New DE Shaver

Discussion in 'Welcome Center' started by Michael J. Spangler, Aug 16, 2011.

  1. hello everyone.

    i've been checking out a few shaving forums and i settled on this one. Being a customer knife maker i've always had an appreciation for blades, especially ones with very practical uses. I've been shaving for a while, and almost always used cartridges, with a few tries at straight shaving. I don't quite have the patience or technique to keep my razors sharp, so i got away from that. For my last birthday my brother gave me a merkur futur with a pack of merkur blades, and some castle and forbes lime shaving cream. I got to work and found it to be a pretty nice shave one setting #1. I have not touched a cartridge razor since then. As soon as i used a few blades and did some reading i ordered a sampler pack from razorbladesandmore.com (amazing customer service)
    In the meantime i had scored some wilkinson sword blades locally. This was just about the worst shave i've ever had. I switched back to the merkurs for the time being. When the sampler pack showed up i had to try one of the legendary feathers. I really liked how it shaved, three passes drew a little bit of blood but after a quick clean up i didn't have any lingering irritation or red bumps at all. Then at the suggestion of david from razor blades and more i switched over to a personna barber. Great first shave, and pretty good second shave with it. I'm really enjoying making this part of my night time routine.
    I generally shave on monday, wednesday, and friday to somewhat presentable. i started this because i was sick of throwing away expensive cartridges and getting terrible irritating shaves, that couldn't be spaced any closer together.
    i was wondering if the general population tends to shave daily?
    i find that it takes 3 shaves to get pretty smooth (not bbs, i have some cowlicks that take a lot of attention) and by that time i have some irritation and still have some light stubble in spots.
    do you think that by cutting down the time in between and shaving on a daily basis would give me shorter whiskers to deal with and help cut down on the extra passes?
    at this rate i wish my beard would grow in hours so i could try out all of the new blades.
    thank you in advance for all of the replies and help. i look forward to posting more on this forum
     
    IAmTheJody likes this.
  2. GDCarrington

    GDCarrington Burma Shave

    Welcome to the cozy confines of The Shave Den.

    Find a comfortable leather recliner and set a spell.

    I shave daily. At one time it was a chore, now I look forward to it.

    I would recommend that you plan your shaves out. Preparation is the key.

    Get a good basic soap or cream that provides slickness and cushion.

    Shave after showering if possible, because that is when your skin is hydrated the most.

    Remember, moisture is your skin's best friend.

    Daily shaving in my opinion is the best way, unless your skin is raw and irritated. That is when you should give it a day or two of rest.

    Look around the threads and watch Mantic59 videos on Youtube to help you with your technique and methods of lather, etc.

    http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=mantic59&aq=0&oq=mantic

    Good fortune with your shaves!
     
  3. Slivovitz

    Slivovitz Well-Known Member

    Welcome to the forums!:eatdrink047:

    I think I left my advice giving hat at work today, but doubt if I could add much to GD Carrington's post, above. I do shave every day, and it works very well for me, but not necessarily for everybody.

    Most people around here have fiddled with their shave gear and technique for a while before finding a comfort zone. Enjoy finding what works for you.
     
  4. battle.munky

    battle.munky Has the menthol.munky on his back!

  5. Asd

    Asd Well-Known Member

    Welcome to the forum!
    I do shave every day, it happens I shave even twice a day. It depends of how close to BBS I need to be. Most days I shave in evevning time to make the shave longer and be... well... well-prepared for bed time ;) It is all very personal, I know guys who shaves 3 times a week and know a guy who just have to shave twice a day, or he would look like a bum. Just seek for your comfortable time and enjoy! For the first times, the quality will be unstable, but with time it will become very natural and close.
     
  6. Queen of Blades

    Queen of Blades Mistress of Mischief Staff Member

    Moderator Supporting Vendor
    Welcome to The Shave Den! :signs046:
     
  7. PanChango

    PanChango Not Cute

    Welcome to the den.

    I really like the chef knife in your Avatar. It's a nice looking blade. What material are the scales?

    You mention shave cream, but I did not see mention of a brush? I think using a brush and soap or cream had the greatest effect on my shave. If you don't have a brush, I would definitely pick one up.

    As for shaving every day, I normally shave 5 days a week as I need to be clean for work. Even when I skip a day or two, I still only do a 2 pass shave. I do one N-S and one S-N. It gets me a nice looking comfortable shave. If I try and do more passes then that, I suffer irritation. There is no rule book that stating that you need to be BBS all the time. It is your shave and only needs to suit you. It will take some time, but it is really worth the effort as the shaves only get better. It is also nice turning a loathed activity into an enjoyable hobby.

    I also agree with the above advice.
     
  8. SharpSpine

    SharpSpine Well-Known Member

    I'm primarily a daily shaver. Occasionally I'll skip a day due to circumstances or just so I can have extra fun shaving off 2 days worth of growth. I never could have handled daily shaving with a cartridge I would suspect that many here can agree with that statement. Now I can get clean, comfortable shaves with little to no irritation on a daily basis & guess what... It's Fun, It's Enjoyable, & It's Relaxing!
     
  9. IAmTheJody

    IAmTheJody Gillette-i Master Staff Member

    Welcome to TSD. :git:
     
  10. swarden43

    swarden43 "It's your shave. Enjoy it your way."©

    Sound advice - saves me a lot of typing, so I'll just add...

    Hi! Welcome to the Den.
     
  11. thanks everyone! this is all great info.

    i did forget to mention that i'm using my grandfather's vintage badger brush. i don't really have any info on it.

    that knife in my avatar is a 1095 blade with japanese style heat treatment which give the hamon (hard and soft areas on the blade that are reveled with acid) and has bone scales with black liners and stainless pins. thanks for asking.

    i'm going to try a 2 pass shave after 24 hours and see where that gets me. thanks again everyone.
     
  12. stingraysrock

    stingraysrock PIF'd away his custom title

    Welcome to TSD Michael J. Spangler! This is the best wet shave board on the planet!
     
  13. fishcrow

    fishcrow Birdman of TSD

    Welcome to the Den and a big hello.
     
  14. tomnat

    tomnat accepting applications

    Welcome to the Den! I hope you enjoy your stay.

    I shave every other day, but as fate would have it I shaved this morning, after shaving yesterday, just because I wanted to; not because I needed to. On the rare occasion when I do shave on consecutive days, I find that I need to do the same amount of passes, as I would if I had a couple days growth, to get a DFS. Maybe that's just me....
     
  15. soapbuddy

    soapbuddy Mistress of Lather

    Welcome!
     
  16. Thanks everyone.
     
  17. MRast01

    MRast01 Well-Known Member

    Howdy and Welcome to The Shave Den!
     
  18. Regan

    Regan Well-Known Member

    Welcome to TSD. Enjoy the stay. Nice looking knife you got there. Post pics of the brush and might be able to help you out there.
     
  19. Brian

    Brian Active Member

    Welcome to the Shave Den, I hope you enjoy your stay as much as I have. Get comphy, ask as many questions as you'd like, and enjoy the good company!
     
  20. Bronco

    Bronco Mac Daddy

    Welcome!
     

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