Well, I follow the same basic story. -Tired of crap shaves with $18-a-pack cartridges. -Lurked on this, and a straight razor forum. -Decided on DE, ordered up a Merkur 33C, blade sampler pack, and a badger brush. -Wait (not very patiently, might I add.) I've used Bigelow cream for a few weeks now, ever since my wife bought it for me from the B&BW. Even without a brush, it is light years ahead of the goop i was using. Now if the darn USPS would deliver me the goods, I can commence the first-shave-butchery! I'm positively twitching in anticipation. So anyway, greetings all!
Here is the advice I received when I started with a DE and so I freely give it to new users. The most important things in shaving are, your skin and technique. All other things fall in line behind those two things and to support them. Since the skin is a given fixed item, the next major item is technique. It is called THE 30 DAY RULE. THE 30 DAY RULE is as follows: Find a razor, then a blade that will not cause issues with your skin (that may take a few different blades in a sampler pack to find a suitable choice or it maybe the first out of the gate) and select a soap or cream that is easy to generate good lather. Once you find those, and it may take a couple of weeks to find this combination, order a quantity of that blade enough for 30 days, and then spend 30 days using nothing else until you build up your technique. (Note that only one brand blade is used for 30 days after each blade in the sampler pack is tested to make the decision on the blade brand to use for 30 days.) The 30 day clock starts when you have the right blade for you. After 30 days, change one and only one variable and work for another week then change another after another week. At that point you should be able to make better decisions because your technique is now in place. This will help you to avoid buying too much gear and stuff too soon without having the technique down to enjoy it all. Cheers. Welcome to the Den. We know you'll fit right in. So grab yourself a comfy chair, and give our threads a spin! Burma Shave
...to The Shave Den family! Be sure to stop by The Shave Den "Master Sticky" thread to familiarize yourself with the rules and different areas of The Shave Den!
Welcome to the Shave Den! You're in familiar territory with being impatient. Every single time I order something I watch tracking numbers constantly or my PO box for anything that isn't tracked
Thanks for the warm greetings, based on the perusing I've been doing, I'm glad I went with a razor sampler pack, as it comes with Astra, feather, Dorco, and Supermax blades. I've read tons about Astra blades and feather blades, but what's everyone's experience with the other two?