The wet shaving thread

[rdst_1]

Same here. Haven't had a clean shave for around 4 years. Just get it trimmed once a month. It also helps that my beard doesn't grow very quickly. I did have a razer like the Mercur someone posted a few pages ago at home that belonged to my Dad but even he has shifted to disposables now.

 

[gmano]

Ordered off Amazon.com. The seller was in Thailand (which is where most Feathers re-sellers seem to ship from). About $14 for 50 blades.

Thanks for the info,
Its available locally here in chennai, almost at the same price

 

[blr_p]

They are supposed to be the sharpest axes available...!

And gives it a different feel. If you're used to black platinums feathers can be something else. They're not mild, there is no smoothness. For tougher beards. Some people end up 'corking their feathers'. Running them through a bit of cork to blunt them and then they find them better. This will happen around the 2 or 3rd shave anyway. Which means feathers are not right for these people. But there is a rave factor around feathers so everybody wants to use them. Must try them at least once. Not seen any variants with different coatings for feathers yet its just one kind only.

I find people using them use hefty razors, maybe this plays a role. The pairing of razor with blade changes the experience.

the 365's i find work best with a metal head razor than a plastic one. The cheaper blades ie under Rs.20 tend to work better with a heavier head. Avoid Laser though.
the black or green platinums seem better with a plastic head than a metal. Don't know why this is, but the blacks certainly came out smoother.
feathers don't seem to work for me with either. oh they shave well but its not as comfortable as the local brands.
Supermaxx tigers or sunrise are fine with either.

A friend got me some gillette nacettes from the gulf, these used to be the yellow 7'o clocks and are made in st. petersburg, russia. Somewhere in between green & black and quite nice.

 

[asingh]

Have had a really bad experience past two days.

Switched to Gillette 7 O'Clock Super Platinum (black box) and have got a lot of cuts and nicks. Also giving me a immense skin rash on the lower neck area (below the jaw).

 

[Criminal]

^^ when you shave too close to the skin, beard retreats inside the skin. pores close easily with the use of alum/after shave lotion. vigorous rubbing with balms/face creams also helps in pulling beard inside the skin. it feels so smooth for couple of hours until the sharp beard grows a bit and tries to come out

use some exfoliant/scrub to help your beard penetrate the skin. looks like Super Platinum is too sharp for you.

 

[blr_p]

Also giving me a immense skin rash on the lower neck area (below the jaw).

There are a number of possible reasons for this.

- when you ran the alum over after your last shave did it sting or not ?
- do you know the direction of your grain. have to go with the grain on the first pass. the direction it grows in the lower neck area may be different to other areas. The way you figure this out is you let it grow for a couple of days and rub it and see which direction has the least resistance.
- i would leave out an against the grain pass for now.

 

[asingh]

There are a number of possible reasons for this.

- when you ran the alum over after your last shave did it sting or not ?
- do you know the direction of your grain. have to go with the grain on the first pass. the direction it grows in the lower neck area may be different to other areas. The way you figure this out is you let it grow for a couple of days and rub it and see which direction has the least resistance.
- i would leave out an against the grain pass for now.

1. Yes, it did sting.
2. Will check out the grain.
3. Ok, will do one pass.

How are the Wilkonson Sword Blades..?

 

[blr_p]

3 things, blades, the razor & the way you shave.
since you switched to new blades they are sharp. You did not drop the razor with the blade in or otherwise dent it. A blade that isn't straight will cut you. How the razor holds it. if its a branded razor, it holds the blade straight, no name ones sometimes don't do that well. If all these are ok then its operator error. You are applying too much pressure or you're not getting the blade angle right. For this you have to develop a feel of how the blade cuts, how it feels. Idea is to let it do the work and just guide it. I'm assuming you throw your head back to stretch the skin when doing the lower neck which is more sensitive than the face. Unlike straight shaving you don't have to stretch the skin much with DE just have a level playing field with no skin folds in the way. Give it a rest for three days.

