Agreed. Also keep in mind this razor is relatively mild which in comparison may not shave as close on the first pass as more aggressive razors. If the blade is uncomfortable though, I would toss it right away. That's what samplers are for. Otherwise if it's comfortable and smooth, just keep working on it, and with the right angle and a bit of practice, you'll get great results! Personally I am leaning towards more aggressive razors which provides a closer shave in fewer passes, avoiding the irritation.
Don't feel bad, I am going through the same things as I learn new razors and try to perfect the technique. Maybe this will help I tell me students you have to understand the learning curve Understand it will be difficult and frustrating but you are learning and soon with your persistence you will begin to notice a rapid improvement then eventually if you practice the rest of your life you still won't get much better . Hope this helps you.
Hmm... I have it another go today. I think the blades I got is not for me, it was pulling and tugging and not slicing through the whiskers. It was not for me
I had my first successful shave today with the DE razor. To my surprise the blade that worked was the derby I got with my Muhle r89 =P I have used derbys with my shavette before and I thought they was not for me because I got razor bumps. So I was pleasantly surprised today. I have found 2 different DE blades, one is Super max stainless(looks like it's an old model or something. At least the package has different layout. And one is Topaz. I thought I would get started with those. At first when I used them I blamed that I have not found the right angle yet, but I always thought even with a bad angle the blade should be able to slice through the stubble a bit better. I have yet to receive the pif from jpb437 nor my blade sample. So I thought I would give the derby a go because I remember that it did slice through the stubble when I used the shavette, it's just that I got razor bumps. Little did I know the derby was a solid performer. Now I can't compare the derby to other blades yet, but at least now I have excluded 2 blades that was really dull. I'm gonna wait and see if I get razor bumps if I don't I'm gonna give derbys an honest chance =)
You have to try Astra SP in the Mühle. I know, YMMV and all that, but to me they were a great couple. Also the Viking's Sword from Israel was a great match. And Voskhod to name a third. The Supermax Stainless is just... dull. Of course it's not, but it just feels that way. Pulls and tugs, at least on my face.
There is a good offer on amazon 100 Astra SP plus Arko stick. About 9£. So when I get my sample, I'm rooting for the Astra SP hahaha
