First DE shave by a B&B Newbie

It all started with reading B&B threads and watching Geofatboy videos. I so want to be into de shaving. I am from India and although blades are not a problem, getting a quality razor was. So ordered an EJ de89L through amazon.
I am not new to wet shaving. I am 32 now and been wet shaving since I turned 14. Started with a 7 o'clock pII. It is nothing but a trac II with no lube strip. Then came the sensor excel. I was sensible enough not to ever touch mach 3 and the beyonds. Wondered how I had to press hard with the sensor and not so much with the pII. Been using those catridges for good 18 years now.
Two months back when I went to the barber shop to get a haircut and a shave, the barber casually said.. you know what.. those twin blades and more things are just stupid. And the discussion continued. Then began my research on the subject. Thanks a ton to B&B for helping me with the theory.
Today's shave involved my routine lathering. Rub the face with hot water. Lather with a Nylon (syntheric) fibre brush and gillette shave gel. I understand... soaps and bagders are better. . but for now.. one variable only. I am very particular about creating the yogurt like lather and leaving it there for 2 minutes.
My routine involves a 2 pass shave with and against. Yes, never did the across in between the two.
Today though... the EJ was the prima donna.. the centre of attention. Popped in the derby extra which was a part of the EJ package. Kept the alum handy (lolz), checked the angle and continued with short strokes. Realized immediately what is meant by "the Weight of the razor will do it". First pass was good. Now was the time for the against pass. Nailed that as well. No change of hands, wrist locked, arm movement through elbow and shoulder. Tried to follow the literature. Not a single blood spot. No pulling. Even shaped my moustache. What a finish !!!
I usually rub an alum block all over my face once i am done shaving. I noticed a significant difference. With twin blades, it used to give an irritating feeling. Significantly less with the EJ. And the shave is unexplainably good. What was I using for last 18 years?
First encounter with de shaving is encouraging.
The best blade readily available in india is 7 o'clock super platinum (blacks). Will try those next week. Will keep posting.

Congrats on the results of your first DE shave! The EJ is a very well respected razor here and so do the Super Platinum blacks!

Welcome aboard and thanks for sharing your experiences. India has some great shaving creams so take advantage of it.

sounds like a great start

Congrats! It sounds like you had a great shave. I wish you many more!

Very nice bro!

Swapnil,

Welcome to the forum, we're please to have you as a member. Congrats on what sounds like a great first experience. Just remember it gets better and better. Bet wishes for continued success!

Welcome to B&B and congratulations!

Thanks for the guidance and well wishes. Was out of India for a week on a professional trip. Came back and was blessed with a baby boy just a couple of days ago. I hope I will have some respectable knowledge about DEs before the sweet one gets old enough to start shaving.

BTW, I tried and liked the 7 o'clock super platinum blacks. In india the 7 o'clock super stainless greens are cheaper than the blacks. Can anyone let me know about their thoughts on how these two blades fare against each other.
FYI, I have thick hair and i can not get a smooth shave without an against pass. I do not intend to use a blade beyond 4 th shave.
Other bnb posts talk about the blues, the russian greens and yellows. I don't want to go into all that. My question is very simple as of now.

I also feel that after about 9 shaves with the DE, the stubble on 2nd day is not as hard as what it used to be with the trac 2 or sensor excel. Is it possible or I am just disillusioned? ?

Swapnil said:

Thanks for the guidance and well wishes. Was out of India for a week on a professional trip. Came back and was blessed with a baby boy just a couple of days ago. I hope I will have some respectable knowledge about DEs before the sweet one gets old enough to start shaving.

BTW, I tried and liked the 7 o'clock super platinum blacks. In india the 7 o'clock super stainless greens are cheaper than the blacks. Can anyone let me know about their thoughts on how these two blades fare against each other.
FYI, I have thick hair and i can not get a smooth shave without an against pass. I do not intend to use a blade beyond 4 th shave.
Other bnb posts talk about the blues, the russian greens and yellows. I don't want to go into all that. My question is very simple as of now.