WS that were made in England over thirty years ago were very good. There are supposed to be two types sold in India, one going for around the Rs.30 mark and another for Rs.12. Never found the expensive ones and have tried the cheaper. They were ok, nothing great.

 

[asingh]

3 things, blades, the razor & the way you shave.
since you switched to new blades they are sharp. You did not drop the razor with the blade in or otherwise dent it. A blade that isn't straight will cut you. How the razor holds it. if its a branded razor, it holds the blade straight, no name ones sometimes don't do that well. If all these are ok then its operator error. You are applying too much pressure or you're not getting the blade angle right. For this you have to develop a feel of how the blade cuts, how it feels. Idea is to let it do the work and just guide it. I'm assuming you throw your head back to stretch the skin when doing the lower neck which is more sensitive than the face. Unlike straight shaving you don't have to stretch the skin much with DE just have a level playing field with no skin folds in the way. Give it a rest for three days.

WS that were made in England over thirty years ago were very good. There are supposed to be two types sold in India, one going for around the Rs.30 mark and another for Rs.12. Never found the expensive ones and have tried the cheaper. They were ok, nothing great.

Okay, after three days of rest took a shave again using a Wilkinson Sword blade. Things went fine, and there were no knicks and cuts. Even after the alum was applied there was minimal sting. @blr_p ; thanks a lot for that link and the tips. Blade angle is really important. Oh..did 2x passes. WTG.

Some rules of thumb I have made:

1. Angle should be thus: that all three parts of the razor: cap, blade, guard should simultaneously touch the skin. which would work out to ~30 degrees.
2. Absolutely no pressure (nothing) with a metal head. Just hold the razor handle, so it cannot slip or fly out.
3. Slow-down on the chin.
4. If you realize "hey this is just like my Mach 3" (while shaving); you are at a corner: after which there will be blood. DE shaving can never be like cartridge shaving. Totally different mechanics.
5. Long strokes are tempting, with over 18-19 years of using cartridges. You know, give it a quick long pull, specially at the jaw. This has to be un-learnt. It is difficult and can lead to serious damage. DE shaving is not for lazy people. Takes time and preparation.
6. Never dry-fix a patch. Which we all do with cartridges, below the neck, and at the chin folds. Re-lather and start over.
7. I keep the lather warm. Prepare it in a bowl, and let the bowl rest on a mug of boiling hot water. Before the lather is prepared, and while shaving. It keeps the skin soft, and bristles are easy to mow down.

 

[Raghav_K]

great thread... i shifted from mach3 to gillete DE razor few months ago, and now i have ordered a edwin jagger razor from amazon.

can you guys suggest good shaving cream + brush (badger?)... i currently use shaving foam and a synthetic brush. prefer locally available ones, or can also order from amazon...

P.S: @gmano where to find feather blades in chennai??

 

[asingh]

great thread... i shifted from mach3 to gillete DE razor few months ago, and now i have ordered a edwin jagger razor from amazon.

can you guys suggest good shaving cream + brush (badger?)... i currently use shaving foam and a synthetic brush. prefer locally available ones, or can also order from amazon...

P.S: @gmano where to find feather blades in chennai??

You ordered the EJ razor from Amazon.com --> to India. How much duty did you have to pay..? You can try the badger brushes from : http://purplle.com/men/shaving-care/shaving-brush. Get any cream. Old Spice is nice. Dettol. V-John...!

 

[swordfish123]

I had some nicks and cuts when i tried my Gillette sterling Safety razor for the first time.

My first DE shaving was with a Merkur that my brother let me use. He told me to apply no pressure and it the shave felt really good. After coming back to India i tried to find a good safety razor. Couldn't find it for a while. So continued using my fusion. After few days saw the 7O clock black plastic safety razor in a supermarket. Decided to give it a try. I totally forgot about the "no pressure" approach my bro had told me. But the plastic razor looked so flimsy i didn't put much pressure and ended up having a nice shave.

