Got my DE Shaving gear!!! WOO HOO!
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Obviously you had been nice rather than naughty this year. Have fun.
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Okay I just did my shave and I have a couple of observations.
1. I didn't realize the angle of "attack" is so damn critical. Too flat and the razor doesn't touch, too much and the head skims over the face.
2. I was surprised how little resistance there was on the razor! with my fusion I had to tug quite hard on my 2 day stubble. But with the DE it was much much much less, to the point where I ended up pressing to get some resistance, but backed off after a couple of nicks.
3. The 38C has a very nice heft to it.
4. The badger brush is better than the boar brush I have.
5. I didn't get good foam action from the GFT almond cream. I get better foam action from my ARKO shave stick (which i flattened to a cake) and my OMEGA boar brush.
6. Did I mention the angle is important?
Anyway, all in all it was a very nice experience, and a good learning experience too.
The heft of the razor does help and now I understand why you shouldn't press. But even after doing 2 N-S passes and 1 XTG S-N pass, I still didn't get a BBS. What gives? With my fusion I do 1 WTG N-S pass and 1 XTG S-N pass and presto, insta BBS.
Regardless of the comparison, the DE was a more holistic and zen experience for me, my face still is giving of a light almondy smell which is nice.
I am just concerned about the GFT cream and the lack of foam. Using the same motions I am able to get 3X more dense foam (and also 3X quantity) with the ARKO.
What am I doing wrong?
1. I didn't realize the angle of "attack" is so damn critical. Too flat and the razor doesn't touch, too much and the head skims over the face.
2. I was surprised how little resistance there was on the razor! with my fusion I had to tug quite hard on my 2 day stubble. But with the DE it was much much much less, to the point where I ended up pressing to get some resistance, but backed off after a couple of nicks.
3. The 38C has a very nice heft to it.
4. The badger brush is better than the boar brush I have.
5. I didn't get good foam action from the GFT almond cream. I get better foam action from my ARKO shave stick (which i flattened to a cake) and my OMEGA boar brush.
6. Did I mention the angle is important?
Anyway, all in all it was a very nice experience, and a good learning experience too.
The heft of the razor does help and now I understand why you shouldn't press. But even after doing 2 N-S passes and 1 XTG S-N pass, I still didn't get a BBS. What gives? With my fusion I do 1 WTG N-S pass and 1 XTG S-N pass and presto, insta BBS.
Regardless of the comparison, the DE was a more holistic and zen experience for me, my face still is giving of a light almondy smell which is nice.
I am just concerned about the GFT cream and the lack of foam. Using the same motions I am able to get 3X more dense foam (and also 3X quantity) with the ARKO.
What am I doing wrong?
Yes, you DO NOT need to tug on a DE razor. The weight, particularly the weight of the huge 38C, will provide all the pull you need. You do not need to apply any pressure.
As for the "foam action", are you saying that it doesn't lather well? Have you watched the videos? How was the quality of the shave? That is more important. As a newbie I enjoyed seeing mounds of lather come pouring out of the bowl too, but it's not necessary. The quality of the lather is what's important, not how much of it there is.
As for your results, you said you did not get BBS. Your earlier statements lead me to believe you may be having some angle issues. The angle takes some getting used to and is different for different razors. When I use my Slant, the head is almost parallel to the floor. It is EXTREMELY rough otherwise and will leave me in a bloody mess if I tried it at any other angle. For my HD, the angle is much steeper to cut right. I don't have any experience with the 38C (although I think it's going to be my next purchase) so I hope someone else can chime in. You did one XTG pass with the DE, you may need to do another XTG pass from the other direction. 95% BBS for me is achieved with 1 N-S and 2 XTG, both from different directions.
I won't comment on the lather since all I'm going for is a lubricating lather, and not quantity of foam. I will comment, however, on the Fusion versus the DE. You may not be doing anything wrong. Having five blades, the Fusion is capable of giving a close shave without too many strokes for some people. That's how it was for me. I find that my SuperSpeed doesn't shave as close in a single pass, but with re-lathering, and additional passes, I get a very close shave with less irritation than a Fusion shave. It is a skill to be learned, and, yes, the shave takes me a little longer. I enjoy shaving the way Dad shaved when I was very young. I wish he were here to see what I've learned.
-Clarke
A friend once told me, "Practice makes permanent. You may not reach perfection, but you will remember what to do. Do your best."
A note on the GFT soap. These are triple-milled soaps and lather differently than the glycerin or soaft soap's. The amount of water is different and the technique for building the lather is different.
Try varying the mixture and work up the lather in a bowl.
Try varying the mixture and work up the lather in a bowl.
angle is my first guess. I found that when i played with that i would get drastically different shaves ranging from bloody messes to a still prickly face. Make sure you're lather is slick. My lather looks NOTHING like bubbles spilling over the sides of my mug, but rather a nice moderate amount of lather that is super slick. Anyway, it takes some time. Just play around and try to have some fun!
I'm not sure if anyone has chimed in on this yet, but blade choice is very different as well. Some blades do not shave as close as others and the 38 was my first as well. Angle is key as already pointed out. It will take most likely a week to get some good shaves. By about a month, maybe a little less you'll have some of the closest, irritation free shaves ever. I suggest as always a sampler pack from Letterk/westcoastshaving.com that way you'll be able to find a blade you like the best. I find that feathers, although not to be tried right away when using the 38C, will give you amazing shaves. Then again, YMMV. Enjoy the fun you'll have with the razor. Just take your time at first and soon you'll find that zen spot and have amazing shaves.
Oh and the head of a 38 is the same as the HD, just added weight from the handle. Angle should(I don't have an HD to compare) be similar if not the same. There are some good posts regarding angles on here. I'll see if I can find one and link it here for you.
Oh and the head of a 38 is the same as the HD, just added weight from the handle. Angle should(I don't have an HD to compare) be similar if not the same. There are some good posts regarding angles on here. I'll see if I can find one and link it here for you.
There's a discussion on shaving angle with excellent illustrations, on page 2 of this forum ("On Angle" by Mozart).
Good luck!
Good luck!
C
Ceilteach
Just keep playing with (and keeping track of) the variables associated with mixing up good lather as well blade types and angles and you'll soon find the combination that works best for you.
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