My "First" DE Shave in 40 Years! "And" Beyond! Discoveries during the journey!

Discussion in 'Shower or Shave of the Day' started by S Barnhardt, Jan 21, 2020.

  1. Edison Carter

    Edison Carter Well-Known Member

    I always used witch hazel in the beginning.
    Still love the soothing it gives
     
    brit and S Barnhardt like this.
  2. S Barnhardt

    S Barnhardt Old, Crusty Barn

    A note on my quest for a "favorite" DE blade.....

    I started with a Voskhod, followed by a Feather, a Pol-Silver, and a Nacet, in that order. I don't mean just 1 shave per, but I used each till they felt "off" if I may use that term. I liked the Voskhod the best so far. The Feather started not so good but got a tad better. The Pol-Silver did not impress me at all. It was 2 shaves and replace the thing with that one. And then yesterday I used a Nacet for the 1st time and to be quite honest, I had thoughts of replacing it after the 1st couple of strokes across my cheek. It felt "rough." My settings were the same as all others as was my products and the process and order in which I used them. The Nacet "smoothed" out a tad, but still left something to be desired and I had the most irritation afterward, admittedly not a lot, but still more than any other blade so far. So, for now, the Voskhod is the best IMHO!

    I've marked the picture below with what I've used and in what order, with the remaining ones still to be tried. While I can randomly pick one, I wonder if anyone has had a good experience with those remaining and would care to venture a suggestion?

    Thanks!

    EDIT: For update of blade use progress picture to blade #7

    blade progress.jpg
     
    Last edited: Mar 31, 2020
    Edison Carter and brit like this.
  3. jgreenepa

    jgreenepa Nasal Barbarian

    Barney:
    I'm a huge Voskhod fan! They are great blades. My experience with Feathers is that they work beautifully in razors with either blade neutral or blade negative exposure. I agree with you on Nacets, although I know a lot of folk love them. In this game it’s very much dependent on beard thickness, whisker density and skin sensitivity. Thus the YMMV acronym. Our @Terry with his Kevlar beard prefers Feathers as his DE goto. Of your remaining blades, I would recommend Astra, GSB and the Yellow 7 O’Clocks. I also like Suneko and Original Polish Wizamet. PM me. I’d be glad to send you a few of each.
     
    S Barnhardt, Edison Carter and brit like this.
  4. brit

    brit in a box

    it took a while to toughen up the face for daily shaving ,but i get great results from gillette blades-gsb,nacet,vintage and modern platinums,astra blue and green,voskhods are really smooth.most blades work fine today though,unless they are lower on the sharpness scale like derby green..a blade you dislike today may be a favorite in the future..ymmv.
     
    S Barnhardt and Edison Carter like this.
  5. S Barnhardt

    S Barnhardt Old, Crusty Barn

    And I don't usually shave but every 3 days give or take. Never thought about "toughening up" my face. You might be onto something!

    Good excuse to "collect", huh? Now, I'm bouncing back and forth a good way to organize, store, etc. my "things." I keep running into a recurring problem of mine......What I like and what "financial prudence" dictates is not always the same thing. I want something that looks decent. Maybe I will start a thread dedicated to stuff storage.
     
    brit likes this.
  6. S Barnhardt

    S Barnhardt Old, Crusty Barn

    Had my 3rd shave with the Nacet this morning.
    upload_2020-2-23_8-48-25.png

    My 1st was not great, as I said, but the 2nd a tad better. Then this morning, the 3rd impressed me. Noticeably smoother to the point of being reminiscent of my shave with the Voskhod. Now that's just an attempt, by an inexperie4nced reincarnated DE shaver, at putting into words what I felt. The gap between the 1st and 2nd was 2 days and the gap between the 2nd and 3rd was 3 days. I'm trying to figure out what to attribute all this to. Was it an improvement in technique? I don't know. Nothing changed that I'm aware of, but "something" was better. Is this one of those that I've read others talk about on here about a blade getting better as time goes on? Again, I don't know. Could it be, as I've read some talk about, that these blades, at least for me, would benefit by a tad of honing/stropping before use? I read someone post somewhere on here about using a piece of denim material for that. I'm on overload with this, this morning. I'd appreciate input from you "experienced" folks.

    Thanks!
     
    Edison Carter and brit like this.
  7. brit

    brit in a box

    from sources i have read that the nacet blades are quite consistent between shaves compared to others.i have heard feather blades are better after the first shave,but haven't tried them.
    here is on source with blade summary..https://www.refinedshave.com/razor-blade-sharpness-summary/ .the lower the number the sharper they are.
     
    Edison Carter and S Barnhardt like this.
  8. S Barnhardt

    S Barnhardt Old, Crusty Barn

    Thanks! :thanks:

    On a side note...I have to ask, looking at your avatar, if it's cold wherever in the world you are? LOL :eatdrink013:
     
    Edison Carter and brit like this.
  9. S Barnhardt

    S Barnhardt Old, Crusty Barn

    The next candidate out of the chute in this quest for my "go-to" blade is...........

    upload_2020-2-27_9-45-34.png

    Thoughts, suggestions, and/or comments for this one are welcomed and appreciated!

    EDIT: For 1st impression of the Astra.

    Ladies and Gentlemen! Boys and Girls!

    I have to say I was impressed with that Astra. No complaints to be made. An easy contender for a "go-to" DE blade rivaling the Voskhod, which was my choice so far going into today.
    Now to see if it holds with that impression.
     
    Last edited: Feb 27, 2020
  10. S Barnhardt

    S Barnhardt Old, Crusty Barn

    Well, the Astra SP mentioned above has impressed me. I liked it getting a total of 5 shaves out of the one blade. However, that being said, the last two were not as "smooth" as the first three so a limit of three shaves out of a blade still holds for me. But now I know if I "had to" I could stretch it a couple of shaves.

    Now to the next one in my trial.
     
  11. S Barnhardt

    S Barnhardt Old, Crusty Barn

    My next "trial" will be......
    [​IMG]



    @jgreenepa I'm going under the assumption this is what you meant above when you suggested the GSB? Maybe because it "sounds" similar to the old Gillette Blue blades, but this one sounds good. Yea, I know....sounds like is like assume ASS U ME, etc. :happy093:

    On another note, looking back on my styptic arsenal a few folks, @PLANofMAN , have commented on, the "My Nik Is Sealed"
    upload_2020-3-9_15-7-40.png


    is very probably going to be my go to styptic. It's like a "Chap Stik" in that all I have to do is undo the cap, roll it on, put the cap back, and go on. It's quick, easy, and convenient. It lives in my bowl with my Proraso Green cream, brush and razor. I've been lucky though, I've only used it twice, I think and that was for nicks of small bumps on my neck that have nothing to do with shaving.

    EDIT: To include link to "Blade Rust Question/Thought ?" which is a thread dealing with a question/problem I had testing this particular blade.
     

    Attached Files:

    Last edited: Mar 31, 2020
    PLANofMAN and Edison Carter like this.
  12. S Barnhardt

    S Barnhardt Old, Crusty Barn

    I've moved on from the Gillette Silver Blue to the next candidate in my ongoing blade trial.
    This is my next one! I'd read a while back various posts about the Personna Red. I'm assuming since the packaging is largely red this is the one that was being referred to. Am I correct?

    personna red is it.jpg
     
    Edison Carter and brit like this.
  13. Robyflexx

    Robyflexx Broke the Like button

    Great read, thoroughly enjoyed it! Welcome back to shaving with great gear. :happy036:
     

Share This Page