My First Wet Shave!

[TripleB]

Plate 1 or 2 on the 6c on five days growth was never going to work IMHO. Those two plates are very mild. I would try it again using Plate 3 on two days growth and see if it makes any difference.

Plate 1 is probably too mild for you. Maybe with proper technique you can return to it later. Try 3 or even 4.

Thank you both for replying with this information!

After I started (and after the second pass as well) and saw how little hair was being removed, I began wondering if I should have purchased a different adjustable razor because this one didn't seem to be as amazing as all of the reviews I had read indicated. Before you all responded, I was thinking maybe I should have went with the Parker Variant (probably my 2nd choice), the Merkur Progress, or the Pearl Flexi.

I'm glad to hear that it's probably the plate choice and not the razor choice.

TripleB

 

[Phoenixkh]

Welcome to the B&B community from Gainesville, Florida.

 

[Quaznoid]

I shaved exclusively with a 1973 SuperSpeed, purchased new, for 35 years. One of the best there is. Ditch the Rockwell.

 

[emwolf]

I agree that wet shaving is much more fun. It also gets easier, I think, to get a close, comfortable shave. It's always shaved me much closer than electric.

 

[WThomas0814]

This is how it starts.

 

[TripleB]

2nd Wet Shave Experience from Today:

I put the '67 Super Speed TTO to the side today and decided to use the Rockwell 6C 2 plate on the left side of my face and the 6C 3 plate on the right side of my face. Everything else was the same as my first wet shaving experience: shower, synthetic brush, Proraso shaving cream, Astra SP blade, Nivea shaving balm after. I did use an Asma Alum block prior to the balm...nicked myself at one of the spots I nicked my face on my first wet shave.

To be honest I couldn't tell a lot of different between the 2 plate on the 6C and the 1 plate I used the other day (someone with more experience could probably feel an obvious difference). The 1 plate gave me the feeling I didn't have to be as "careful" as I shaved with and against the grain, but it wasn't what I would call an enjoyable shave because it didn't seem like the blade was cutting through the hair - as evident by how much hair was left when I wiped the extra shaving cream off. I say that in reference to my first shave the other day because with my 2nd wet shaving experience today using plate 2, there still seemed to be more hair left than I was expecting (yes, 99% human error I'm sure). I was really expecting to see a lot more hair removed with the 2 plate (3 days growth today compared to about 5 days growth when I used Plate 1 the other day), but there still seemed to be quite a bit. A little disappointing.

So I put the 3 plate on the 6C and moved over the right side of my face. Definitely a more enjoyable shave as it didn't seem too harsh on my skin and the hairs came off much easier, even when shaving with the grain. Lathered up again and went over the left side with the 3 plate to pick up what the 2 plate left behind. I lathered up one more time and went over my entire face using the 2 plate to finish up the shave. Overall an enjoyable, albeit frustrating at times (seeing less hair removed than I was hoping), shave today. But again, I understand it's going to be a learning experience for the foreseeable future.

Today I only had one place with blood and that was the same place I cut during my first shave a couple days ago. I went over my face with the Asma and it stopped the bleeding immediately. Rinsed it off and finished up with my aftershave.

After taking a close look at my face, there were some spots that I obviously missed, but I know as I get better, those spots will become fewer and fewer.

With all that being said, even though it left me with a few more areas of blood, and I felt I had to be much more careful with it, I enjoyed shaving with the 1967 Super Speed TTO razor more than the Rockwell. It seemed to be only slightly more harsh than the 6C with the 3 plate, but it took off so much more hair with less effort.

Maybe next time I'll do a very careful first shave with the SSTTO and then finish it off with the 6C 2 plate. But then again maybe the 4 plate on the 6C will be exactly what I'm looking for to give me a fantastic combination of removal and enjoyment. Or maybe I should get a Gillette Slim and have adjustments on the fly.

Can you tell how excited I am about learning how to wet shave and all that I see it offering as far as experimentation and enjoyment in the future once I learn and understand all the basics of how to wet shave properly?

Again, I appreciate you all reading and offering your outstanding advice!

TripleB

 

[psfred]

Lol, your report brings back memories from 1975 as I struggled with learning to shave ATG and the next year to use my Father's (or Grandpa's, I don't remember) Schick injector.

Had I known then what I know now I'd have trotted over to the pharmacy and grabbed a "Black Beauty" Gillette adjustable!

I do say though that I used that Schick until I could no longer find blades reliably in the late 1980s. Starting in 1977 I only shaved my neck and under my jawline, had a beard until about 2004 or so.

 

[Captain Coconut]

I shaved exclusively with a 1973 SuperSpeed, purchased new, for 35 years. One of the best there is. Ditch the Rockwell.

I'll second this. I've used quite a few razors at this point, but it's awfully hard to do better than a flair tip Super Speed. If I were you, I'd stick with that and try a few blades until you settle on one that works really well for you.

 

[TripleB]

4th wet shave experience (not sure why I skipped posting about my third shave):

A friend gave me his Parker Variant to try, telling me to compare it to my Rockwell 6C. So today i shaved with the Parker Variant at 2.5 on the left side and the Rockwell 6C with the 3 plate on the right side.

Just remember, the opinions below are from someone who only has, now, 4 wet shaves in his life, so take them with a very minute grain of salt.

The 6C is a MUCH smoother ride (for a newbie like me) with the hair removal you obtain from using each. The 2.5 setting Variant vs the 3 plate 6C seemed to be pretty close to one another when comparing the smoothness after shaving with a new Astra SP blade. But the 6C didn't leave near the amount of redness or small amounts of blood that the Variant did. To me it seemed like the blade was locked solidly into the 6C while the blade almost seemed to "waver" a little as I used the Variant. The 6C seemed to glide over my face compared to the Variant and cut the hair with little to no effort.

I didn't compare them side by side, but I would even say that I preferred my Super Speed over the Variant. Again just a newbie's perspective...maybe I'm just not to the point yet where I'm able to use the Variant like it's intended to be used.

btw: ordered a Muhle R89 today...saw it for $29 shipped (thought it was a good price) so I ordered it, going to research it during its shipping to get opinions on it (and how it compares to my Super Speed), then decide whether to open it and keep it or not open it and send it back (free returns)

TripleB