcore into it like most of the guys on the forums, but it's a fun way to shave. I always enjoy whipping up that nice lather with a shave brush, puck of soap, and a mug. |
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Shaving.
Aug 17, 2017 15:00:40 GMT -6
via mobile
Post by bentin on Aug 17, 2017 15:00:40 GMT -6
You don't tend the top of your beard? I have to chop down the thatch that would connect my beard to my eyes, create a little separation so I look less like an ape. I also give the ol' monobrow a chop every Monday morning.
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Shaving.
Aug 17, 2017 15:32:58 GMT -6
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Post by ickes on Aug 17, 2017 15:32:58 GMT -6
You don't tend the top of your beard? I have to chop down the thatch that would connect my beard to my eyes, create a little separation so I look less like an ape. I also give the ol' monobrow a chop every Monday morning. Oh absolutley, just doesn't take long for that part so I guess I just forgot to mention it. |
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Post by davelewis on Aug 17, 2017 15:50:55 GMT -6
So after about 7 years of wearing a beard, I decided to shave for at least the rest of the Summer, lol. I remember the hassle of running out of blades, and going to the store, and them not having the kind I wanted, and about how much they had gone up in price since I last bought them, etc, and decided to go a different rout. I ordered up a shave ready straight razor, and the supplies necessary to support this endeavor, and the stuff came today. First shave ever with a straight razor, and have to say it went pretty well. I wasn't expecting a baby's butt type shave first time out of the box, but it turned out not too bad. There is certainly a learning curve with this. Do we have any other straight razor guys here? damn you jumped right to the straight razor? I use a DE razor. I love shaving that way and considering I only shave my neck since I have a beard, a puck of soap will last me well over a year. I've never gotten super hardcore into it like most of the guys on the forums, but it's a fun way to shave. I always enjoy whipping up that nice lather with a shave brush, puck of soap, and a mug. Yea, I figured go big, or go home,lol. I'm only a couple of shaves into this, and you have to be cautious during the learning curve. I find that it is probably taking me 15-20 minutes to shave, and the soap starts out great in the beginning, but as you proceed it will dry up some, which make things less gliding, and I have to introduce some more moisture onto my face. From what I've read, it takes about 100 shaves, give or take, to really be comfortable. I know there are a multitude of different soaps, and creams, etc, but right now I want to get my technique down before branching out to try others. My biggest challenge is the neck, for obvious reasons. You have arteries and stuff there, so I am a bit paranoid when hitting that area, but I know in time I'll get it down. |
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Post by bentin on Aug 17, 2017 16:06:46 GMT -6
You don't tend the top of your beard? I have to chop down the thatch that would connect my beard to my eyes, create a little separation so I look less like an ape. I also give the ol' monobrow a chop every Monday morning. Oh absolutley, just doesn't take long for that part so I guess I just forgot to mention it. Good. I was afraid my genetics had really let me down. |
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Shaving.
Aug 17, 2017 16:33:29 GMT -6
via mobile
Post by ickes on Aug 17, 2017 16:33:29 GMT -6
damn you jumped right to the straight razor? I use a DE razor. I love shaving that way and considering I only shave my neck since I have a beard, a puck of soap will last me well over a year. I've never gotten super hardcore into it like most of the guys on the forums, but it's a fun way to shave. I always enjoy whipping up that nice lather with a shave brush, puck of soap, and a mug. Yea, I figured go big, or go home,lol. I'm only a couple of shaves into this, and you have to be cautious during the learning curve. I find that it is probably taking me 15-20 minutes to shave, and the soap starts out great in the beginning, but as you proceed it will dry up some, which make things less gliding, and I have to introduce some more moisture onto my face. From what I've read, it takes about 100 shaves, give or take, to really be comfortable. I know there are a multitude of different soaps, and creams, etc, but right now I want to get my technique down before branching out to try others. My biggest challenge is the neck, for obvious reasons. You have arteries and stuff there, so I am a bit paranoid when hitting that area, but I know in time I'll get it down. Are you throwing on a pre shave oil before you apply the shaving soap? |
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Post by davelewis on Aug 17, 2017 16:49:15 GMT -6
Yea, I figured go big, or go home,lol. I'm only a couple of shaves into this, and you have to be cautious during the learning curve. I find that it is probably taking me 15-20 minutes to shave, and the soap starts out great in the beginning, but as you proceed it will dry up some, which make things less gliding, and I have to introduce some more moisture onto my face. From what I've read, it takes about 100 shaves, give or take, to really be comfortable. I know there are a multitude of different soaps, and creams, etc, but right now I want to get my technique down before branching out to try others. My biggest challenge is the neck, for obvious reasons. You have arteries and stuff there, so I am a bit paranoid when hitting that area, but I know in time I'll get it down. Are you throwing on a pre shave oil before you apply the shaving soap? I have. I received a sample from "France" oh la la, with my package, and I used it the fist time out. I actually used one my wife concocted up for me the next day, and I think hers worked better, but I had a days experience, so there you go. when I used to shave with a double edge back in the day, I just used foamy in a can, so I might try leaving the pre oil out of the mix, and see how that goes. I think there is a lot of experimentation involved with this ordeal for the most part. The journey will continue! |
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Post by drewcandraw on Aug 19, 2017 9:40:22 GMT -6
I had a straight razor from whipped dog, it was basically a refurbished one for me to practice with. I never really kept up on honing it and just stuck to my de razor. I gotta shave daily now for my academy life so I switch between an electric razor and DE cause time is limited for me.
