Rethinking the choice between open comb and closed comb

When I first started DE shaving at 15 in 2009, I automatically dismissed all open comb safety razors as outdated & unnecessary. However, now that my facial hair has grown from peach fuzz to something that remotely looks like a beard 001_tt2 I am seriously considering open combs. Is there a big difference between open & closed combs? I figure the combs would, well...comb the hair which would make it easier for the blade to cut.

There is no real difference. Some straight bar razors are milder than the OC razors. However, some OC razors are way more aggressive than the straight bar. Try and get a Gillette NEW either short or long combs OC.

Sledgehammer39 said:

There is no real difference. Some straight bar razors are milder than the OC razors. However, some OC razors are way more aggressive than the straight bar. Try and get a Gillette NEW either short or long combs OC.

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My suggestion as well.

While I use a straight bar most of the time I look forward to the open comb shave, the idea behing the open comb was that it would leave more soap (lubrication) on the skin after shaving over an area which makes a second stroke easier and I find this to be the case. The open comb can be more agressive like the gem micromatic or the merkur HD, but it doesn't have to be such as the new improved. I think in a few years I will have gravitated to mostly open combs,
ken

Sledgehammer39 said:

Try and get a Gillette NEW either short or long combs OC.

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+1

I think open combs are good for cutting hairs that tend to grow flat. I have those in a few spots, and the closed safety bar seems to glide right over them sometimes. Blade buffing and j-hooking can help, but simply using an open comb is easier. Open combs may be good for teaching blade angle, too. When the angle is too acute, I see comb tracks in the lather.

On the other hand, open combs seem to demand more from the blade. I can get a good shave with just about any blade in my Mühle 89R, or in a vintage Gillette adjustable or super speed. But when I switch to the NEW or NEW De Luxe, or the Fatip head, I can feel more difference between blades, and the blades don't last as long.

Having only used a closed comb, I am currently awaiting a Muhle R41 (old 2010) that is in the mail. Depending on how it works for me, who knows where it might eventually lead!

i have a NEW short comb and, IMHO, it shaves better (for me, that means more aggressive) than any of my other, bar style DEs. but that obviously has something to do with technique, beard, blades, etc.

The differences in design and weight distribution between various razors plays a much bigger role than the type of comb.

i have a problem with the long comb NEW always irritation and burn

For quite some time, the only razor I used was a Merkur 1904 OC - I went for ages growing my whiskers for a month or two and then shaving, and an OC is ideal for that (though I have used a straight on occasions for the same thing). But as well as the major de-whiskering pass, it's also pretty smooth for an ATG pass too.

Since I've been in my recent clean-shaven/B&B phase, I've been using mostly safety bar types. But I also picked up an almost as-new NEW gold long comb recently (even the lacquer is still there), and I've used it a couple of times - and I think it's a great shaver.

My thoughts now are generally that it's misleading to think of it as Open vs Closed - better to just think of different individual razors, as they all have different characteristics which vary more than just the type of comb.

I recently bought a vintage leather DE shaving kit. Inside was a very small, light-weight no-name open comb razor. My curiosity forced me to compare it to my Fatboy and EJ DE89L. It gave a surprisingly good shave and, believe me, it is an aggressive little razor.

At first, I had planned to ditch it but now I think it will make a great travel razor. The blade seems very exposed, which made me proceed with a lot of caution, but the shave was great with no scrapes, cuts, or razor burn. Not at all what I expected.

All in all, I prefer the comfort of my Fatboy or EJ but it was nice to try the open comb.

Happy Shaving!