The propellants in canned creams can dry your face out, making your shave more painful & not as good. Aside from which, you just haven't lived till you've used a brush to massage warm lather into your face/. If you don't find a brush locally, there are brushless creams that don't come in cans -- the Real Shaving Co. stuff I mentioned can be used brushlessly (I think), and Kiss My Face, which is commonly available at Whole-Foods-like grocery stores, is excellent both for brushless and brush use (it's advertised as a brushless cream). If the higher price of these creams puts you off, remember (a) they're more concentrated than goo in a can, so you'll get more shaves per tube, and (b) that's more than offset by not having to pay for cartridges.
No, its not.... If the EJ is mild and unusable I really want to hear the rumors of a 40's super speed or tech
Ah! It's...not? I might have to give it a try, then. I've got no problem admitting when I'm wrong. ;-)
Lathering with brush seems to be time consuming. I think I will try brushless first. So general consensus is EJ DE89L > Merkur 23c? *I know I haven't mentioned this, but I assume both are easy to load with razors? (hopefully idiot proof)
That might be a good idea initially since sourcing a brush locally isn't always trivial. But lathering with a brush isn't that time consuming--it takes all of a couple of minutes, which is kind of dwarfed by the time we newbies take in the actual shave! A four-pass shave can easily take me 30 minutes if I'm being extra-careful, so two or three minutes whipping a good lather isn't that much. Both the EJ and the Merkur are three-piece razors, so you have to unscrew the razor's head to take the blade out. I don't mind my three-piece myself, but some people do find them harder to deal with and easier to cut yourself loading & unloading. If you're concerned about this, look for a "twist to open" (tto, for short) razor -- the Gillette superspeed Sodapopjones mentioned is indeed a fine tto.
are there any TTOs that can be bought new? Not really an ebayer. Any other difference betweem 3 pcs and TTOs?
No, they're not I have had mine since last December it is in the exact same shape today as when I bought it... Its a superior piece of gear that will yield effortless, close shaves and its smooth especially with an Iridium, a Kai I almost don't need to shave everyday... In Mantic's own words from my thread You can buy Parker or Weishi TTO's, neither of which I would recommend, they're known for poor QC... Most people usually move to a Merkur or EJ/Muhel, you're better off just starting with the right tool in the first place.
Does it take longer than pressing the button on a can? Sure. But for me it's not a race to get done as fast as I can. I'll be honest, between my shower and shave I take about an hour. But that's ME time, MY time. I hate to rush, so I don't. I get up a little earlier to enjoy a quiet house and the SPA-like bliss shaving with a brush, sweetly scented soap, and a razor that's older than I am brings. As for loading a razor, doesn't matter. You still have to handle a blade that will cut you to the bone if you're not careful.
I'm on ebay now. Watching a couple of gillette super speeds. If I can get my hands on one, great. If not, then I'll get the EJ89
I just re-started wet shaving a couple weeks ago after many years, and I bought a Super Speed Black Tip and a Fatboy on eBay. I like both of them with Feather blades. They definitely feel and glide differently from each other, but they're both good. I also just got a Merkur HD to try. I've never used a Jagger.
Check the market place, classifieds here at the Den...I believe Stingraysrock still has some Super Speeds for sale...He sent me a 1952 Black Tip a few months ago for my birthday...I've never owned a better razor... Yeah I just popped overthere and he still has a bunch he's selling for $10 a piece...and if you are interested in any. PM him and he'll tell you exactly whats happening with whichever razors you are looking for...and every razor he sells he donates $2 to The Shave Den....Jeff's a great guy and a real gentleman...
Sodapopjones, I'm really interested if you remember which members here have had personal experience with QC issues on the Weishi. I say that because my first DE razor was a chrome Weishi (20 bucks) off eBay. I'm fairly sure it qualifies as a mild razor but I've gotten so many really close shaves off of it, right off the bat (but was shaving with disposables for years before that so no adjustment period for DE shaving) and I really like it. I got a WWII-era Gillette (military family heirloom) that is too aggressive, if I hadn't been given someone's heirloom Gillette Goldtech I'd still be using the Weishi for DE shaves. I know we can and should be wary of the China products, but it seems the modern manufacturing facilities are capable of churning out some really good stuff. I'm not contesting anyone, would just love to hear more on this issue in greater detail (I like to recommend this brand to people who want TTO/new DEs).
Welcome! Well there are many excellent shavers .... recently I fell in love with a feather, but 'also merkur are truly exceptional. I am a bit 'about your own situation, I want to buy a new razor blade, a day would wish'.... I like this model of feather (Japan)
plug 'weishi' or 'parker' into the search function. If that's too general then add quality control to the phrase. That should get you the information you need.
in Italy costs between 20 and 27 euros. I think a good razor, does not cost much, and the brand is not 'bad indeed ...
+1...#22 Stingraysrock has for sale, the Blue Tip, seems like it'd be especially promising for a beginner--they're even milder than the normal superspeeds. Of course, any of these will be a good, mild shaver (the first one, a Tech, is a 3-piece, but the rest of the Gillettes are tto's).
I've already won a bid by the time I got the chance to talk with stingrayshock. I did tell him that if I weren't happy with the condition of the one I'm getting, that I'd buy one from him. Good thing the superspeed was suggested. Much cheaper than the 23c or ed89. This should serve as a nice trial razor.
