Welp....several of you know about my disappointing shaves since entering the DE world from some chatroom conversations. I got the best shave yet Friday night, but it still took me 40 minutes, and many, many passes to achieve it, which tends to irritate my skin after a while. Each night, I've gone into the shave with a "new, fresh start" attitude, and ended it being extremely frustrated and disappointed. I've been teetering on throwing in the towel, and going back to my Mach 3, and "canned goo". I know it will get better with time, but...the costs in time and money needed to perfect technique, experiment with different razors to find what works best for me, experiment with different blades, etc. neither appeals to me, nor seems worth it.
But today, my dad stopped by after work to "give me a few pointers", or see what I might be doing wrong. He brought his own razor with in case mine didn't cut it for him....literally. He took about 3 swipes with mine, realized it wasn't shaving jack, and tossed it aside in favor of his. With the first swipe, I could see the difference already. Keep in mind, we're both using the same, cheap-o Walmart Personna blades. Anyway, he did several passes with his, and after 3, plus some touch-ups on more stubborn spots, he had a super smooth shave.
SO.....then he told ME to try it with his razor. I wasn't looking forward to this, as the razor he uses is probably best for someone.....EXTREMELY experienced. But he talked me into it anyway. It was quite the nerve wrecking experience. Perhaps some pictures will explain why. I took a pic of the logo at the top, because I have no idea what brand this is. But the interesting part is the bottom of the TTO top.
Comparison shots next to my Weishi
Yes, folks. For I don't know how many years, my dad has been using a TTO DE razor.....with no lower safety, and today, I got to try it as well.
So the results. Well, with the very first swipe, it cleared off more hair than 3 or 4 passes with the Weishi. I didn't get TOO close of a shave, mostly because I was afraid of pressing my luck with an open blade. While I did get a few extremely tiny nicks when going against the grain on my left cheek area on the last pass, much to my surprise, I didn't really cut myself. It did seem to "pull" the hair a bit, even though the blade was brand new. I assume this is because the blades aren't very good? It did also irritate my face a hell of a lot more than the Weishi had, even though I only did 3 passes with it. No amount of lather was easing the tugging or the irritation. Regardless of the less than comfortable and nervous experience, it did give me a very different perspective on what's going on during the shave, and how much of a difference the extra exposure of the blade can make. So perhaps I will give DE one more try with a more aggressive razor, after all. 
But today, my dad stopped by after work to "give me a few pointers", or see what I might be doing wrong. He brought his own razor with in case mine didn't cut it for him....literally. He took about 3 swipes with mine, realized it wasn't shaving jack, and tossed it aside in favor of his. With the first swipe, I could see the difference already. Keep in mind, we're both using the same, cheap-o Walmart Personna blades. Anyway, he did several passes with his, and after 3, plus some touch-ups on more stubborn spots, he had a super smooth shave.
SO.....then he told ME to try it with his razor. I wasn't looking forward to this, as the razor he uses is probably best for someone.....EXTREMELY experienced. But he talked me into it anyway. It was quite the nerve wrecking experience. Perhaps some pictures will explain why. I took a pic of the logo at the top, because I have no idea what brand this is. But the interesting part is the bottom of the TTO top.
Comparison shots next to my Weishi
Yes, folks. For I don't know how many years, my dad has been using a TTO DE razor.....with no lower safety, and today, I got to try it as well.
So the results. Well, with the very first swipe, it cleared off more hair than 3 or 4 passes with the Weishi. I didn't get TOO close of a shave, mostly because I was afraid of pressing my luck with an open blade. While I did get a few extremely tiny nicks when going against the grain on my left cheek area on the last pass, much to my surprise, I didn't really cut myself. It did seem to "pull" the hair a bit, even though the blade was brand new. I assume this is because the blades aren't very good? It did also irritate my face a hell of a lot more than the Weishi had, even though I only did 3 passes with it. No amount of lather was easing the tugging or the irritation. Regardless of the less than comfortable and nervous experience, it did give me a very different perspective on what's going on during the shave, and how much of a difference the extra exposure of the blade can make. So perhaps I will give DE one more try with a more aggressive razor, after all. 
. Which is why its great for beginners. Practice on your leg hair and you'll see what I mean. The trick is to find the right blade angle. Until you find the right angle, you could be passing thing that thing across your face for hours and it won't do a thing - and thats not a bug, thats a feature. 
