3 kinds of razor

M

mothman mike

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15
Not sure which section to put this one in as I am covering 3 diferent things I guess and this may cause some debate I don't know but here goes.
I have been wet shaving for over 20 years now and have used cartridge, DE, shavettes and straights. I have a Gillette Fusion, Merkur Vision, Dovo Shavette and a Dovo Bismarck straight. Of all these razors I have.......................................................................................................................................Wait for it..................Nothing shaves me closer than the Fusion. I get a much smoother shave with a couple of passes with that than I do with my straights and DE. I personally think straight shaving is way over hyped.
No matter when I have had my straight professionally honed and stropped or when I have done the job myself when it comes to the job of actually cutting the whiskers I am always dissatisfied (and before anyone says it, yes my cutting angle is fine) and I have to finish the job off with a cartridge razor , the same goes for the Merkur, that is why I have gone back to using a cartridge.
My prep is thorough and creams are the top notch stuff. Any of you other gents here think that straights are over hyped?
 
It's very much horses fo courses, Mike.

I shave with a DE most of the time, but get great shaves with Injectors and M3 or Sensor razors. I tried straights, but didn't get on with them, but that's probably more to do with me than with the straight razors.

Ian
 
My experience is that to date, I get my best shaves (best defined as closer and smoother with less irritation) from a DE shave.

22 years of electric-trickery & every cartridge razor that's been on sale in the interim left me irritated, with razor burn & ingrown hairs.

Some DE blades are rougher than badgers' arses, but using the right blade for my face is an unsurpassable experience.

Your face, luckily for you, is different to mine - so your experience will be different too.
 
last cartridge razor i used was an M3 and yes it was a good shave but there was slight irritation after every use, when i use my Futur with a Gillette Bleue or a Platinum i find that does the job of removing the stubble just the same, but leaves my skin in better condition after the shave, it just feels better.. :?

Also it feels far more enjoyable using a quality razor and blade and taking my time and enjoying the shave...

and also i dont agree with the Cartridge prices...... would rather spend my money on nice creams and soaps instead.

I think it's not just about the quality of the shave but actually enjoying it rather than just just getting it out of the ways a.s.a.p.....

But if the Fusion works for you, stick with it....

just my "two penneth" worth :D
 
I would agreed that relative to the amount of time/effort spent shaving, a Fusion gives me the closest shave. Not the best, not the most comfortable, but the closest. It tends to leave my face a little tender afterwards and I can't even use one with more than 1 days stubble - they clog up almost right away and it's very uncomfortable. I used to have a red patch on my neck everyday when I shaved with my M3/Fusion. I rarely get that with the DE.

Close and comfortable is my motto.

I have only used a shavette, not a proper straight. This is ok -I use it sometimes at the weekend but still need to finish with a DE. This is because it's a bit tricky and I've only got so much time to mess about with it. It feels as manly as hell however. :)

At the end of the day, go with what works for you.
 
The invention of the cartridge razor and its progression to the 5-bladed systems used now has coincided with the introduction and progression of 'shaving preparations'.

I think tins of foam and gel as well as oils have pretty much ruined shaving for most men.

I still prefer the Sensor blades but only because they are half the cost of Fusion blades.
 
I expect if I did go back to cartridge shaving I would get a better shave to start with. Then the problems would start. I would try to save money so would use the cartridges longer than I should. I'd get irritation then the inevitable in-grown hairs which I do not miss one bit. Yes it's a drop in the ocean but I'd rather use less plastic when I shave so I'd feel a bit guilty about that. I'd also miss using my nicely crafted piece of metal, the Edwin Jagger DE89L. So all in all I accept that not every shave I have is perfect (most are damn good though) and I even get the odd nick, but for me it's the best solution to the shaving problem.
 
Hi. Welcome to TSR.

I wish I could shave with a cartridge, but i can't - they're just not sharp enough.

Perhaps

1. Your technique (with lathering and/or with the razor) needs some work

or

2. You're beard/skin combo is such that a straight/DE is 'too much' for it to handle.

or a bit of both.

I've never really come across option 2. I get the feeling you feel option 1 is not valid either.

In that case, I say enjoy your Cartridge shaves! If it works, stick with it. However, 1000's of men use DEs/Straights and choose to do so for a variety of reasons they find to be advantageous over Cartridge Razors. I haven't come across many who have gone back.

