between the flexball power razor from gillette and those 1950s razors from gillette, which one would give a truly closer shave? do more blades truly mean a closer shave or not? would anyone happen to know since many of you guys say that de razors are somewhat better than modern blades..........?
I have used both systems and they both have strengths, I do not use my Gillette 5 blade fusion with the swivel head hardly at all any more, a couple of times in the last 3 yrs maybe. The swivel ball is a masterpiece of thought and I believe it works, the difference with DE or SE your hand skills become the swivel ball equivalent and that is what is rewarding. If you suffer from ingrown hairs a single edge blade is what a person should seriously consider IMO. If you head shave it seems people really like the cartridge razors over SE as long as its a every day shave on the Melon. DE & SE razors work on the head also but the skill level is a little higher, some will use a DE or SE to knock down the bulk of growth and then finish with a swivel razor or a Harry's razor with good results. I really enjoy the DE or SE razors and I can get a excellent shave from them, if I was going to use a cartridge razor I would still prefer to lather with a shaving brush because it is a treat to the face and the different scents and post shave feel. Cartridge razors for the first few shaves are very close and then they fade slowly in sharpness were single edge you are going to change the blade when you feel tugging or poor performance were a $4 cartridge blade you will try to go as long as you can bear. If you want longer life out of your cart razor blades manually blow out cuttings & water after use and give it a strop on denim to improve the life of the blade. I get better results with DE or SE razors but there was a learning curve and I wish that I had started earlier in life with traditional wet shaving with single edge blades and lathering like it should be done. Have some great shaves!
In my experience... the more blades, the closer the shave. Each blade pulls the hair out a little bit more until the last one gets it. For me, I had to stop. At 3 blades the skin grew back right over the hair. Then after the hair grew a couple of days under the skin, I could shave the skin off to liberate the hair and get it back below again on the next stroke. I think my beard should grow faster to keep up.
No debate, the flexball will give a closer shave. It's when people start trying to equate "closer" with "better," that you run into problems. When you go past 2 blades, the extra blades pull the hair out and lop it off...once the blades pass, the hair sinks below the surface of the skin. Rub that face- baby butt smooth. Of course there's the niggling little problem of ingrown hairs, which are far more likely to happen with a multi blade razor. And let's not forget razor burn, which is almost unavoidable due to the first blade removing any shaving lather that might cushion the face from the other four blades.
Personally I get a better and closer shave with a DE or SE razor and much more enjoyable and I get a BBS more often, now that I'm retired. I find multi blade cart razors to clog and give me razor bumps, razor burn, ingrown hairs and irritation. I have tried mostly all carts at one time or another with nearly the same result. Always went back to my trusty Gillette Slim or BB.
My face is much happier with a DE or SE razor. No razor burn, no ingrown hairs. But the learning curve for the DE/SE razors is much higher than carts. Herm
Personally, I find get closer and more comfortable shaves with a DE than I ever did with the face graters. It takes a little longer, but as a retired empty-nester, I have the time. And if you dodge the rabbit holes, it's a lot cheaper. I figure I went through about $6.00 worth of blades in the last year, roughly 1/8 of what I would have spent on cartridges.
For me, old school safety razors give me shaves that are a little closer than cartridge razors. The main reason I switched to a safety razor is that the blades cost far less than cartridges. I also get fewer nicks with a safety razor, and the shaves are much more comfortable and irritation-free than with a cartridge razor.