I also feel that after about 9 shaves with the DE, the stubble on 2nd day is not as hard as what it used to be with the trac 2 or sensor excel. Is it possible or I am just disillusioned? ?

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It's possible your technique is getting better, so you're getting a closer shave, and the stubble is less mature the next day. That's how it is with me.

If Treet blades are available in India, I'd check them out. They are carbon steel, so different feel, but I like it. Also, most Russian made blades are also good. I like Voskhods and Gillette Silver Blues.

Congrats on the baby!

I've used the 7 O'clock Super Stainless Greens and was very happy with the results. I couldn't tell much difference between them and Gillette Silver Blues. I think when I finish my 100 pack of the GSBs, I'm going to replace them with the Greens.

Thanks again for all the knowledge. After some trials i can post my personal experience now. I felt that 7 o'clock stainless greens and the super platinum blacks give different feels. None of them is a bad blade. The green lasted 3 smooth shaves for me and the black lasted 4 smooth shaves. If I have to rate, black will obviously score more than the greens. Both these blades work far better for me than the Derby extras I received with the EJde89lbl. I think I have found 2 blades which I will keep using in rotation for a while.
Maybe after a few weeks, I will try a similar routine with the Supermax super stainless and the super platinums.
Another question for the experienced guys: I am using the Gillette series shave gel. The lather on the brush is good. It feels good on the face too. But, It tends to dry up quickly on the face, no matter how I manipulate the water addition or how much effort I put with the brush swirls and application. Let me know if I use a good shaving cream, let's say a Godrej or an old spice, can I expect a better lather life than the gel?

Firstly congratulations on the recent addition to your family.

With regards to the gel I can't say I have tried to lather gel although I do still have a can somewhere. I have found though that a well made lather from a soap, I haven't used creams but I would suspect they give similar results, last longer than gel. Also with lather on the brush or in a bowl you can just top it up if it needs it.

Welcome to B&B. I've had good luck with all the Supermax blades I've tried. You have many good Indian shaving creams - Godrej being one example, so you ought to have no problems finding a decent cream.

Hello and welcome to B&B. Great to have you here. Congrats on the new baby and also on your shaving success. The shaves only get better and better.

Swapnil said:

Thanks again for all the knowledge. After some trials i can post my personal experience now. I felt that 7 o'clock stainless greens and the super platinum blacks give different feels. None of them is a bad blade. The green lasted 3 smooth shaves for me and the black lasted 4 smooth shaves. If I have to rate, black will obviously score more than the greens. Both these blades work far better for me than the Derby extras I received with the EJde89lbl. I think I have found 2 blades which I will keep using in rotation for a while.
Maybe after a few weeks, I will try a similar routine with the Supermax super stainless and the super platinums.
Another question for the experienced guys: I am using the Gillette series shave gel. The lather on the brush is good. It feels good on the face too. But, It tends to dry up quickly on the face, no matter how I manipulate the water addition or how much effort I put with the brush swirls and application. Let me know if I use a good shaving cream, let's say a Godrej or an old spice, can I expect a better lather life than the gel?

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Go for the Godrej... In my opinion one of the best creams from India... it will always be in my rotation. I am sure it is significantly cheaper for you too seeing as you can probably get to the local pharmacy and buy a tube. It lathers so easily and I have never had a problem with disappearing lather when using Godrej

Congrats on the baby!!! And welcome to B&B!

Welcome to B&B and as for the blades, I actually get a closer and more comfortable shave with the Greens than I do the Blacks. I'm using an ATT R-2 and every time I use one of the Blacks, I feel that the shave is rougher and has more drag than I experience with the Greens.

Welcome to B&B. Congratulations on the successful first shave.

Nice! Congratulations on a successful first shave! I love EJ DE89, I have 2 myself.. Welcome to B&B the worlds premier source for all subjects shave related!