The pain I went through to get to where I am now with my technique was worth it. I could have easily given up in those early days. Now, DE shaving is giving me the best shaves ever - I actually look forward to shaving. How weird is that?

I've pretty much given up on creams and am a soap convert as that's what my beard prefers. Everyone's different.

Is the point of your post to see who agrees with you that DEs/Straights are "'overhyped"' ?
OR do you want to find a way to improve your shaves with DE/Straights?

How are you finding creams/soaps vs canned goo (canned foams, gels) ? Notice any difference?
I reckon a cartridge razor + brush and cream/soap is better for me than a DE/Straight + canned goo
 
Like all the guys whose posts on TSR I've read I'm a gr8 believer in what works for you is good. After over 50 yrs wet shaving with most types of razor I'm now at the stage where I find that a good single edge Ever Ready gives me a shave to rival either of my open straights. The diff is that after about 12 hrs if I've used the SE stubble is coming through, whilst a straight edge leaves me closely shaved for longer. Having said which eye problems & steadiness of hands have now pretty much retired my straights, and I'm very content with the results I get with my assortment of DE & Ses.

I'd never say that I felt open razors were "over rated" ; just that varying razors & blades suit different tastes & requirements.

JohnnyO. :shave (In the hope we all continue to enjoy our own choice of product).
 
Everyone's mileage varies. My Wilkinson Sword Quatro shaved very close if I wanted it to but it gave me problems with ingrowing hairs and red raw razor burn if it did. As such I rarely did the 2nd or 3rd pass that would give me a BBS, it was also expensive to keep buying new cartridges however I found they lasted longer than Fusion ones.

I get a smoother shave using a DE, I have areas that don't do well with a straight (but I enjoy using one none the less) I also get an excellent and irritation free shave from a Bic sensitive.

My favourite and most effective razor is my Futur but I continue to use different ones as sometimes the journey can be as interesting as the destination.
 
I think it's not just about the quality of the shave but actually enjoying it rather than just just getting it out of the ways a.s.a.p.....
Click to expand...

A million +1's.

I can get a pretty good shave with most cartridge razors. Not so much the fusion, but ive found the Azor M delivers a pretty good shave.
I don't 'hate' carts, but i dislike the fact they are basically over priced hunks of cheap coloured plastic, named with as many 'Boy words' as possible all rammed together in a line.

Im a bloke, i like blokey things, I want a razor to be a tool - a quality build, with weight and purpose.
A solid DE is this in spades. It almost has a magical quality to make my shaves 'Feel' better even if they technically are not.
They also take some skill to use (Something that seams to be absent in so many things these days). Theres a history about them and they are a thing to be proud of - (i couldn't begin to imagine feeling proud of a collection of Fusions.. :lol: )
By using a DE i feel i am making a connection to Manliness of old - and taking a step back to a time when men were far more Gentlemanly.

Oddly enough its also introduced a kind of Camaraderie amongst users - i couldn't imagine discussing shaving prior to trying DE's..
I now discuss at length pros and cons with a convert friend of mine, not to mention on these forums.



Its more than just shaving.....
 
I'm a recent convert to the cult of DE, and feel that I'm benefitting from a shave that's at least as good, with less irritation. And because I'm not paying through the nose for cartridges, I can indulge myself and enhance the shaving experience with more expensive "software".

If the OP is interested, I have an unopened pack of 8 Fusion cartridges for sale at a reasonable price.


Regards

Ian
 
Having no experience of it, I'm in no position to knock the Fusion (or any other cartridge razor) except in terms of the price of blades. I get equally good results from DEs and straights, more quickly in the case of the former, with less chance of irritation and usually more enjoyment with the latter. I wouldn't say that open razors are over hyped, although to be sure you can find plenty of codswallop written about them by people who are eager to impress, but the basic claims that they give a clean shave with a high degree of comfort are demonstrably true in my experience.
 
To some, shaving is about as worthy of excitement as tying your shoe laces. But if tripping up and falling on your face is what happens to you daily then knot tying suddenly becomes a necessary hobby. For those who are lucky to discover it, DE shaving can be a godsend. Sure there are those here who for other reasons, the mechanics of shaving, all the paraphenalia involved, the collector, the perfectionist, the exchanger, the chemist, the entrepreneur. the I-comment-on-everything-type. But the common thread is that this stuff works, providing you give it the attention it demands you quickly find that a DE razor is better than the sum of it parts!
 
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