Men: What do you shave with?

Discussion in 'General Discussion' started by melbo, Jul 6, 2010.


?
  1. Electric

    5 vote(s)
    19.2%
  2. Bic type disposable

    9 vote(s)
    34.6%
  3. Premium cartridges (Gillette, etc)

    9 vote(s)
    34.6%
  4. Safety Razor

    3 vote(s)
    11.5%
  5. Straight Razor

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%
  1. melbo

    melbo Hunter Gatherer Administrator Founding Member

    I've been a wet shave guy since I started shaving but always with a modern 2 or 3 blade commercial cartridge. Was Gillette Sensor for a long time and then moved to Sensor Excel and then Mach III (or something like that). I started off with an antique badger hair brush and a mug and now use some tube cream my wife buys me.

    Problem is that the shrinking buying power of the USD has made these things quite expensive; especially when you also shave your head with them. I replace the head each week or when it starts to pull rather than cut.

    I recently purchased my first electric razor. It's a Phillips Norelco Arcitec and while it doesn't do a very good job on longer neck hair, it's passable if I swipe my wet razor once a week to catch the longer hairs the electric misses.

    I'm thinking of trying the old 'Safety Razor' that uses the 2 edge razor blades or going ulti-man and trying to learn the art of shaving with a straight razor.

    Whatcha use?
     
  2. UGRev

    UGRev Get on with it!

    Mach III's for me, but I save money on them by shaving every other day and not buying shaving cream. I shave in the shower using the soapy suds from my shampoo which works much better than body soap for this purpose, IMO. It takes a little practice to do it unless you have a mirror. I do it by mental map.
     
  3. ghrit

    ghrit Bad company Administrator Founding Member

    Norelco, and for a long time now. If you get after it every day, the rotary does a plenty nice enough job. Skip a day, and the whiskers can get wild on ya. (She will let you know ---) Wayback, used a straight razor and pig bristle brush with Ivory soap, worked well enough as long as you kept it wet.
     
  4. fortunateson

    fortunateson I hate Illinois Nazis!

    Schick slim twin disposable. That's about the highest quality disposable I've found. Cartridges are expensive.
    Dad started me out on a safety razor, but I dropped that after a couple of years. They're pretty rough.

    Tried electric a number of years ago. Bad problem with ingrown hairs.

    As far as head shaving: I don't have the patience. That's something that needs keeping after at least every other day.
    I do use a Wahl clipper without a guard weekly on my head. The week starts out looking shaved and by the end of the week it's a crew cut. I'm not exactly turning heads at my age so neat and clean is what I'm after and it does the job.
     
  5. melbo

    melbo Hunter Gatherer Administrator Founding Member

    For the skull I use a Wahl Peanut without guard every few days and only go for shine once a weekish. Every once in awhile I get the urge to just Nair my head and face and be done with it.

    <----- Hates Shaving.
     
  6. Gray Wolf

    Gray Wolf Monkey+++

    I started with a double edge Gillette, more years ago than I care to think about! Then I changed with the times, a Trac 2, then a Mach 3, finally a 5 blade battery powered Gillette Fusion. When the quality on the Fusion blades got so lousy that I was only getting 3 or 4 shaves from a cartridge, and the price of the cartridges got to $3.50 EACH, I went back full circle to a couple of vintage Gillette double edge razors.
    I use a 1921 Gillette New Improved, and a 1953 Gillette Super Speed (my birth year).
    I get 4-6 shaves from a blade, and blades cost between 11 and 35 CENTS each!
    If you learn how to use a blade, and make rich hot lather with a brush and a mug of shaving soap or cream, it can turn your morning shave into something to be enjoyed instead of an unpleasant task.
     
  7. Seacowboys

    Seacowboys Senior Member Founding Member

    Some mornings I use an electric that I keep in my truck for touch-ups and slept too late. Most mornings, I use a mug, brush, and soap with a stainless straight razor that has changeable blades; I do not have the time or patience to sharpen a traditional razor and maintain it daily but this may change once I finally retire. I have a couple of very fine German made straight razors just waiting on that.
    My travel bag has one of those battery powered cartridge things with multiple blades; I use that a lot too. About the only thing on your survey that I don't use is the disposables; never got a good shave with those. I wish you could still get a good barber shoppe shave.
     
  8. sharpeblades

    sharpeblades Monkey+

    shaving

    I have had to shave since i was around 16 years old . so i just stoped shaving and grew a beard ,but i still keep it trimed
     
  9. Seawolf1090

    Seawolf1090 Retired Curmudgeonly IT Monkey Founding Member

    Same here - short beard. If it gets too long, it "poofs" out! Danged curly hair from Dad's side - but thankfully the stuff up top is from Mom's family! Dad was bald early - I still got the distaff's side's thick hair.
    When I did shave, I favored the single-edge disposable - I could clean it and get a couple week's use from one shaver! And my chin stubble was thick and gnarly! Got tough to find the 'old school' single edges though. So I stopped shaving.
     
