JCinPA
The Lather Maestro
I have read about some problems new DE shavers run into, many of which are avoidable. Having run through about my first month of daily DE shaves I thought I would share my experiences.
What credentials do I have as a new DE shaver myself? Only this ...
27 daily DE shaves with several razors, several soaps/creams, several blades, no days off -- all shaves very close, all but one shave very comfortable, and ONE SINGLE TINY NICK on shave #2. And I have a deeply cleft chin.
While long experience is certainly valuable in helping with arcane problems and issues, I think that record of terrific, close, comfortable shaves, right off of the starting line having never handled a DE razor in my life, give me the right to offer advice for noobs.
[disclaimer]
This is a YMMV thing and if you have acne or skin allergy problems, difficult whisker growth patterns, etcetera, I do not have any magic bullets for you. This is intended to help get folks with normal skin and beard characteristics off to a painless start with a very high probability of success early on.
[/disclaimer]
I am not a genius!
I just happen to be old and I started shaving with a Schick injector, so blade angle and pressure were programmed into my head some 38 years ago. I went to cartridges with the Track II and kept buying them right up to the Fusion (non-powered). I would not put much stock in this, though, since my injector experience was SOOOOO LONG ago.
If I am no genius and had never DE shaved before what was the reason for my success? I would say two things and you can do both of them.
It is possible to get great results with a DE right away, BUT YOU HAVE TO BE VERY CAREFUL. And I will offer some unconventional advice, too. I say stick with your cartridge and learn to use soap and multiple passes before moving on to the DE. I stumbled into it that way accidentally, but I think it's a very good plan. Moving to the DE at the proper time will definitely be worthwhile, but have patience.
Trying to make good, protective, slippery lather is not rocket science, but it does take a week or two to really perfect. Moving from canned goo to soap (or cream) and brush and trying to master the DE razor all at once is a recipe for overload IMO. If my method sounds like it will take a while, it will. But 27 good, close, comfortable shaves with one nick right out of the gate should give noobs hope they don't have to risk disfiguration to learn this stuff! If you have the kind of personality that can learn a new skill slowly, read on.
If I had any advice for a noob it would be this.
1. If you are using a cart now, stick with that for another month but switch to a good quality soap and brush. I suggest either a tallow like Tabac or a good glycerin like Mama Bears. Do not collect soaps! Learn to lather that ONE soap like a pro, remember I was brush/mugging it for decades. Let me repeat that, Do not collect soaps! If you have several you will use them. Help yourself by getting one soap and one brush and master lathering with them. I think the Tweezerman brush is fine, a $35 Edwin Jagger from Ebay or the Crabtree & Evelyn version is better. DO NOT get a $100 brush right now.
2. Start practicing light pressure with multiple passes with your current cart. You will learn two things from this...how your whiskers grow, and what light pressure means. If you stick to becoming an expert latherer in a known high-quality soap and learn to slow your shaves down to three passes you'll learn your face and be amazed at the closeness and comfort dividends this pays. I bet you could get a BBS shave with 3 passes and a touch up with most carts with much less irritation than you are used to if you really concentrate on it. I think 80% or so of the improvements in shave quality and shave comfort come from expert lathering and good, light multiple-pass technique. That extra 20% that comes from the DE razor is well worth it, IMO, but you could do worse than getting to this point and stopping. Please don't, though!
3. After you feel pretty good with this process, maybe a couple of weeks to a month, THEN switch to the DE razor. I think you can then get into this without a lot of the wailing and gnashing of teeth some fellows have with this. I ain't no genius, it just happens I naturally evolved this way. But the ease with which I slid into DE shaving, I'm convinced, was helped because I staged into it gradually. I did not turn my whole shaving world upside down all at once.
My advice for noobs, recognizing I am one myself, so this is not gospel by any means ... start with one of these razors (in order of my suggested preference--any will work fine, though)
I have the EJ and the Gillette Slim Adjustable, but I do not have an HD. The HD and EJ are similar in aggressiveness but the EJ is slightly less aggressive. You will read folks here describe the Edwin Jagger as mild, but it is not, it is medium, like the Merkur HD, but if you ranked them side-by-side the EJ would be milder than the HD. But it is a medium razor like the HD, not mild like a Blue Tip. They are very close and either is a good starter razor.
