Yet another, slightly different, blade discussion

[jms]

A while back I switched from using cartridge razors (Gillette Fusion) to use DE razors and wet shaving, the art of using high quality shaving brush, cream or soap, and a rich wet lather versus using chemical-laden foam out of a can that cost less than a cup of coffee from Waffle House - it is your face after all that you're taking care of :-)

After a few years of doing this I've settled in on the products I like to use, and was wondering if any one else out there was using DE razors and/or wet shaving - so I though I would share what I use.

After many trials with mediocre blades and re-learning to shave with a DE vs a 5-blade cartridge (very different technique) - and many bloody knicks in the morning, I finally found that Feather brand blades were the sharpest and hence cut through my fairly course stubble the best with the least amount of pulling and hence less cuts. I also use Gillette 7'Oclock blades from time to time but they're not nearly as sharp.

I usually get 2, maybe 3 shaves out of a blade before it starts dragging and potentially cutting skin so I've learned to toss them pretty quickly. Luckily, 100 blades cost me $22 on Amazon - so I'm ok with the mileage I'm getting out of them.

For shaving cream, I typically use either Taylor of Bond Street's "Mr. Taylor" or Truefitt & Hill's "Sandlewood" -- both have very traditional masculine scents and remind me of watching my dad or my pawpaw shave when I was a kid. These glycerine based creams allow the razor to slide over your face with great ease! They are expensive compared to the foam in a can, but they last for 4-5 months (and I shave my entire face every single day of the week) - you only need about a dime-sized dollop to make enough rich foamy lather to cover your entire face.

On occasion I also use a shave soap bought from the livestock CSA that we belong to - it is made from beef tallow and has a very earthy scent, works pretty well too.

A very good badger hair brush is a must - I use an Edwin Jagger "best badger" brush.

I use a 1940's model Gillette Super Speed (this is the era with no date codes, so I can't get any more accurate than this - appears to be a '48-'50 based on the notched center bar) I inherited from my dad who got it from my pawpaw probably in the late 1960's or early 1970's when my pawpaw upgraded to a new Aristocrat. My dad also gave me 2 comb-type Gillette's which I believe to be 2-peice Aristocrats, a Persona 2-peice (likely 1980's vintage), 2 GEM SE razors, and a pair of mechanical clippers.

So, to get back to the gist of the post - if anyone else out there uses DE safety razors - I'd be very interested in hearing about your razor, blade, and shave cream/soap preferences !

Here is my Super Speed ...



Other razors ...


Feather blades ...

[reible]

How retro. Back in the day this is what I learned to shave with, a shaving cup with a round "soap" bar in the bottom, a double edge razor with some possibly blue blade. You had to take the blades out and dry them or you only got one good shave out of them. To recondition them you used a glass and honed the blade on the inside by rotating them back and forth. No thank you for going back to that.

I do have a brush of my Dad's and one of my own and my shaving mug saved somewhere. Might even have a razor or not, don't remember.

Now I use the retired guy stubble method with a shaver that leaves 1mm to 9mm of beard and shave basically once a week. If I do need to be clean shaven I do have an old 2 blade shaver.

BTW I can't see any pictures???

Ed

[jms]

Sorry -- photos should show up now.

I suppose you could call it "retro", but then again we are on a forum dedicated to a machine that hasn't changed much since the 1950's and the folks who use them :-)

I may only be 41 - but I've come to realize that mid-century technology typically is well represented by high quality engineering that gets the job done efficiently especially compared to today's "throw away" product economy.

Plus, compare the Feather blades at $0.22 each vs Gillette Fusion cartridges at $4+ each. Then add the fact that no matter how hard I press a Fusion cartridge against my face, I can't get it quite as smooth as I would like -- with a DE razor, just glide it over your face (no pressure), and let the blade to the work for a DFS (Damn Fine Shave).

If you happen to have an old Gillette razor that you're interested in selling - let me know, I've started to collect them.

[dusty]

I shave with hot water and a cheap throw away blade that lasts about 5 shaves. No fuss, no muss and almost free. The trick is a good hot rag on my face before I start. That softens up all that stubble. Takes about two minutes plus a good tooth brushing and I am ready to go.

[Hobbyman2]

We have been married since 1980, the first few years of a marriage you learn a lot about life, one lesson for me was to hide my razors, My wife use to use my'n on her legs ,,,,if I wasn't paying attention it was like using a pair of dull sizers on a piece of burlap,,, or a paint scraper to peel a apple,,,and I am here to tell you ,,,,those leg hairs of a lady will dull a razor faster then a grind stone on a new chisel .

I have used single edge , double edge, triple edge ,,5 edge,,and electric ,,my favorite is ,,,, any of them that work.

My first time in a barber chair getting a shave the barber told me ,,, DONT MOVE KID ,,,i got enough to clean up today!!

Hobbyman2

[algale]

Wow, this brought back a few fond memories!

My dad was the Gillete Safety Razor division's chief engineer from about 1959 into the 70s before becoming it director of new business development, a job he held well into the 1990s.

Among other well-known Gillette products, he oversaw the development of the Techmatic and Trac II razors, and The Hot One and Foamy shave creams (and some lesser known ones that never made it to market -- including a Gillette steak knife so sharp that when they demoed it for the Board of Directors, it cut straight through the steak AND the ceramic plate underneath it!). He always brought home the latest Gillette products for my brother and me.