  10. kckndrgn

    kckndrgn Monkey+++ Moderator Emeritus Founding Member

    I hated it too, so I stopped :D. Now I just use a trimmer once a week to keep the beard short. I've thought about starting to shave again, but I just hate it so much.
     
  11. Tango3

    Tango3 Aimless wanderer

    "beard "thing will be a definite option once things get tight. I'm not cacheing disposables,Someday I'd like to try a straight razor for the resharpenable non- disposable nature. got a couple of knives that'd work in a pinch...
     
  12. ghrit

    ghrit Bad company Administrator Founding Member

    "I heard" from someone (who should have known better - can you say frat party in the 60s?) that if you can get your hands on clam and oyster shells, they can be sharpened to a pretty fine edge. The report indicates that the drag is fierce, but can be controlled with lots of soap and frequent re-sharpening on a flat piece of sandstone.

    Nope, I ain't risking my neck at this point. Too much wrinkled skin, and too close to my jugular.

    But try it if your bravery will allow, and report back if you live --. (After all, we are about survival, eh?)
     
  13. Byte

    Byte Monkey+++

    I use the Gillette 5 blade cartridges. And damn are they stupid expensive. I'm lucky in that I never really had to shave ever few days until I was well into my 20's.

    I could easily get away with running an electric over my face and be done in less than a minute. The electric only works now if I replace the screen/cutter about every 3 months and they are not cheap either. If I don't use it every other day the 3rd day makes for a miserable shave. Also, my face is pretty sensitive to shaving every other day with an electric tears it up and I break out all the time.

    Even with a wet shave and the 5 blade disposables I still only shave once a week if the boss lets me get away with it. Oh and I get maybe 4-5 shaves each. @ nearly $3.5 per they're too expensive. I still break out every time but at least it's just once a week. I've tried so many different methods too and nothing seems to work.

    If someone invents a pill that'll stop hair growth on my head and face I'd kill people for... OK well maybe not kill them but I'd be sorely tempted. Shaving is the bane of my existence.

    Byte
     
  14. fortunateson

    fortunateson I hate Illinois Nazis!

    BTW, as far as blades lasting 3 - 5 shaves - my disposables last 2-3 weeks (used every other day).
    The secret ( and credit goes to The Clark Howard Show [radio consumer advocate guy]) is to dry them immediately after use.
    Apparently some micro corrosion takes place that dulls them big time if left wet.

    One exception I've found is that this doesn't work nearly so well if the razor has one of those "lubricant/aloe strips". Those things apparently hold moisture too close to the blade or maybe create a film that doesn't wash off so easily.
     
  15. ghrit

    ghrit Bad company Administrator Founding Member

    You can. Just find a barber as old as I am, and not retired. I am told that they still teach the art in barber college, but nothing to confirm it recently. Seems like "shave and a haircut, two bits" went out in the late 50s. (Wasn't two bits then, either.)
    :D
     
  16. XR750

    XR750 Monkey+

    Started with a shick injecter and shave cream but when the grizzly adams thing was in I lost it. I tried electrics two norelcos but not good. Also used a brush and shaving soapI now use the disposables and edge gel when ever I feel like it.
    XR750
     
  17. Gray Wolf

    Gray Wolf Monkey+++

    UGH, canned goo....How can you stand it?
     
  18. OzarkSaints

    OzarkSaints Monkey++

    haven't shaved in over 3 years at all and ain't ever goin back!!!:D
     
  19. pcc

    pcc Monkey+

    I saw an article somewhere about extending the life of razors up to a year awhile back. The key is cleaning and completely drying the blades after each use. According to the article the thing that dulls razor blades is buildup and oxidation from being left wet not cutting hair. This guy said he carefully cleans the blades with a towel then uses a blow dryer to dry the blade.

    I'm not as anal as the guy that posted the article, I just blow on my razor a couple of times then pat it with my towel. Since I started doing that I've been getting around 6 or 7 months per cartridge shaving daily.

    I've also been using whatever soap I use for my body to shave with for at least 13 years now. Got a dud can of shaving gel and used my bar of soap instead, it worked just as good as the gel I had been using. So no more gels or foams with whatever special ingredients the shaving companies said I had to have to get a good shave for me.
     
  20. Hogtown

    Hogtown Monkey+

    Use a Mach III, badger brush, Proraso cream (tube). I have a moderate beard, but still get about 3 weeks out of a blade. I do clean the blade in hot water after shaving and since it is hot from the water it dries pretty quickly. Minimal blade care will really extend the life of the blade.
     
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