On blades, I have read enough about the Derby's being harsh on the first shave from others that I do not know why that is the seeming go-to blade for noobs. I would recommend a Barber or Red Personna for a first shave, but definitely get a sampler right away. You need to discover your blade, not someone else's. If you get a horrible first shave on a blade like I did on the Derby, don't be afraid to toss it and move on. I will come back to it later. But you want to get comfortable with your blade first.
Final thought ... Resist the urge to buy all sorts of stuff early on. Once you make the switch to your razor, let's say the EJ for sake of argument, continue using that one razor and your one soap for a few weeks changing only the blade. Then start collecting soaps and razors. The key to my process is gradual, controlled change. When you are having fun enough to actually get excited about the prospect of your morning shave, then you can buy other razors and start playing with different soaps and creams. Master one soap, brush, and razor to the point you are actually having fun first, though.
Summary of Noob DE Shave Entry Plan:
Good luck!
For those who have been following my noob blade journal (link below), you will note that I actually had 28 shaves and got a couple nicks on the LAST shave. I left that out above because it was clearly my pushing the feather past its prime. I was warned that Feathers are usually only good for two/three shaves and I had to find out for myself. The fact I had 3 fantastic shaves on the Feather makes me confidence it was not my technique. But 27 good, comfortable shaves with one nick was better marketing.
You can have a stress-free, injury free, fun learning process with this. Take it slow. Don't be all in a hurry. Keep watching Mantic and Geofatboy videos even after you think you have this licked.
http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showth...lade-comparison-journal-final-entry-amp-close
What credentials do I have as a new DE shaver myself? Only this ...
27 daily DE shaves with several razors, several soaps/creams, several blades, no days off -- all shaves very close, all but one shave very comfortable, and ONE SINGLE TINY NICK on shave #2. And I have a deeply cleft chin.
While long experience is certainly valuable in helping with arcane problems and issues, I think that record of terrific, close, comfortable shaves, right off of the starting line having never handled a DE razor in my life, give me the right to offer advice for noobs.
[disclaimer]
This is a YMMV thing and if you have acne or skin allergy problems, difficult whisker growth patterns, etcetera, I do not have any magic bullets for you. This is intended to help get folks with normal skin and beard characteristics off to a painless start with a very high probability of success early on.
[/disclaimer]
I am not a genius!
I just happen to be old and I started shaving with a Schick injector, so blade angle and pressure were programmed into my head some 38 years ago. I went to cartridges with the Track II and kept buying them right up to the Fusion (non-powered). I would not put much stock in this, though, since my injector experience was SOOOOO LONG ago.
If I am no genius and had never DE shaved before what was the reason for my success? I would say two things and you can do both of them.
- I am extremely anal in my approach to just about everything. I watched a ton of Geofatboy and Mantic videos and videos on lather making, and I still do occasionally. About once a week, I watch either a Mantic or Geofatboy YouTube of themselves shaving (maybe both). I've watched the video on the Mama Bear home page making lather countless times. I was prepared.
- I had been using a brush/soap/mug for 20 years, and a few years ago I stumbled onto doing light, multiple passes with my Fusion on my own, no Internet knowledge there. I was shaving in the shower, too, at the end of my shower, so I was pretty well prepped. (now I shower first, then shave at the sink with the mirror and my beloved DB Scuttle).
It is possible to get great results with a DE right away, BUT YOU HAVE TO BE VERY CAREFUL. And I will offer some unconventional advice, too. I say stick with your cartridge and learn to use soap and multiple passes before moving on to the DE. I stumbled into it that way accidentally, but I think it's a very good plan. Moving to the DE at the proper time will definitely be worthwhile, but have patience.
Trying to make good, protective, slippery lather is not rocket science, but it does take a week or two to really perfect. Moving from canned goo to soap (or cream) and brush and trying to master the DE razor all at once is a recipe for overload IMO. If my method sounds like it will take a while, it will. But 27 good, close, comfortable shaves with one nick right out of the gate should give noobs hope they don't have to risk disfiguration to learn this stuff! If you have the kind of personality that can learn a new skill slowly, read on.
