Safety Razor Appreciation

[thedrake]

+1 to what [MENTION=14308]Amesbury[/MENTION] said

There are some pretty decent sets you can buy for about $60 or you can piece together something for cheaper. I wouldn't go all in right at first. You do need to shave slower and take more time to prep your face before you start in order to get a good shave. Maybe it's not for you.

Things I would stay away from right at first are:
open comb safety razors - they are more aggressive so you'll be more likely to cut yourself
feather blades -they are really really sharp sooooo you'll be more likely to cut yourself

Things I would get if I was starting right now:
good glycerin based soap (though to be fair you can use hair conditioner and get a decent shave, you need something slippery)
a sample pack of razor blades to test out what works with your beard and face
an inexpensive brush

[JPD Revised]

I still have a few other DEs as well, but my Merkur 34C HD is the only one that I really use at this point.

Personna medical prep blades are great.

I've used a variety of shaving creams since I got into wet shaving years ago, but frankly Gillette Series Sensitive foam works just as well, if not better, for me.

[LesserBlackDog]

Resurrecting a random old shaving thread to post that there is a company which is now producing a razor in the style of the classic Schick Injector.

I don't know anything about the quality of this product in particular, and the handles seem wildly overpriced (though the blades are a pretty good deal compared to about $9 for 7 blades for the standard Schick ones), but I am pretty excited to at least see this style of razor back in production. I could never get a precise shave with a standard DE safety razor around the trickier areas like behind the jaw, the corners of the mouth, or right around the nostrils. The injector style razor handles much more precisely and more like a typical modern multi-blade razor but still provides some of the benefits of the single blade (less irritation and razor burn). I've tried DE safety razors, shavettes, and my vintage Schick Injector is the only "traditional" razor I ever really liked.

[mybrainisweird]

Re-resurrecting this because it's still on the first page and I like safety razors

I've only recently got back into it but I've put together a decent kit that seems to be working really well, and much better than the Mach3 that I was using prior.

Razor: Feather Popular
Blades: Feather (I want to get a sample pack soon)
Brush: Edwin Jagger Best Badger with tortoiseshell handle
Shave Cream: Proraso Shea Butter and Sandlewood
Bowl: Suribachi from Daiso (Australia)

I still need an aftershave and might try out the matching Proraso one, for no particular reason, or something from Taylor of Old Bond Street and a stand for the brush and/or razor.

I've been shaving every other day with this setup versus the once a week or so with the Mach3 which would give me razor burn and dry flaking skin every damn time.

[takeshi]

I've been using a safety razor for about 3 years now.

People frequently seem to use "safety razor" to mean "double edge razor" but the 2 are not the same thing. Safety razor is a broad classification of razors that includes not only double edges but cartridges, single edges, etc as well -- basically just about anything that isn't a straight.

I thought it would be fun to start a thread about wet shaving and the setups we use. Any tips/tricks for a better shave? Does anyone like a particular soap or cream?

Not sure how useful these lists are but why not...
Razor: Feather AS-D2
Blade: Feather
Brush: Morris & Forndran 28mm x 57mm Blonde Badger
Soap: Martin de Candre
Aftershave: DR Harris Sandalwood

Tips & tricks? Don't underestimate the benefit of prep. Use a hot towel. Learn the direction of the grain of your beard. Don't be afraid to try stuff to sort out what works best for you and what you like. I went through a number of DE's, brushes, blades & soaps to settle on these though I certainly didn't try everything out there. That said, don't obsess over the equipment & supplies and get your skills down.

[Amesbury]

Ha! I just finished buying 100 Astra Superior Platinum blades and then noticed this thread. I am nearing the end of a sampler pack I bought at the beginning of the year. It was fun to try quite a few different brands but I'm settling on Astras for now as they are great all around for me.

Has anyone experimented with different shaped bowls? The one I'm currently using is okay but I wonder if something else might be better for lathering quicker.

[XiolaOne]

Switched in 2013 as well due to cost factors. Still using the same setup from back then.

Merkur 34c razor
Feather blades (got 100 blades back then and still using them)
Taylor of old Bond st. (currently using Eton college and the lime one)

[DocDave]

Ha! I just finished buying 100 Astra Superior Platinum blades and then noticed this thread. I am nearing the end of a sampler pack I bought at the beginning of the year. It was fun to try quite a few different brands but I'm settling on Astras for now as they are great all around for me.

Has anyone experimented with different shaped bowls? The one I'm currently using is okay but I wonder if something else might be better for lathering quicker.

I am using a bowl I bought from Goodwill for $2. The bowl bows out at the top, kinda like this (if I can do the ASCII art)

\ /
\ /
--

It is an OK bowl, but the suds overflow from the top. I have been using the bowl for several years now and I keep telling myself I am going to pick up a more vertical bowl (again, if I can do the ASCII art)

| |
| |
| |
------

But obviously wider...Anyway, I have yet to pick up the bowl I want. Maybe one of these days. I just need to get my butt back in to Goodwill to see what I can find.