[jms]

Wow, this brought back a few fond memories!

My dad was the Gillete Safety Razor division's chief engineer from about 1959 into the 70s before becoming it director of new business development, a job he held well into the 1990s.

Among other well-known Gillette products, he oversaw the development of the Techmatic and Trac II razors, and The Hot One and Foamy shave creams (and some lesser known ones that never made it to market -- including a Gillette steak knife so sharp that when they demoed it for the Board of Directors, it cut straight through the steak AND the ceramic plate underneath it!). He always brought home the latest Gillette products for my brother and me.

Wow -- what an incredible personal history!

You may already know this, but there is a ground swell out there in the US around going back to wet shaving, and the old Gillette products from 50 years ago are the safety razor of choice by many. Sure you can buy new ones from Merkur, Parker, Feather and others -- but the old nickel plated brass from Gillette has a certain heft and quality to it that is unmatched.

There are dozens of websites dedicated to them and usually dozens of listings on eBay at any given time -- in fact today I picked up on eBay a Gillette Super Speed with a date code showing manufacture in Q1 of 1955, my dad was born in January of that year and I want to give it to him as a father's day gift.

I was born in 1975, but it looks like they stopped producing the TTO (Twist To Open) models in 1974, so if I get one from my birth year it would be a 2-peice. Still pretty cool in an age where disposable rules, at least in the US.

[algale]

Wow, this brought back a few fond memories!

My dad was the Gillete Safety Razor division's chief engineer from about 1959 into the 70s before becoming it director of new business development, a job he held well into the 1990s.

Among other well-known Gillette products, he oversaw the development of the Techmatic and Trac II razors, and The Hot One and Foamy shave creams (and some lesser known ones that never made it to market -- including a Gillette steak knife so sharp that when they demoed it for the Board of Directors, it cut straight through the steak AND the ceramic plate underneath it!). He always brought home the latest Gillette products for my brother and me.

Wow -- what an incredible personal history!

You may already know this, but there is a ground swell out there in the US around going back to wet shaving, and the old Gillette products from 50 years ago are the safety razor of choice by many. Sure you can buy new ones from Merkur, Parker, Feather and others -- but the old nickel plated brass from Gillette has a certain heft and quality to it that is unmatched.

There are dozens of websites dedicated to them and usually dozens of listings on eBay at any given time -- in fact today I picked up on eBay a Gillette Super Speed with a date code showing manufacture in Q1 of 1955, my dad was born in January of that year and I want to give it to him as a father's day gift.

I was born in 1975, but it looks like they stopped producing the TTO (Twist To Open) models in 1974, so if I get one from my birth year it would be a 2-peice. Still pretty cool in an age where disposable rules, at least in the US.

I was vaguely aware that some folks had switched back. Is it nostalgia? Cost? Or a belief that the old methods gave a closer shave (I can't believe the last one).

He had a bunch of old TTO models in his medicine cabinet in our old house that I remember playing with as a kid (he took the blades out, obviously). The mechanism was interesting. Not sure if those "antiques" made the journey to the new place when they moved in 2007. Or if they did, whether mom tossed the old razors after he passed in 2011. Next time I'm there, I'll look. One piece of trivia still in the home is a larger, framed blue print of the original safety razor design.

[jms]

I was vaguely aware that some folks had switched back. Is it nostalgia? Cost? Or a belief that the old methods gave a closer shave (I can't believe the last one).

Maybe a bit of all 3 -- I will say this, with the right DE safety razor and the right blade, you can get a far better shave than with today's cartridge models. It does take trial and error, you have to determine if mild (i.e. blue tip), standard (i.e. metal tip), or aggressive (i.e. red tip) blade angles provided by different safety razors is best for your beard type and skin sensitivity, and then you have to find the right blade to match you as well.

Given that you can find the right combination before you give up from razor burn - you can absolutely get a much better shave than with a cartridge. You can get whats known in the wet shaving resurgence as a DFS (Damn Fine Shave) or even a BBS (Baby Butt Smooth) shave with the right combination.

[algale]

I was vaguely aware that some folks had switched back. Is it nostalgia? Cost? Or a belief that the old methods gave a closer shave (I can't believe the last one).

Maybe a bit of all 3 -- I will say this, with the right DE safety razor and the right blade, you can get a far better shave than with today's cartridge models. It does take trial and error, you have to determine if mild (i.e. blue tip), standard (i.e. metal tip), or aggressive (i.e. red tip) blade angles provided by different safety razors is best for your beard type and skin sensitivity, and then you have to find the right blade to match you as well.

Given that you can find the right combination before you give up from razor burn - you can absolutely get a much better shave than with a cartridge. You can get whats known in the wet shaving resurgence as a DFS (Damn Fine Shave) or even a BBS (Baby Butt Smooth) shave with the right combination.

I find the closer shave claim hard to believe. I know from my dad that all the way back to the Trac II they had done all kinds of scientific and microscopic studies showing that the two blade shave was indeed closer. Boy, if he were alive he'd love to jump into this discussion. He could tell you the number of atoms across the width of the sharpened edge of the blade.