Don't give up or give in!

[retiredguns]

Even though I have been wet shaving for 35 years I quickly became interested in DE shaving and all the neat stuff that you acquire hanging around here. I started with an EJ DE89L but was soon hunting Vintage Gillettes as advised by quite a few. I stumbled upon a Fatboy that was a great bargain and after taking it apart, scrubbing, polishing, cleaning and buffing I tried it out. 1st shave was irritable. Chalk that up to difference in blade angle, adjustment etc.. 2nd shave was better but still irritable on the neck. Try a new blade and 3rd time was so-so. In the mean time I pick up a 53 SS and 1st shave is good so I'm wondering about the usefulness of the Fatboy. I then picked up some Tabac and after 3 shaves with the EJ I decided to re-visit the Fatboy. My water softener was at the end of it's cycle and the water was hard. Wasn't expecting much so I put a dollop of Proraso in the mug with the Tabac, dial the Fatboy 1 notch down to 4 and SHAZAM! I got one of the best shaves yet.

Long story I know, but for those that think it isn't going to work or get better, it does and will. Technique, preparation, good lather and persistence.

Fatboy
Personna Red
Tabac
Proraso
Alum
Thayers WH
Clubman

Ready to strut down town!

[Greyfox]

:thumbup1:

[Optometrist]

All of us can probably remember those days, and so glad our persistence paid off. There is no short cut to learning this glorious ceremony, only patience and trial and error being the key to success.

[katz]

Thanks for the post. I have been using a EJ DE89 & I am getting okay to decent shaves with it. I am a noob, so I am still in the learning curve. It's fun, I enjoy learning from experience, and from experienced users.

[retiredguns]

The EJ was such a nice shave right from the start that any other razor had its work cut out.
I really wanted the old Gillettes to be a good shave because part of the fun is finding this stuff.

[Sledgehammer39]

Good Stuff :thumbup1: