Sensible Shaving

[raleighnut]

Is that a picture of Drago ?

Nah,

 

[swee'pea99]

Another vote for the Gillette Mach3. If you look around you can get the cartridges cheaper. I find I get a very good shave from them.
A friend of mine has just changed to a wooden handled safety razor and blades to cut down on the plastic waste from disposable ones.

Wooden blades? Now for me that would be a step too far.

 

[swee'pea99]

Another vote for the safety razor: a good one lasts for a long time and the blades, as mentioned elsewhere are inexpensive and less wasteful than a modern razor.

I changed from a regular multi blade type having heard a story that shaving companies knew the best shave possible was from a safety razor but introduced disposables and multiblade razors because they knew they could sell them/the blades for a higher markup, even though the quality of the shave wasn't as high. This appealed to my inner tree hugging hippy.

As someone upthread said, the best shave is a proper barber's shave. Ain't no barber use no 5 blade razor. <spit>

 

[Smudge]

As someone upthread said, the best shave is a proper barber's shave. Ain't no barber use no 5 blade razor. <spit>

I've heard that many of them actually do these days.

 

[MichaelW2]

I use a Gillette blue II with King shaving oil. I stopped using foam decades ago

 

[Dayvo]

As a cyclist, I will also use the razor to do....um.....more southerly parts of my anatomy - a little secret that I share only with the fragrant Mrs S and the bathroom mirror, so don't go telling anyone .

But don't shave other parts 'downstairs!

It's been posted before, but time for another airing: possibly the funniest thing I have read on the internet.

https://www.ign.com/boards/threads/guys-take-it-from-me-dont-shave-your-butt-hairs.205942687/#

 

[Smudge]

Gillette's latest gimmick, the heated razor. £200.

https://www.gillette.co.uk/heated-r...3WpK2QmbiNkPR3ACWicaAmXHEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

The best a mug can get.

 

[Fnaar]

I use a stick, the edge of which i have fashioned into a blade

 

[KneesUp]

Gillette's latest gimmick, the heated razor. £200.

https://www.gillette.co.uk/heated-r...3WpK2QmbiNkPR3ACWicaAmXHEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

The best a mug can get.

Wow. Forget the entire thread, I'm getting me one of these bad boys!

 

[Smudge]

Wow. Forget the entire thread, I'm getting me one of these bad boys!

Be sure to give us a review on here and tell us how its totally worth £200.
I just rinse my 20p razors in hot water while shaving, but that's the sort of luddite i am.

 

[Globalti]

Razors are boring but what is interesting is the genetic variations in people's hair and how they affect shaving. When I first started travelling round Africa I was baffled to see shaving powder, which is an extremely alkaline dry powder depilatory that is mixed into a paste to dissolve hair. Caucasians generally have round hair follicles and hence cylindrical hairs but black people usually have hairs that are crescent-shaped like a stick of celery or a human fingernail meaning there's a tendency for the hair to curl around on itself as it emerges from the follicle. With really tight curls the hair can dive back into the follicle wall rather than emerge, which causes infections and bumps and is almost impossible to shave, hence the use of an acceptably manly form of depilatory. King of Shaves powder is the best-known brand, coming from the USA.

The curly hair brings about a second concern, which is that people want to straighten their hair in order to grow it long. But the chemicals used to soften it then set it straight are very damaging and make the hair even more brittle so a fortune can be made from selling treatments such as petroleum jelly that are supposed to "nourish" the hair and prevent breakage but in reality do very little except generate massive profts for the manufacturer. Nowadays with the arrival of cheap polyester wigs from China, wealthy African women have given up the struggle and will shave their heads then use a variety of different wigs.

 

[Joey Shabadoo]

Razors are boring but what is interesting is the genetic variations in people's hair and how they affect shaving. When I first started travelling round Africa I was baffled to see shaving powder, which is an extremely alkaline dry powder depilatory that is mixed into a paste to dissolve hair. Caucasians generally have round hair follicles and hence cylindrical hairs but black people usually have hairs that are crescent-shaped like a stick of celery or a human fingernail meaning there's a tendency for the hair to curl around on itself as it emerges from the follicle. With really tight curls the hair can dive back into the follicle wall rather than emerge, which causes infections and bumps and is almost impossible to shave, hence the use of an acceptably manly form of depilatory. King of Shaves powder is the best-known brand, coming from the USA.

The curly hair brings about a second concern, which is that people want to straighten their hair in order to grow it long. But the chemicals used to soften it then set it straight are very damaging and make the hair even more brittle so a fortune can be made from selling treatments such as petroleum jelly that are supposed to "nourish" the hair and prevent breakage but in reality do very little except generate massive profts for the manufacturer. Nowadays with the arrival of cheap polyester wigs from China, wealthy African women have given up the struggle and will shave their heads then use a variety of different wigs.

Those depilatory powders are very popular with those wanting a smooth "down there". Not as aggressive as Veet with results similar to waxing. No razor rash either.

So I'm told anyway.

 

[slowmotion]

I never understood how razor advertisers sell the massive lie that the act of shaving is somehow an ecstatic celebration of masculinity. It's not. It's utter misery and a complete waste of five minutes, day in, day out.

 

[Nigeyy]

My go to is an Edwin Jagger EJ89 safety razor but recently have been using a Standard Razors all aluminium safety razor.

But really, that is only a quarter of the equation: too many times people who try safety razors don't have success with them, and that's because they are more sensitive to variables required for a first class shave:

1. razor
2. blade
3. soap
4. brush (well assuming you are using traditional shaving soap)

You have to get all the above sorted out to find that shaving nirvana. FWIW, I've found great success with the EJ and Standard Razors safety razors, Israeli Red Pack Personna blades, Henry Cavendish shaving soap and Razorock Plissoft Big Bruce shaving brush. For me, the above really can't be beaten, and it is my shaving nirvana.

Lastly, I just want to add that the multiple plastic cartridge razors really are no match for a good safety razor with a good blade. What's more, you aren't creating a mountain of those plastic cartridges in a land fill somewhere, and blades can be recycled. Further, the comparison cost is just insane; I recently spent about 12 quid for at least 4-5 years of blades. For environmental and economical reasons, I'd say safety razors are the way to go (though admittedly you will have a setup cost as you experiment to find what works for you -my advice is don't buy those really cheap safety razors, they are cheap for a reason. The EJ89 with Israeli Red Pack Personna blades is a very good place to start IMHO).

 

[Nigeyy]

I've got to push the non-badger (and cruelty free) synthetic brushes -some of them are fantastic. Razorock Big Bruce is my all time favourite.

Another vote for Edwin Jagger DE razor, with a badger brush of course, Palmolive shaving soap stick, and Feather blades. Being lazy and shaving about once a week, the cartridge blades just clogged up all the time. DE blades get the job done easily, two passes do the trick, so takes a little longer to shave, but no going back............