Question for you 'wet shavers'...

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islandturner

islandturner

Member
Joined
Jul 17, 2009
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Location
Victoria, BC
I'm thinking about making shave kits for gifts and possibly to sell. I'm curious about what some of you gents use to shave.

I'm lucky – average beard (although it has strangely turned white over the past decade :rolleyes:), and have been a 'wet shaver' my whole life. I detest electric shavers. I've used disposables (Bics, etc) for many years, and usually get about a dozen shaves from a Bic before tossing. I use pressurized shaving cream or even hand soap in a pinch. For a while, I used a crappy shave brush and cheap shave soap – didn't like them much. They wouldn't produce enough lather.

I had a friend years ago, who's beard was so tough, he had to buy the best blades he could find, cover his face with a hot towel for 10 or 15 minutes before shaving, and use good quality shave brush and soap of some kind. He'd get one shave out of the blade and then it was too dull to use again.

Do you think a good quality badger hair brush and good quality shave soap are worth the big bucks to buy them?

Thanks
Steve
 
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Good quality soap is the most important for me. I use Crabtree and Evelyn soap with a standard mach 3 blade. A nice soft brush just makes applying the soap that little bit more pleasurable.

I don't have thick facial hair, but it is very coarse. Soap is a mile ahead of pressurised creams for me.
 
none

I don't have a tough beard and all of my life if I shaved every day I could get a lot of shaves from one blade (after they introduced stainless steel blades). I have shaved with shaving soap and shaving cream and pressure gel and plain soap alls have worked well and I get my face as smooth as a baby's *** eh bottom. I use a gillette fuson right now.
 
I use goats milk soap. It can be used with or without a brush. The important thing here is to wet the face with warm water.

I, too, perfer the Mach III blade to any other commercially available blade.
 
Remember This?

I guess this would not be a first choice with any soap.

IMG_0622.JPG

"...no matter what number I turned to I still cut myself to pieces. Actually all I wanted was a clean shave, not a self sacrifice."
Bill Cosby
 
MikeG said:
I guess this would not be a first choice with any soap.

View attachment 58505

"...no matter what number I turned to I still cut myself to pieces. Actually all I wanted was a clean shave, not a self sacrifice."
Bill Cosby
Click to expand...

I use the old DE razors with either Trueffit & Hill, Taylor, or a number of other shaving creams. I've got a "Fat Boy", an open comb "new", a superspeed, a vintage Merkur slant and a few others. I also have a straight that uses disposable blades. I preffer the superspeed over all of them, the slant is probably next in line. as far as blades, I like the feathers, but also used a number of others. Kai blades are super sharp like the feathers...
Anyway, I definitely think the brush and soap is worth it, though I prefer a cream (not canned)...
 
I can still recall my granddad using a razor like this back in the mid to late 50's. It was solid brass and the blades came in small cardboard boxes. He probably cut himself everytime he used it, and came out of the bathroom with small pieces of blood-spotted toilet paper clinging to his face.

Looked like this....

XQQu.jpg


MikeG said:
I guess this would not be a first choice with any soap.

View attachment 58505
Click to expand...
 
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task

I always considered shaving a task---not a career so I went for the quickest. Never could stand an electric though. Still can't, they just don't shave you close and my wife loves to rub cheeks after I've shaved. It might be why she's still with me after about 49 1/4 years.
 
I used to use disposable Bics, primarily because that's what my Dad used. He used them because they were cheap. I tried a nicer Gillette razor in college and liked the job it did. I've been using a Mach 3 for a long time. It does a good job & I like the open back; it cleans out pretty easily.

On the soap, I've used mainly pressurized foams, gels, & soap with a brush. I've never really used expensive stuff. The brush I bought at the drug store; it came with a mug and soap. The brush I had was badger hair, it was quite nice. I always bought the soap at the drug store. For me, I preferred the brush & soap. I quit using it, though, because it was kind of awkward to store in the bathroom cabinet & the soap could be hard to find at times.
 