If I had any advice for a noob it would be this.
1. If you are using a cart now, stick with that for another month but switch to a good quality soap and brush. I suggest either a tallow like Tabac or a good glycerin like Mama Bears. Do not collect soaps! Learn to lather that ONE soap like a pro, remember I was brush/mugging it for decades. Let me repeat that, Do not collect soaps! If you have several you will use them. Help yourself by getting one soap and one brush and master lathering with them. I think the Tweezerman brush is fine, a $35 Edwin Jagger from Ebay or the Crabtree & Evelyn version is better. DO NOT get a $100 brush right now.
2. Start practicing light pressure with multiple passes with your current cart. You will learn two things from this...how your whiskers grow, and what light pressure means. If you stick to becoming an expert latherer in a known high-quality soap and learn to slow your shaves down to three passes you'll learn your face and be amazed at the closeness and comfort dividends this pays. I bet you could get a BBS shave with 3 passes and a touch up with most carts with much less irritation than you are used to if you really concentrate on it. I think 80% or so of the improvements in shave quality and shave comfort come from expert lathering and good, light multiple-pass technique. That extra 20% that comes from the DE razor is well worth it, IMO, but you could do worse than getting to this point and stopping. Please don't, though!
3. After you feel pretty good with this process, maybe a couple of weeks to a month, THEN switch to the DE razor. I think you can then get into this without a lot of the wailing and gnashing of teeth some fellows have with this. I ain't no genius, it just happens I naturally evolved this way. But the ease with which I slid into DE shaving, I'm convinced, was helped because I staged into it gradually. I did not turn my whole shaving world upside down all at once.
My advice for noobs, recognizing I am one myself, so this is not gospel by any means ... start with one of these razors (in order of my suggested preference--any will work fine, though)
- Edwin Jagger any model (the heads are all identical)
- Merkur HD
- Gillette Slim Adjustable start on #3 or #4
I have the EJ and the Gillette Slim Adjustable, but I do not have an HD. The HD and EJ are similar in aggressiveness but the EJ is slightly less aggressive. You will read folks here describe the Edwin Jagger as mild, but it is not, it is medium, like the Merkur HD, but if you ranked them side-by-side the EJ would be milder than the HD. But it is a medium razor like the HD, not mild like a Blue Tip. They are very close and either is a good starter razor.
On blades, I have read enough about the Derby's being harsh on the first shave from others that I do not know why that is the seeming go-to blade for noobs. I would recommend a Barber or Red Personna for a first shave, but definitely get a sampler right away. You need to discover your blade, not someone else's. If you get a horrible first shave on a blade like I did on the Derby, don't be afraid to toss it and move on. I will come back to it later. But you want to get comfortable with your blade first.
Final thought ... Resist the urge to buy all sorts of stuff early on. Once you make the switch to your razor, let's say the EJ for sake of argument, continue using that one razor and your one soap for a few weeks changing only the blade. Then start collecting soaps and razors. The key to my process is gradual, controlled change. When you are having fun enough to actually get excited about the prospect of your morning shave, then you can buy other razors and start playing with different soaps and creams. Master one soap, brush, and razor to the point you are actually having fun first, though.
Summary of Noob DE Shave Entry Plan:
- One soap with your cartridge for a few weeks-multiple passes
- One razor with your one soap for a few weeks changing only blades
- Then go crazy
Good luck!
For those who have been following my noob blade journal (link below), you will note that I actually had 28 shaves and got a couple nicks on the LAST shave. I left that out above because it was clearly my pushing the feather past its prime. I was warned that Feathers are usually only good for two/three shaves and I had to find out for myself. The fact I had 3 fantastic shaves on the Feather makes me confidence it was not my technique. But 27 good, comfortable shaves with one nick was better marketing.
You can have a stress-free, injury free, fun learning process with this. Take it slow. Don't be all in a hurry. Keep watching Mantic and Geofatboy videos even after you think you have this licked.
http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showth...lade-comparison-journal-final-entry-amp-close
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