[cwick25]

Ha! I just finished buying 100 Astra Superior Platinum blades and then noticed this thread. I am nearing the end of a sampler pack I bought at the beginning of the year. It was fun to try quite a few different brands but I'm settling on Astras for now as they are great all around for me.

Has anyone experimented with different shaped bowls? The one I'm currently using is okay but I wonder if something else might be better for lathering quicker.

I have a couple of Etsy shaving bowls, but I find that my salsa bowl from Walmart (under $2) performs better. I roughed up the inside of the salsa bowl to help the lather building process.

[idvsego]

People frequently seem to use "safety razor" to mean "double edge razor" but the 2 are not the same thing. Safety razor is a broad classification of razors that includes not only double edges but cartridges, single edges, etc as well -- basically just about anything that isn't a straight.


Not sure how useful these lists are but why not...
Razor: Feather AS-D2
Blade: Feather
Brush: Morris & Forndran 28mm x 57mm Blonde Badger
Soap: Martin de Candre
Aftershave: DR Harris Sandalwood

Tips & tricks? Don't underestimate the benefit of prep. Use a hot towel. Learn the direction of the grain of your beard. Don't be afraid to try stuff to sort out what works best for you and what you like. I went through a number of DE's, brushes, blades & soaps to settle on these though I certainly didn't try everything out there. That said, don't obsess over the equipment & supplies and get your skills down.

You are right aboutbthebsafety razor being a larger category... But hissbtatemnt was correct. He is using a DE razor, which is a safety razor. So I am not sure what your statement was meant to do there.

Tips... Prep is good but knowing your facial hair mapping is the biggest single key. I have sensitive skin and coarse hair and barely prep. I have even done a cold shave in desperate times. Knowing your growth direction is key.

As for bowls, I use a heap one I found at target that has some dimples in it and is plastic. Slippery fingers, groggy me, and breakable ceramic is a bad combo. I have face lathered and hand lathered before too. Bowls are another area that is very over thought I think.

[Amesbury]

I am using a bowl I bought from Goodwill for $2. The bowl bows out at the top, kinda like this (if I can do the ASCII art)

\ /
\ /
--

It is an OK bowl, but the suds overflow from the top. I have been using the bowl for several years now and I keep telling myself I am going to pick up a more vertical bowl (again, if I can do the ASCII art)

| |
| |
| |
------

But obviously wider...Anyway, I have yet to pick up the bowl I want. Maybe one of these days. I just need to get my butt back in to Goodwill to see what I can find.

The first bowl I ever tried was a stainless steel cat/dog food dish that was in my cupboard. It was too shallow so overflow was a constant problem. What I am using now is a ceramic bowl (again found in my cupboard) that is about 3" deep with a straight wall cross-section that is slightly angled outward. No overflow problems. I don't mind it but I wish there was some texture on the bottom to possibly increase lathering efficiency.

I have a couple of Etsy shaving bowls, but I find that my salsa bowl from Walmart (under $2) performs better. I roughed up the inside of the salsa bowl to help the lather building process.

Cool. What kind of material is your bowl made from that allowed you to be able to rough it up?

[Amesbury]

As for bowls, I use a heap one I found at target that has some dimples in it and is plastic. Slippery fingers, groggy me, and breakable ceramic is a bad combo.

Something like this sounds perfect. I think I will look for one like this.

[DocDave]

The first bowl I ever tried was a stainless steel cat/dog food dish that was in my cupboard. It was too shallow so overflow was a constant problem. What I am using now is a ceramic bowl (again found in my cupboard) that is about 3" deep with a straight wall cross-section that is slightly angled outward. No overflow problems. I don't mind it but I wish there was some texture on the bottom to possibly increase lathering efficiency.

I think this my my problem. The dish isn't deep enough so overflow is always happening. I'll have to get my bacon down to the Goodwill and see if I can find a 3" deep straight walled bowl that you speak of. That will hopefully fix my problem.

[cwick25]

Cool. What kind of material is your bowl made from that allowed you to be able to rough it up?

The bowl seems to be made of plastic just like the salsa bowls you see at most Mexican restaurants. I just used a long file to score some ridges in the bowl.

[Geo]

Reviving an old thread after reading Leanderthal's favorite things post. I've decide to give a safety/double edge razor a try. Can anyone tell me if this set would be a good place to start?

https://www.westcoastshaving.com/saf...r-set-byo.html

I'm thinking of going with the closed comb head, shaving cream sample pack and DE blade choice sampler pack. $50 for a handle, brush, bowl, sample blades and sample of creams and soaps. Is that a good deal or would you recommend piecing together the items separately. I'm completely new to this so any advice would be greatly appreciated.