I used to use Edge shave gel, but Jon Piper got me hooked on some shaving soap that he gave me and love it! I just lather it up in my hands and it works great. I think the key is to have some that has bentonite clay in it as it makes the blade glide very smoothly over the skin. I also use a Mach 3 razor with handle that I made myself. I would be curious of a brush would make that big a difference in the lather and quality of shave...will have to try making one I suppose.
 
I've got a tough beard and fairly sensitive skin... not a great combo... i previously used Mach 3 etc, but the multi-blade monstrosities out there left me with a lovely razor burn more than anything else...

now i use a "best" grade badger brush, shave soap (mostly proraso, but e-shave is a nice treat once in a while, e-shave soaps get piles of lather!) and a merker 23c DE safety razor with astra blades... sure.. you need 2 passes for a close shave, but the second pass only takes a minute. as for the tons of cuts business mentioned in the bill cosby quote? only cut myself once. ever. (next shave is sure to be a blood bath now... ;) )

I also dont think its terribly expensive considering how long the stuff lasts. a good brush, well cared for will last a very VERY long time... and a tub of shave soap? geez... i still have some left in a tub i bought over a year ago... a good soap might be 30 bucks but i would wager that it would take the average guy a year to go through one with a daily shave... the DE blades? dirt cheap particularly when compared to the fusions/mach3 etc.

just my 2c...

--Dave
 
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I don't know about the brush but for me soap is far better than the can. Some of it may have to do with how hot the water is and how long you soak your face and with soap your face is "wetter" I find using soap makes the blades last 2 to 3 times longer. When I run out of shaving soap I will use my wife's fancy soap from Lush and if you grab the wrong one you come out quite literally smelling like a rose (I have never done that, I read it in a book somewhere:redface:)
The expensive soap from Lush does work better than the shaving soap from Wal Mart even though Lush soap is not specifically shaving soap.
What is the purpose of after shave?
 
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Gillette gel and a fusion...always in the shower and always a night since I am lucky to not have a heavy beard - its mostly grey now when I do go a day or two w/o shaving which is pretty rare.

Anyone know if they make a kit for a Fusion?
 
Been thinking about going back to wet shaving. Tough beard and SUPER SUPER sensitive skin. Any thoughts on soap?

As for the question, when I was in the big city a few weeks ago I got my hair cut by a real barber. Used a straight razor on the back of my neck. After that and the look on the face of very rich guy on the chair next me after his shave I would say yes. There is a market. I ain't shaving the next time we are in the city. I am going for the full treatment. Cut, shave, shoulder massage.
 
I have use just about every razor possible out there electric disposables DE's and straights. For me the best shave is with a straight. There is a market out there for shaving supplies.
Brushes come down to need vs want you can use a nylon or synthetic or boar brush to get the job done. Will it feel as good or last as long no it will not. Badger hair is the best to use. There are 3 grades of badger bristle, pure, best, and silvertip. You can feel the difference between each grade just rubbing it on your forearm dry. I have seen them as low as $30 to as high as $500-600 depending on what type of hair and the handle material. It an example of you get what you pay for. One must is to store your brush in a stand, never store it on its base with the bristles pointing up. Water will collect at the base and mold. Like human hair, badger hair absorbs rather than repels water.


Shaving soap is a more personal choice. The characteristics that you look for in a shaving cream or soap are how well the lather lubricates and the amount of cushion it provides between the razor and the face to provide the protection it needs for the shave. Shaving soaps are broadly grouped into the "cold process" soaps, like the Col. Conk, and the milled soaps. Most of the higher quality shaving soaps are triple-milled. Using any shaving cream or soap with a quality shaving brush is far superior to using foam from a can.
 
