WHISKERY, I apologize if you found my comment offensive. That was not my intent. This forum has many users that use M3's as well as other disposables. Please don't let a few wet shaving snobs chase you away from here. There's a lot of great information that you can learn from the people on this forum. You can see that I'm new here as well and I can assure you that I have no problem with Gillette. I suggested that this thread be closed because it didn't seem like anything new or useful was coming from it. I'm not anybody on this forum or amongst the "Wet Shave Community." So again, please accept my apology if you took offense. I truely wish you luck and many comfortable shaves.
What am I missing? DE better than Mach 3?
- Thread starter Whiskery
- Start date
- Thread starter
- #82
I deleted my post, I am going to stop taking offense like a women, and start shaving and posting like a man. Thanks for Manning up Chipblood !!
I can assure you that those of us who have been at this for quite a few months, and have stuck with it, and thus honed our technique, are not bleeding when we shave, and we certainly don't shave 4-5 times every morning.
The DE certainly is capable of producing a close shave, that is superior to the M3, but it takes dedication, and perseverance to develop the technique necessary to accomplish this.
The DE razor is not for everyone. Technique takes time to develop, and it will take quite a bit longer to complete a shave with a DE razor, at least at first. When I first started out, my shaves took 30 minutes +; 8 months later, they take 15-20 minutes.
Last edited:
I began shaving before most of you were even a twinkle in your dad's eye, so I'd like to offer a few comments. Although I shave daily with a DE or SE, I can obtain a BBS shave with a multi-blade cartridge, including a Fusion. However...since my beard has turned white and toughened with age and grows in many different directions, making multiple passes with a five-bladed cartridge too many days in a row will turn my face beet red. Some guys prefer the shave they get from a multi-blade cartridge, and that's OK. I prefer DEs and SEs, but only certain ones. When I first tried a DE years ago, I pretty much made a mess of my face before giving up on DEs. Maybe I just didn't know what I was doing back then, or maybe my skin has toughened up over the years. Neither single blade nor multi-blade is inherently better, in my opinion.
As far as Gillette's profit margin on cartridges, I feel it is insane, considering what little material goes into them. However, they are in business to make a profit and set their prices as they wish. Evidently, most consumers don't feel the way I do since Gillette sells a boat load of cartridges.
-Clarke
As far as Gillette's profit margin on cartridges, I feel it is insane, considering what little material goes into them. However, they are in business to make a profit and set their prices as they wish. Evidently, most consumers don't feel the way I do since Gillette sells a boat load of cartridges.
-Clarke
I get less irritation with DE and my shave lasts longer.
...no comment...
In his defence, when I was new, I got a closer shave with the M3 too. The shaves were different with a DE and I loved it. But, it took a while before I was getting great and close cut-free shaves.
I get a closer shave with a DE than I do with a multi-blade cartridge. I also get a closer shave with a straight than I do with a DE.
The multi-blade cartridge is an impressive piece of engineering designed in large part to allow a user to get a shave without much skill or attention. But to do that, it has to take away a good amount of the user's control—and that control the multi-blade cartridge takes away is precisely what allows a DE shaver to get better shaves.
The straight razor offers the greatest level of control, down to not one but several parameters of sharpness. A straight can be so sharp it can split a single hair without support, and yet when administered by an expert barber, the sensation is so gentle that people regularly fall asleep in the chair.
So like many things that involve technologies there are trade-offs involved. If you want greater control then you have to learn the ins and outs of the brush and DE and/or straight razor. If you are OK with a satisfactory shave then the multi-blade cartridges are for you.
The multi-blade cartridge is an impressive piece of engineering designed in large part to allow a user to get a shave without much skill or attention. But to do that, it has to take away a good amount of the user's control—and that control the multi-blade cartridge takes away is precisely what allows a DE shaver to get better shaves.
The straight razor offers the greatest level of control, down to not one but several parameters of sharpness. A straight can be so sharp it can split a single hair without support, and yet when administered by an expert barber, the sensation is so gentle that people regularly fall asleep in the chair.
