Judging blades

W

wooster

Messages
44
Hi. Here's a really newbie question and I hope you'll bear with me.

When I shave I find the easiest parts are on both cheeks starting just under the sideburns and down towards the jaw. These shave pretty well. It is the area around the jawline and chin that give me most trouble, followed by the moustache. (The neck can be troublesome if I put too much pressure and cause irritation but that is getting much better.)

These more troublesome areas around the jaw, chin, and moustache are the places I need to make two or three passes to get them reasonably smooth.

Now does this mean that I shouldn't judge a blade on how many passes I need to make around the chin, jawline etc as these are difficult for me probably due to inexperience? In other words if a blade shaves well, clean, smooth and with no irritation, in the easy cheek area does that mean it is the right blade for me even if it can struggle a bit in the more difficult areas?

Thanks and excuse my ignorance

Wooster
 
Judging a blade is down to a number of factors.

A sharp blade will give me a closer shave quicker and sort out my densely bearded chin better. However my neck doesn't like a too sharp blade, so for that reason Feathers are out.

You have to find the right balance for your face, it will likely take some months.

Most people can successfully shave their sideburn and cheek area with any blade, its the fiddly or sensitive bits that really test the blade.
 
My neck and right side jawline is almost always a problem, regardless of blade, razor and prep. I think judge a blade by how smoothly it gets as close as it can to get satisfactory, not how absolutely sharp it is. My cheeks are easy to shave so most blades are up to the task.
 
Thanks for the info. I do find i need a lot of attention to the problem areas whereas most blades work fine on the easy parts. I will judge the blade on overall performance on these areas.

I am amazed at the different experiences folk have with blades. I have never found Derby to give me a nice shave for example and from what I've read I must be one of the few. OTOH I found both Red and Blue Personnas a lot better. I am about to try a pack of Astras which seem well regarded so am optimistic about them

Thanks again

Wooster
 
Re: RE: Judging blades

chrisbell said:
I think you must have the wrong impression of most members opinions of the Derbys - very few of us like them.
Click to expand...

Just what I was thinking, I don't recall seeing many people on here rating Derbys, if anything we are the anti Derby forum. :)
 
Ah well I'm glad I'm not so out on a limb as I thought :icon_smile:

I've visited some of the other forums and read quite a number of reviews and comments on the Derbys on the net and lots have been favourable. I couldn't understand why people raved about the them and assumed it must just be me.

The Astras are well regarded here though aren't they?

Wooster
 
You could try shaving across the grain, on the neck that is usually from the neck upwards to the jawline. But shave this way on the second pass, not the first pass.

A mild open comb razor could help as well, like the Merkur 25C.
 
There are two patches on my lower neck that are troublesome. The grain is actually on a slight diagonal. I find that first pass straight up and second pass staight down does the trick... the second pass isn't directly ATG but close enough. You're probably not the same... but it does help to map out the direction of the grain and experiment a bit (but don't feel too disheartened if the experiment goes badly.. tomorrow is another day). I also drew a little map of my face with the direction of the grain marked out in little arrows... referred to it for a good while but don't need it now. And a good blade helps.. plenty on that mentioned above.
 
I feel as if I'm slowly getting there with the shaving moves. I need to find a blade I'm comfy with and keep to it I reckon.

I quite liked the Personnas I used ( Red and Blue - under the name of Crystal I believe ) In fact the first shave I had with the Red Personna was so comfortable, it had me deciding to order 1,000 or so and never look at another blade. However, I suspect it was the difference made by the soft water at the Cornish guesthouse I was staying in at the time because when I returned home it was still good but not as good as the first one.

Wooster
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom