First Time with a Feather

[Parallax]

Well, this morning was my virgin experience with a Feather and, like many newbies after a first experience, find myself asking "What gives?"

The way everyone prostrates before the great Feather, I was expecting something special. And, continuing my analogy, as with any first experience, the shortcoming probably lies within myself and implicates my lack of experience. So I'm keeping my mind open but so far Astra greens are my blade of choice.

When that Feather began its run down my cheek, it was sharp as heck but kind of rough. Didn't pull at the whiskers at all but I could feel its harshness against my skin. On the other hand, after the shave, to the Feather's credit, there was very little razor burn. Used a very light touch and actually switched, mid-shave from my Fat Boy, which I've been using daily, to my fat-handled Tech, because it's so totally forgiving. Trouble is, with the Tech, it was hard to mow down the stubble under my jaw line, which is always the most challenging part of my shave.

I guess my impression is I'm going to have to keep working with it. I can see the potential. Could be that I'm not ready or it could be that it's just not the right blade for me. Or maybe there is no objective, immovable reality. Perhaps my subjective experience will shift and shift and shift again as I slowly ascend the ranks of mastery. With the Feather, one can almost feel echos of the great Samurai warriors who, only after years of practice, mastered the art of the blade.

[Lephturn]

Wait for shave #2. I find shave 1 a bit harsh with the Feather while shave #2 is very good and quite smooth. I've found the Persona Med. Prep blade is even smoother and it's smooth (and very sharp) from the first touch of my face until it starts to go off about shave #4 for me.

[Parallax]

Thanks. So far, I've found the Astra greens seem to stay sharp for numerous shaves. Used two of them about five times each. Threw them out simply because it seemed like it should be time but no pulling or cutting or discomfort. Who knows how long I could push 'em. My guess is the Feathers will go at least as long.

I wonder why some people get more shaves from a blade than others. I always did well with cartridges too and my beard is quite coarse.

[Bolder]

Wait for shave #2. I find shave 1 a bit harsh with the Feather while shave #2 is very good and quite smooth. I've found the Persona Med. Prep blade is even smoother and it's smooth (and very sharp) from the first touch of my face until it starts to go off about shave #4 for me.

I absolutely second this. The first day a Feather is a little harsh, but shaves 2,3,4 (and sometimes 5,6) are usually pretty buttery. I also use a Fatboy and think it's a great choice for Feathers because the weight of the razor does a lot of the work. I also have a Tech but mostly use that with other blades. Try cranking the Fatboy to 9 on the second and third days and see what happens.

[Parallax]

You're suggesting the Fat Boy at 9 with a Feather? Seriously? Will I have a face left when I'm done shaving?

[Wildalaska]

I use feathers with my gillette adjustable set at 9

[stuart12dz]

I use feathers with my gillette adjustable set at 9

It's just another blade and YMMV.

[Vickers]

I've never had a Feather make it through 3 complete shaves without tugging/skipping.

[Bolder]

You're suggesting the Fat Boy at 9 with a Feather? Seriously? Will I have a face left when I'm done shaving?

It sounds a little counterintuitive but I'm convinced that a sharp blade, wielded correctly, works better with more exposure. I will admit that I started at 4 just to see how things went but then went to 7 then 9. You definitely have to know your face and beard -- but that holds true for any blade. I like to take as much off as i can on the first pass, mostly because even though i've been face lathering for a decade I find the lather is best when I first mix it up. I'll go down to 4 for subsequent passes (WTG, XTG, then about half my face ATG, plus a little touchup) because the lather is a little thinner and I do have to apply a little more pressure to get at the weird whorls around my chin/neck...

I also agree that a Feather is just a sharp blade -- albeit a very high quality one. I'm not going to gainsay anyone who prefers less expensive blades but I think some people who dismiss it should either rethink their razor choice or their technique.

[Parallax]

Thanks again, guys. This is helpful. Will try the feather at a higher setting this morning. Nine? Seriously? (That's rhetorical; no need to answer. Will summon the courage to give it a try and report back.)

[Parallax]

Well, gentlemen, thank you. Would never had had the balls (or imagination) to try the Fat Boy on 9 with a Feather. Particularly not on my second time out with such a sharp blade. It was actually very nice. The high setting forced me to apply negligible pressure and let the weight of the razor do the work. First pass, WTG, seemed to shave a bit closer than normal but what was most notable was how easy it was on my skin. Second pass, I went XTG on my face and ATG on my neck. At that point, I was in DFS territory -- again with zero razor burn.