So like many things that involve technologies there are trade-offs involved. If you want greater control then you have to learn the ins and outs of the brush and DE and/or straight razor. If you are OK with a satisfactory shave then the multi-blade cartridges are for you.
Last edited:
Whiskery,
Everyone here is passionate about "their way" of shaving, but by no means does that equate to the "only way".
If you are getting good results and are happy with the Mach 3, then you are a very lucky guy. I spent years in a shaving wasteland, where nothing seemed to work well, my skin was in horrible shape, I was in an almost constant state of pain and irritation, and even worse there didn't seem to be an end in sight.
Having a razor that works for you while you explore other styles of shaving is a great thing. I think your routine of Mach 3 on weekdays and DE on weekends makes perfect sense.
So stick with it, and if you need any help I would be happy to answer any question that I am capable of, as would any other member here at B&B. Oh, and although some of us may sound intense...that is just our passion coming through. Passion for B&B, passion for shaving, passion for trying to help save others from the vast shaving wasteland that I myself was in for so long.
Thanks!
Everyone here is passionate about "their way" of shaving, but by no means does that equate to the "only way".
If you are getting good results and are happy with the Mach 3, then you are a very lucky guy. I spent years in a shaving wasteland, where nothing seemed to work well, my skin was in horrible shape, I was in an almost constant state of pain and irritation, and even worse there didn't seem to be an end in sight.
Having a razor that works for you while you explore other styles of shaving is a great thing. I think your routine of Mach 3 on weekdays and DE on weekends makes perfect sense.
So stick with it, and if you need any help I would be happy to answer any question that I am capable of, as would any other member here at B&B. Oh, and although some of us may sound intense...that is just our passion coming through. Passion for B&B, passion for shaving, passion for trying to help save others from the vast shaving wasteland that I myself was in for so long.
Thanks!
Ok but that is not the point; I am fine with somebody prefering the M3 or any other razor over a DE. But when you can get a close bloodless shave with a M3 and can't get as close with a DE in 4-5 passes and draw blood every time it is not about the M3 being a better razor but about being clueless what to do with a DE.
So what I like not so much in the OP is the tool is getting the blame for the lack of skills of his master...
I am sure a lot of fine men would line up to help out if some help was asked for.
Honestly.....right now I'm with Whiskery.
I get the best shave with my M3. For myself, it is better because the cartridge head will bend and pivot as to get every whisker off my face....but
I love safety razors....I own four and use them. I just wish I could get that perfect shave with them. I do the Gillette Slide, J- Hook, and anything else to get it super smooth....it just ain't happening. It's not a matter of time either. I'm very efficient with the DE.....no nicks, etc.
For now, I will stick with the DE's for most shaves, and use the M3 when I need the BB super smooth face.
Everyone should use what they like and enjoy the process.
It's all about the best shave for each individual!!!!
I get the best shave with my M3. For myself, it is better because the cartridge head will bend and pivot as to get every whisker off my face....but
I love safety razors....I own four and use them. I just wish I could get that perfect shave with them. I do the Gillette Slide, J- Hook, and anything else to get it super smooth....it just ain't happening. It's not a matter of time either. I'm very efficient with the DE.....no nicks, etc.
For now, I will stick with the DE's for most shaves, and use the M3 when I need the BB super smooth face.
Everyone should use what they like and enjoy the process.
It's all about the best shave for each individual!!!!
I could get a nice shave with the Gillette Sensor Excell (or something like that) and the Mach3 with little irritation.
But if I have to I can have 2 close shaves in one day with a DE which was not possible with the cartridges.
Second, I spend more money on shaving gear now than in the past but I get real value and lot more pleasure now for the same amount of money.
The joy of experimenting, exploring the possibilities, reading reviews, ... is all part of the fun.
And then there is of course the shave itself. I like the shaving routine now whereas it was a chore in the past.
