DE Razor - Using both sides of blade

I only have one shave under my belt. This has been bothering me all day. I know my razor has an open blade on each side. And it looks identical. Is there any rhyme or reason when to use one side of the razor over the other?

I tried looking up past threads but couldn't find much.

I assume it doesn't matter and you should do what feels right to you, but I wanted someone to confirm my thinking.

Thanks,
Tom

Hello and welcome, Tom. B&B is a great forum full of friendly, helpful shavers. You will learn a lot here.

No rhyme or reason on using one side or the other, so your assumption is correct.

I just shave with whatever side I randomly select and when that gets full of lather, I spin razor 180 degrees and use other side.

I just figure that over course of 4 shave life of a blade, I will randomly use it evenly.

Don't overthink this. Remember - it's only shaving.

I shave from the outside in, so I shave down the side of my face closest to my left ear, then flip to the other side and do the opposite area on the right side. Rinse, and repeat.

BSAGuy said:

I just shave with whatever side I randomly select and when that gets full of lather, I spin razor 180 degrees and use other side.


Don't overthink this. Remember - it's only shaving.

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Yup!

Unless you mean too side versus bottom side?

sskim3 said:

I only have one shave under my belt. This has been bothering me all day. I know my razor has an open blade on each side. And it looks identical. Is there any rhyme or reason when to use one side of the razor over the other?

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No, but if you like to develop a system (e.g. reversing the blade on each shave), then you are not alone. I think it's part of the hobby for some.

I shave with one edge until too much lather has collected on that side of the razor, and then I flip over to the other edge. Then I rinse the razor, and do the same again.

What BSAGuy just said.

WARHAWK

Welcome. I just flip it when one side gets full of lather. I really don't keep track of which side. I just go at it.

Wvbaldeagle said:

Welcome. I just flip it when one side gets full of lather. I really don't keep track of which side. I just go at it.

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Me too, and I think that I use both sides to the same extent, on average. I don't really care though.

(I also don't keep track of how many days I get out of a blade ... if it feels dull, I replace it)

Wvbaldeagle said:

Welcome. I just flip it when one side gets full of lather. I really don't keep track of which side. I just go at it.

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+1 ... I don't pay any mind to which of the two edges I'm using. When I fill one up with lather, I rinse it, then I put the razor back to my face. Sometimes I'm using the same side as before, sometimes the other one.

I change each blade after 2 shaves, so I don't ever get to the point where it feels worn out. Even if I only shaved with one side the whole time, I don't think that is enough passes to really wear it down.

For the Ultra-Organized among us, if you want to be sure to distribute usage evenly between the two sides, you could mark one side of your razor with a small stick-on dot, or scratch a line down one side of the top-cap. That way, it will be easy to tell one edge from the other.

The two edges is part of the economy of DE. One blade, twice the shaving action. There is no reason to favor one over the other. Each time I scrape off enough lather to need a rinse, I rinse and flip the razor. I figure I get even wear on both sides that way. Maybe if you have an easy way of telling one side from the other, you can do some interesting experiments like seeing if you can detect the wear-down of a blade. Shave with the same side 5 or 6 times. Then try flipping it and see if you get a noticeably sharper and smoother shave.

GoneRetroInOH said:

The two edges is part of the economy of DE. One blade, twice the shaving action. There is no reason to favor one over the other. Each time I scrape off enough lather to need a rinse, I rinse and flip the razor. I figure I get even wear on both sides that way. Maybe if you have an easy way of telling one side from the other, you can do some interesting experiments like seeing if you can detect the wear-down of a blade. Shave with the same side 5 or 6 times. Then try flipping it and see if you get a noticeably sharper and smoother shave.

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+1

Seems to be common to load one side with lather then immediately use the other; That's what I do also, sometimes rinsing just before flipping.

Thanks guys. Pretty much summarized my initial thoughts but it never hurts to ask. Looking forward to the next shave.

Welcome to the forum!

Same here as most people above, when one side gets full of lather, I rinse and flip. But what I had to learn was not to flip without rinsing. My face loves all the water it can get during a shave.

Just when there is enough of lather on the side you'll need to use the other side. Then you rinse and continue shaving.

sskim3 said:

Thanks guys. Pretty much summarized my initial thoughts but it never hurts to ask. Looking forward to the next shave.

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How was the next shave?

Ok, thats not what i thought he meant. Perhaps he did, but it gave me also a noob, a thought, what about opening the razor and flipping the blade in the razor after 2 or 3 shaves. Do you extend the life ?

Royalpar1 said:

Ok, thats not what i thought he meant. Perhaps he did, but it gave me also a noob, a thought, what about opening the razor and flipping the blade in the razor after 2 or 3 shaves. Do you extend the life ?

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Its more effective if you take out the blade and hand strop it. The blade flipping is waste of time.