So decided to update to the Gillette Sterling razor which has a metal head and has a better construction than the plastic safety razor. So this time used it just like my fusion applying lot of pressure and long strokes on and under the chin. Didn't feel a thing while shaving. But jumped all over the bathroom when i splashed water on my face. There were about 5-6 small cuts on my chin.

Now i use the same razor with Gillette green blades. Absolutely no pressure, small strokes. Get a wonderful shave every time. You do need some patience and practice with DE shaving.

 

[Raghav_K]

You ordered the EJ razor from Amazon.com --> to India. How much duty did you have to pay..? You can try the badger brushes from : http://purplle.com/men/shaving-care/shaving-brush. Get any cream. Old Spice is nice. Dettol. V-John...!

Yeah... Around 2300 for the razor and shipping and 700 as duty...

Ripoff i know... A better option would be to order from ebay, there are high chances of this low cost item skipping customs eye...

 

[asingh]

Yeah... Around 2300 for the razor and shipping and 700 as duty...

Ripoff i know... A better option would be to order from ebay, there are high chances of this low cost item skipping customs eye...

Ebay.in does not sell the good models. What you got is a decent deal, to be honest. It will last you a lifetime, unless you decide to change DE razors...!

 

[blr_p]

Didn't feel a thing while shaving. But jumped all over the bathroom when i splashed water on my face. There were about 5-6 small cuts on my chin.

Now i use the same razor with Gillette green blades. Absolutely no pressure, small strokes. Get a wonderful shave every time. You do need some patience and practice with DE shaving.

If water did that then you were using too much pressure. And that stems from how you hold the razor, They always tell you to hold lower down the handle but with plastic you can't do that and end up holding it closer to the head. I end up doing this even with my knack but i've got the touch now and i find holding closer to the head makes it easier to switch razors otherwise you're always experimenting with different positions depending on the weight of the razor.

I would say alum is a good idea to use when starting off, i never stopped using it. Because even though you don't get nicked you could still be shaving a bit too close without knowing it. Alum will tell you immediately when this happens. So you don't continue like that and end up getting sore a week or two later.

 

[Raghav_K]

@asingh i meant ebay.com. also amazon.co.uk sells it for 2300 odd without shipping, if anyone is interested, can try shipping from there and risk customs (amazon uk or amazon de does not calculate customs for basic shipping). Of course if customs notices your parcel you could end up paying, even more than amazon.com price.

@blr_p would the sub 150rs alum found in supermarkets do the job?? or any good brands needed??

 

[asingh]

@asingh i meant ebay.com. also amazon.co.uk sells it for 2300 odd without shipping, if anyone is interested, can try shipping from there and risk customs (amazon uk or amazon de does not calculate customs for basic shipping). Of course if customs notices your parcel you could end up paying, even more than amazon.com price.

@blr_p would the sub 150rs alum found in supermarkets do the job?? or any good brands needed??

Okay, thanks,

I used a local one for around 15-20 bucks. Does the job fine. As @blr_p said: it is a good way to evaluate technique, post shave.

 

[Raghav_K]

Gonna try with alum, next time

 

[eternoMind]

Can anyone recommend a good brush to pick up from the line-up here?
Have used a single DE razor for close to 10 years now (ditched it in favor of a trimmer for a couple of years in-between) but have changed brushes umpteen times.

The same site above also has the Nivea Aftershave Balm on a "Buy 1 get 1" offer.

 

[gmano]

great thread... i shifted from mach3 to gillete DE razor few months ago, and now i have ordered a edwin jagger razor from amazon.

can you guys suggest good shaving cream + brush (badger?)... i currently use shaving foam and a synthetic brush. prefer locally available ones, or can also order from amazon...

P.S: @gmano where to find feather blades in chennai??

I bought them from Kasi Chetty street. Have seen many shops selling feather blades there.