But if I have to I can have 2 close shaves in one day with a DE which was not possible with the cartridges.
Second, I spend more money on shaving gear now than in the past but I get real value and lot more pleasure now for the same amount of money.
The joy of experimenting, exploring the possibilities, reading reviews, ... is all part of the fun.
And then there is of course the shave itself. I like the shaving routine now whereas it was a chore in the past.
Hmmm...Maybe I was doing it wrong w/ a Mach 3, but I never got a BBS w/ it. DFS, yes, but never a BBS. The biggest draw back was all the ingrown hairs I would get on my neck form a Mach 3. I've only had three in since beginning to use a DE in May '09. I'd get that many in a month w/ the Mach 3.
Agreed. It's a cheap, lightweight piece of crap. I NEVER got a BBS with the M3 (or any other cartridge). I got an OK shave, but it irritated the hell out of my face and often gave me razor burn. I couldn't shave with it daily, either.
With my Merkur I can shave daily without irritation and without ingrown hairs, and the shave is the smoothest I have ever gotten, hands down.
ME TOO!!!!
Who has two thumbs and thinks a DE will shave closer and smoother than a Mach 3? This guy
I second that emotion!
I was thinking about this thread today as I was starting to get my 5 O'Clock shadow (around 10 am from a 2 pm yesterday shave with my straight razor). I remembered how rough the earlier days were. There was a lot of irritation, there were shaves that weren't that close, and there was lots of blood. I do find it telling that the vast majority of the multiblade cartridge proponents (but certainly not all) are really new. In my sig, I have a quote from Greg Anderson that fits the process of learning a DE or straight very well IMO.
It is easy for us to be dismissive posts like the OP because we know... New guys read what we know, but they don't know it for themselves and sometimes think we are making stuff up, lying, or just demonstrating a hyperbolic enthusiasm for our luxury.
That's ok. That's why I always encourage guys to table this conversation for a while, focus on technique, and revisit the topic in 6 months or so. To be perfectly honest, no one REALLY cares what you want to use. However, telling us that M3s are better than a DE is like telling a wine snob that Yellow Tail is the best wine available...
If you want to go back to the Trac II or the Atra, that's something that would be defended by some of the older guys even.
Whatever you do, just enjoy it
It is easy for us to be dismissive posts like the OP because we know... New guys read what we know, but they don't know it for themselves and sometimes think we are making stuff up, lying, or just demonstrating a hyperbolic enthusiasm for our luxury.
That's ok. That's why I always encourage guys to table this conversation for a while, focus on technique, and revisit the topic in 6 months or so. To be perfectly honest, no one REALLY cares what you want to use. However, telling us that M3s are better than a DE is like telling a wine snob that Yellow Tail is the best wine available...
If you want to go back to the Trac II or the Atra, that's something that would be defended by some of the older guys even.
Whatever you do, just enjoy it
I was thinking about this thread today as I was starting to get my 5 O'Clock shadow (around 10 am from a 2 pm yesterday shave with my straight razor). I remembered how rough the earlier days were. There was a lot of irritation, there were shaves that weren't that close, and there was lots of blood. I do find it telling that the vast majority of the multiblade cartridge proponents (but certainly not all) are really new. In my sig, I have a quote from Greg Anderson that fits the process of learning a DE or straight very well IMO.
It is easy for us to be dismissive posts like the OP because we know... New guys read what we know, but they don't know it for themselves and sometimes think we are making stuff up, lying, or just demonstrating a hyperbolic enthusiasm for our luxury.
That's ok. That's why I always encourage guys to table this conversation for a while, focus on technique, and revisit the topic in 6 months or so. To be perfectly honest, no one REALLY cares what you want to use. However, telling us that M3s are better than a DE is like telling a wine snob that Yellow Tail is the best wine available...
If you want to go back to the Trac II or the Atra, that's something that would be defended by some of the older guys even.
Whatever you do, just enjoy it
Very well said, Paul.
Similar threads
