Stupid Question Amnesty Thread

I have an Old Type and when I insert a modern (i.e. not thicker and three holed) blade in if I tighten the head to the handle fully I find there is no discernable blade gap. Am I supposed to leave it slightly untightened? That would feel a bit unsafe and would lead to inconsistent shaves.
I tend not to use Olds because of it but I have one as a Christmas present to look forward to and would like to master it (and I tend to prefer milder razors!)
 
With Old Type some people use a shim to increase the gap (e.g. a paper clip). I find that's not needed. If you keep the razor at a shallower angle (almost parallel) you can get a great shave especially with one of the sharper blades. Don't try to shave with the handle untightened unless you need an extra orifice.
 
majortom said:
With Old Type some people use a shim to increase the gap (e.g. a paper clip). I find that's not needed. If you keep the razor at a shallower angle (almost parallel) you can get a great shave especially with one of the sharper blades. Don't try to shave with the handle untightened unless you need an extra orifice.
Click to expand...

Handle almost parallel to face, or at nearly 90 degrees to it?
 
ive been shaving with a DE for a week (boots own brand until my nice one turns up).

ive read the threads, watched the videos, i get a good lather as ive been doing this for years anyway. i shave down the grain then across only.

i feel my face and:

down the grain smooth
across the grain smoothish
against the grain a mixture of the both

is that about right, what i mean is am i right in suggesting its not going to be BBS everywhere in every direction

stupid but forgive me
 
It's not stupid! It's different strokes for different folks, you can try doing XTG in slightly different directions to get trickier spots.

I did a two pass shave an got very smooth apart from when I rubbed ATG and a tiny bit XTG. The only way I get true BBS is if I shave against the grain.
 
Al H said:
ive been shaving with a DE for a week (boots own brand until my nice one turns up).

ive read the threads, watched the videos, i get a good lather as ive been doing this for years anyway. i shave down the grain then across only.

i feel my face and:

down the grain smooth
across the grain smoothish
against the grain a mixture of the both

is that about right, what i mean is am i right in suggesting its not going to be BBS everywhere in every direction

stupid but forgive me
Click to expand...

That's somewhere around a DFS (Damn Fine Shave), perhaps a little under. It's roughly what I'd expect for someone going once XTG.
 
It takes time to "learn" your face. The bristle grows in different directions (I have an irksome spot on my chin which is the result of scar tissue) but you will soon get to grips with which way to move the razor over which bits of your fizzog.

Even now depending on which razor and how much time I spend on my face I dont always get a DFS or BBS. Oddly the Mach3 (for really quick shaves) is the one which now gives me the worst shave whereas when I first started DE shaving it gave me better results.

Im currently using a combination of a heavy tech head and a 7 O'clock new head and getting a superb result, but it takes a little longer in the mornings.
 
balidey said:
My turn...
What is Bay Rum?
I would hazard a guess that its got some rum in it, and perhaps bay leaves?
But is it an aftershave? A tonic? Skin conditioner? Does it replace AS? Complement AS? Do you drink it before or after shaving?
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No-one ever answered your question!

Yes bay rum can contain rum, or the good ones do... it's largely been replaced with a rum smell now but Steve's still has plenty of grog in it. It normally also contains bay although it's the West Indian bay tree, which apparently is not the same as the cooking bay leaves. It smells similar to me though. Most contain cloves which is quite a characteristic note in a lot of bay rums, and then there are also any other smells that the manufacturer fancies blending in, citrus is popular, orange peel, lime juice, some other spices.
It's all of the things you asked... back in the 17th century, the days of the Royal Navy versus piracy in the West Indies, it was discovered on the islands by seafarers and it was used as an aftershave and a body splash/rub for those smelly sailors who probably preferred the smell to their own BO. It had been made for years in the islands as an all round medicinal rub.

Nowadays I suppose it's just an AS splash or body splash as the smell doesn't hang around that long so it's gentle enough to "splash it on all over". Apparently it's also been known through the 70s as a hair tonic, whatever one of those is. Ogalalla claim it's also a toner, but then their version is quite high in witch hazel, wierdly.
 
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