The cost of shaving razors disposables vs DE and straights.
Will take the fusion. 30 bucks for 8 blades. You will be lucky to get 10 shaves with a blade. That is .37 a shave. Average $135 a year
The DE depends on the blade and type. $2.00 to $6.00 say $4.00 about average 10 shaves a blade 10 blades in a pack .04 a shave $45.00 a year the cost of the handle $20-40
The straight- a decent used straight will be $30-40 plus a strop $20-40 lets say $65 for both. shave and strop daily you only need to hone a razor every 6 months. Say 15.00 for honing service. That is .20 a shave for the year
 
Thanks for the great info in your last two posts Roger. What does 'DE' mean?

Thanks, Steve

qballizhere said:
The cost of shaving razors disposables vs DE and straights.
Will take the fusion. 30 bucks for 8 blades. You will be lucky to get 10 shaves with a blade. That is .37 a shave. Average $135 a year
The DE depends on the blade and type. $2.00 to $6.00 say $4.00 about average 10 shaves a blade 10 blades in a pack .04 a shave $45.00 a year the cost of the handle $20-40
The straight- a decent used straight will be $30-40 plus a strop $20-40 lets say $65 for both. shave and strop daily you only need to hone a razor every 6 months. Say 15.00 for honing service. That is .20 a shave for the year
Click to expand...
 
For those using the DE razors, how hard is it to use one? I can remember my dad ditching his old safety razor when disposables came out b/c he was tired of all of the nicks & cuts. I'm tired of the ridulous prices of the Mach 3 heads, so, I'm considering other options. I'm just not sure if I want to go the route of an old fashioned safety razor. Isn't there a reason the market swung away from them?
 
The market swung away because the patents expired. The razor manufactures then had to create a demand for "new and better" to keep their market share. They invented and patented new systems and sold them as better. Whether they are or not is open to debate. I guess we all have to decide for ourselves, as it's our skin we are shaving. Only problem is trying the different systems requires time and money. I found a whole DE, double edge, community on the web today that I didn't know existed. I might have to try that old 1959 Gillette "Fat Boy" razor after all.
 
jking said:
For those using the DE razors, how hard is it to use one? I can remember my dad ditching his old safety razor when disposables came out b/c he was tired of all of the nicks & cuts. I'm tired of the ridulous prices of the Mach 3 heads, so, I'm considering other options. I'm just not sure if I want to go the route of an old fashioned safety razor. Isn't there a reason the market swung away from them?
Click to expand...

Pretty easy really... not all that different from a regular disposable razor... just keep in mind that most disposable catridges have those little rubber strips ahead of the blades that stretch your skin a little to get a closer cut... a DE razor doesn't do that nearly as well... gotta do that on your own... :cool:

other useful tips, holding the handle further away from the business end gives some more control and helps with keeping the pressure to a minimum... it only takes a light touch... short strokes are better then long ones i find, and a tip i picked up when i bought my straight razor was to try shaving a ballon... if you can shave the cream off a ballon without popping it you wont cut yourself... helps you learn the optimal blade angle... now... of course, shaving a ballon you can look at and shaving your face in the mirror are two different things but if you need some reassurance that you aren't going to shred your face, its a good first step...
 
jking said:
For those using the DE razors, how hard is it to use one? I can remember my dad ditching his old safety razor when disposables came out b/c he was tired of all of the nicks & cuts. I'm tired of the ridulous prices of the Mach 3 heads, so, I'm considering other options. I'm just not sure if I want to go the route of an old fashioned safety razor. Isn't there a reason the market swung away from them?
Click to expand...

As far as using it, it's not HARD, but you will get a different shave depending on what type of razor and what type of blade you are using. You need to learn how to handle what you are using at the time.
I think marketing "swung away" for the simple fact that every manufacturer produces something new and focuses on that. It's the same for just about any product out there...
 
I use the best badger brush I could get (from the golden nib) and shave soap. I have been using a fusion razor but when all of the blades I bought for it are gone, I'm going DE. This guy has a ton of information and videos about shaving and products. His videos helped my shaving a whole lot.
 
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