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Shaving.
Oct 20, 2017 21:46:01 GMT -6
via mobile
Post by jasutinsan on Oct 20, 2017 21:46:01 GMT -6
The DE razor my SO got me last year broke today. It was from one of these startup shave places so I’m not surprised, looks like it was made out of pot metal.
Anyhoo, I was looking for a solid steel one and looking st different brands and ran across Feather. They have both a really nice stainless DE butterfly razor, but I also ran across their artist series straight razors. Basically disposable blade straight razors, and they also have a blade guard style blade that is wire wrapped to prevent cuts. Anyone have one of these? Or experience with Feather? The one thing turning me off is cost of replacement blades for the artist series, as they might be proprietary? And I still have a few dozen boxes of DE blades.
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Post by davelewis on Oct 20, 2017 23:03:44 GMT -6
The DE razor my SO got me last year broke today. It was from one of these startup shave places so I’m not surprised, looks like it was made out of pot metal. Anyhoo, I was looking for a solid steel one and looking st different brands and ran across Feather. They have both a really nice stainless DE butterfly razor, but I also ran across their artist series straight razors. Basically disposable blade straight razors, and they also have a blade guard style blade that is wire wrapped to prevent cuts. Anyone have one of these? Or experience with Feather? The one thing turning me off is cost of replacement blades for the artist series, as they might be proprietary? And I still have a few dozen boxes of DE blades. I haven't tried on myself, but I know of lot of people on the shaving forums like them, and are considered very good quality, being made in Japan. I believe them to be scary sharp, so they are probably not for a newbie shaver, but if you know what your doing, certainly worth a try. I've been shaving with my straight for a good couple of months now, and have it down pretty well. I don't cut, or nick myself, and can get a BBS shave with a couple passes. It does require a few extra items to maintain your blade, but after that, your good to go. |
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Post by gaseousclay on Oct 21, 2017 7:39:14 GMT -6
The DE razor my SO got me last year broke today. It was from one of these startup shave places so I’m not surprised, looks like it was made out of pot metal. Anyhoo, I was looking for a solid steel one and looking st different brands and ran across Feather. They have both a really nice stainless DE butterfly razor, but I also ran across their artist series straight razors. Basically disposable blade straight razors, and they also have a blade guard style blade that is wire wrapped to prevent cuts. Anyone have one of these? Or experience with Feather? The one thing turning me off is cost of replacement blades for the artist series, as they might be proprietary? And I still have a few dozen boxes of DE blades. I have a portable Feather. I can attest to the sharpness that davelewis spoke of, but I think that's more about the type of blade you're using with the Feather more than anything. www.westcoastshaving.com/ has a lot of choices but it really depends on your needs. I haven't shaved in awhile but when I do I use a Merkur 33c. It's got a shorter handle but there's a version with a longer handle. It's chrome plated and has a nice weight to it too. For milder shaves I also use a vintage Gillette fat handle tech. A lot of the old Gillettes were nickel plated if i'm not mistaken. Your needs will largely depend on your facial hair and how often you shave imo. I have sensitive skin so the fat handle tech works best in most cases, but the Merkur provides closer shaves from experience. I know there are tons of other brands out there but Merkur seems to be a good starter DE razor since they're relatively inexpensive. |
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Shaving.
Oct 23, 2017 19:02:40 GMT -6
via mobile
Post by jasutinsan on Oct 23, 2017 19:02:40 GMT -6
Thanks for all the helpful feedback. I was looking at Merkur, and if nothing else it’s an inexpensive backup/travel razor and a way to use the rest of my DE blades.
But I am still intrigued by the disposable proguard straight razor blades feather makes. I’ve always liked the ‘idea’ of shaving with a straight razor, but never wanted to deal with all the work stropping just to inevitably nick myself (I assume? Maybe I’m a natural, hehe). But these proguard blades eliminate both the need to maintain the blade and nicks? If the shave is nice it seems like a sorta fun way to make the mundane act of grooming a bit more interesting, I guess.
Anyone ever try these out? Or any other similar straight “safety” razor?
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Shaving.
Oct 23, 2017 19:25:41 GMT -6
via mobile
Post by DigDug on Oct 23, 2017 19:25:41 GMT -6
Thanks for all the helpful feedback. I was looking at Merkur, and if nothing else it’s an inexpensive backup/travel razor and a way to use the rest of my DE blades. But I am still intrigued by the disposable proguard straight razor blades feather makes. I’ve always liked the ‘idea’ of shaving with a straight razor, but never wanted to deal with all the work stropping just to inevitably nick myself (I assume? Maybe I’m a natural, hehe). But these proguard blades eliminate both the need to maintain the blade and nicks? If the shave is nice it seems like a sorta fun way to make the mundane act of grooming a bit more interesting, I guess. Anyone ever try these out? Or any other similar straight “safety” razor? Just remember to pack your DE with your checked luggage. You can't bring it with your carry on. |
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