First Shave!

[S'eth]

Well I attempted my first wet-shave today and have already thrown my Gillette Power Fusion in the trash.......yes it was that gratifying. Upon further research and discussion with other members on the board I decided to get a vintage gillette to start with. I picked up a 1941 Gillette Ranger Tech and once received I couldn't wait any longer to try it out, however I had not yet received the rest of the items I had ordered to try out, so being the patient (ahem) person that I am I rushed down to the local pharmacy and grabbed some double edge razors (rite-aid platinum chrome razor blades, a VHG deluxe starter set (badger brush, soap and dish for $8) and some The Best Shaving Co. post shave soothing balm.

Considering my limited options and my inexperience with a DE razor I was almost certain that I would nick myself or my girlfriend would find me on the bathroom floor with a slit throat. However in this endeavor I truly did exercise patience and took my time. I started by prepping my face with some Gillette Thermal Face Scrub that I still had lying around and soaked up my face and scrubbed. I then whipped up some shaving soap in the bowl till I got a good lather going and proceeded to apply to my face. I applied no pressure whatsoever and just allowed the weight of the razor to do its thing and at first I wasn't sure if I was doing nothing more than just scraping the cream off my face with the safety bar as I was so nervous, but lo and behold I actually had a very nice first pass. I then did a second pass from ear to nose and a third against the grain. How was the experience? It was actually very relaxing once I got past the nerve racking part of my first pass on the adam's apple lol. I then applied some of The Best Shave Co. post shave soothing balm and I can't believe what a nice and smooth shave I got. Not one nick, cut or irritation whatsoever.

For my first time attempting a double edge it just felt like I was coming home to something familiar yet long forgotten. What else can I say, I'm hooked, and my wallet will hate me as it will be lonely with no money in there to keep it company! I'm already looking at picking up more razors to try, samples of different razors, and oh good lord all the soaps and cremes yet to try.....I can't wait! For my first real brush I think I am going to pick up one of the Simpson's Wee Scot as all the reviews are glowing and I can't quite yet see myself to spending $150+ on a brush yet I'm already looking at spending that on a new razor, either a Megress, Ikon H20 or OSS, or Feather All Stainless. In fact I sold one of my old 1st Gen iPads with 3g today just to specifically fund my new found love. Thanks all, I will be making a contribution today to help support this new community that I love so much!

On a side note, if anyone can tell me what I have to do to get my Veteran status icon to show up that would be great. I already checked in and was approved and accepted into the group but I can not figure out how to add it. My thanks in advance once again!

Seth

[D.W.B.]

Greetings and Salutations to B&B! I am also new to DE shaving and find it to be very relaxing. Much better than my years of cartridge use when I shaved because it had to be done. Enjoy the shaves.

[tech.addict]

Welcome to B&B.
Enjoy your shaves!!

[ThatPipeGuy]

Welcome, enjoy your stay!

[Sledgehammer39]

Congrats, keep up the good work!

[Newb2DE]

Welcome!

[Oblique Human]

You're a natural at classic shaving. Good luck with the acquisitions but do keep in mind that Feather All Stainless is considered a mild shaver, and both EJ and Merkur offer several excellent razors at a (somewhat) fraction of the cost.

[Mike_D_]

Welcome Seth! Congratulations on finding traditional shaving...it's an excellent club to be in. You're right, there's a huge world of soaps/creams/razors/brushes/aftershaves etc to discover! At least it's not fine cars or mechanical watches though. Take care!

[QuantumX]

Welcome to B&B!

[Kostas1]

Welcome! Looks like the ADs have gotten ahold of you early!

[celestino]

Congrats, sir, and welcome!

[NickCutlip]

Welcome to B&B !!

[publius2k4]

Well I attempted my first wet-shave today and have already thrown my Gillette Power Fusion in the trash.......yes it was that gratifying. Upon further research and discussion with other members on the board I decided to get a vintage gillette to start with. I picked up a 1941 Gillette Ranger Tech and once received I couldn't wait any longer to try it out, however I had not yet received the rest of the items I had ordered to try out, so being the patient (ahem) person that I am I rushed down to the local pharmacy and grabbed some double edge razors (rite-aid platinum chrome razor blades, a VHG deluxe starter set (badger brush, soap and dish for $8) and some The Best Shaving Co. post shave soothing balm.

Considering my limited options and my inexperience with a DE razor I was almost certain that I would nick myself or my girlfriend would find me on the bathroom floor with a slit throat. However in this endeavor I truly did exercise patience and took my time. I started by prepping my face with some Gillette Thermal Face Scrub that I still had lying around and soaked up my face and scrubbed. I then whipped up some shaving soap in the bowl till I got a good lather going and proceeded to apply to my face. I applied no pressure whatsoever and just allowed the weight of the razor to do its thing and at first I wasn't sure if I was doing nothing more than just scraping the cream off my face with the safety bar as I was so nervous, but lo and behold I actually had a very nice first pass. I then did a second pass from ear to nose and a third against the grain. How was the experience? It was actually very relaxing once I got past the nerve racking part of my first pass on the adam's apple lol. I then applied some of The Best Shave Co. post shave soothing balm and I can't believe what a nice and smooth shave I got. Not one nick, cut or irritation whatsoever.

For my first time attempting a double edge it just felt like I was coming home to something familiar yet long forgotten. What else can I say, I'm hooked, and my wallet will hate me as it will be lonely with no money in there to keep it company! I'm already looking at picking up more razors to try, samples of different razors, and oh good lord all the soaps and cremes yet to try.....I can't wait! For my first real brush I think I am going to pick up one of the Simpson's Wee Scot as all the reviews are glowing and I can't quite yet see myself to spending $150+ on a brush yet I'm already looking at spending that on a new razor, either a Megress, Ikon H20 or OSS, or Feather All Stainless. In fact I sold one of my old 1st Gen iPads with 3g today just to specifically fund my new found love. Thanks all, I will be making a contribution today to help support this new community that I love so much!

On a side note, if anyone can tell me what I have to do to get my Veteran status icon to show up that would be great. I already checked in and was approved and accepted into the group but I can not figure out how to add it. My thanks in advance once again!

Seth

Alright Cpl, I'm on this board with you....now what? :P

[S'eth]

Alright Cpl, I'm on this board with you....now what? :P

Steven, nice of you to join, you won't regret it :) Now we need to work on getting you some tools, check in at the B/S/T forum and look for newbie kits, they pop up all the time. Pick up a razor, some blades, brush, soap or cream your choice and start there. This community will definitely get you on the right track, so start reading up, and take it slow, this is meant to take a chore and make it an enjoyable experience. I wish I could find similar transitions for the rest of the stuff in my life lol.

[Kooze]

Welcome to B&B Seth

May I suggest a T&H sampler pack of shaving creams and after shave balms. It appears that T&H lowered their price recently. It is $8.07 shipped with promo code bb12- which is one heck of a great way to try different scents

http://www.truefittandhill.com/detail_10103__37.html

[pirateskull]

It only gets better! And welcome to B&B!!