Next, I had this intuition to move the blade over to my red tip. When I get intuitions, I find it best to follow them. So, with the red tip, I went ATG on my face and XTG on my neck. Also did some touch up with the red tip. I was getting very close to BBS territory, now with just a tiny bit of irritation. At that point, I moved the blade back to the Fat Boy, still set at 9, and went after the remaining stubbly place on my neck, mostly under the jaw. With a bit of hooking action, the result is my best shave yet. The only razor burn was further down on my neck and, when I hit my face and neck with witch hazel, there was very little sting.

Fantastic result. And to think my technique will continue to improve. For the first time, I feel like I've found a routine I could just stick with. Those two razors and that single blade. Alas, you fellas have turned me around; I'm now sold on the Feather. Of course, I still have a huge sampler from WCS, with tons of blades to try. And I just, perhaps stupidly, ordered 200 Astras Sunday night (trying to boost my bestshave.net order over $50 for the free shipping). Ah well; I'm sure with time I'll make good use of everything. It's nice to have a whole SL of inexpensive, high quality blades like Astras to rotate in and share with friends.

[Dusty1]

I like Astras, but the Feather is much better on my face. I get razor bumps unless or mild irritation unless using the sharpest of the sharp blades on my face. Any blade will cut hair, and honestly there is little difference between the 2, but my face tells the difference. Astras are so cheap I wish I liked them better

[Parallax]

FWIW, SWMBO advised that my skin seemed less soft after shaving today. It feels more toned. I like it. Apparently she prefers the softness that comes with use of a less aggressive blade and setting. Will keep experimenting.

[Parallax]

Third time with Feather update: After such a great second shave, courtesy of the excellent advice received here, yesterday I got careless. Was in a rush to get to work. Left the Fat Boy set to 9 with the Feather loaded in the breach. Figured I could handle it. Decided, on a whim, to roll out an open comb New (for the first time) with an Astra and use each razor for different sides of my face.

The open comb New with the Astra was fine. Gave a nice close shave with just a small nick or two and no razor burn. (This might be one of my best razor/blade combos so far.) But the other side of my face, with what had been the best razor/blade combo ever the day before, well . . . not so much. At the risk of stating the obvious and sounding like a complete idiot, if you're gonna use a Feather in a Fat Boy set to 9, it's kind of important to go slow. Wound up with a couple of moderately significant cuts and some fairly bad razor burn on my neck.

No big deal really. With witch hazel and a decent balm, few sins cannot be forgiven. Today I will be more careful.

[jsj_297]

Ive used feathers on the progress set at 5, futur set really high, and the R41....all but the R41 resulted in an awesome experience. Feathers definitely climax at the second shave, but survive through 4-5 usually for me...I dont know another blade out there that provides the second shave smoothness as a feather. They are top dog second shaver imo.

[oscarc]

Nigel Tufnel's razor goes to 11.

[brucered]

Ive used feathers on the progress set at 5, futur set really high, and the R41....all but the R41 resulted in an awesome experience. Feathers definitely climax at the second shave, but survive through 4-5 usually for me...I dont know another blade out there that provides the second shave smoothness as a feather. They are top dog second shaver imo.

agreed. i pretty much use a Feather AS-D1 and Bull Progress and when i use a new feather in either of them, my 2nd shave is always better then my 1st. i do 3 shaves and then toss it.

[Parallax]

Well, this morning, the fourth Feather shave was with my DE89l. Not bad. However, I'm concluding that I seem to need a more aggressive razor than the Edwin Jagger. Even with the Feather, the DE89l wasn't able to produce a BBS. Will try again with a new Feather at some point, perhaps down the road to give time for my technique to improve.

[Lephturn]

Depends on your face and beard. I find I need a more aggressive razor to get a BBS - and I especially like a heavy razor. In my case that's my Futur right now although I run it only at about 2 or 2.5 these days with a Feather or a Med Prep in it.

[Parallax]

The Futur is one razor I've not sprang for. Have a feeling I might like it too. So far, the Fat Boy is my best bud -- for the same reasons you've listed. It's heavy and can be set quite aggressively. Then I can shave with zero pressure and my neck is happy.