I hate shaving

Joben

Joben

Joined
May 22, 2009
Messages
1,755
Seriously. I hate shaving.

I shave about 1-3 times a week.
Whatever the minimum I can get away with is.
It's not that i like looking scruffy, or want a beard.
I just don't like shaving.
I have coarse facial hair and fairly soft skin, it's always been a fairly unenjoyable activity that I'm tempted to put off.

I also don't like shelling out for cartridges.

I do however like quality cutting instruments, and I think it would bug me less if I had a nifty tool to shave with.
If it did a better job then common commercial stuff too, then all to the good.

I know there are probably a bajillion threads like this...but
I'd like an old style safety razor and have no idea what to look for...Can I have a short list of suggestions please?

I've got about $60 bucks free in my toys budget right now.
 
Well here are a few that I was able to find with a quick search
West Coast Shaving
Bull Goose Shaving
Royal Shave
And of course there is always going the vintage razor route by looking on Ebay, antique shops, yard sales, and my favorite flea markets.

I was in the same boat as you before I started shaving with real shave soap, a brush and a quality DE razor. Hated shaving and hated having a beard. I also have a thick full beard and sensitive skin to boot just to make things interesting.

A common misconception about traditional wet shaving is that its going to rip your face up. It will if you don't do it right, so I would suggest looking up mantic59 and watching some of his videos, he will teach you proper technique for lathering and shaving.

I have been traditional wet shaving for about half a year now, I shave everyday, and can count the number of nicks I have given myself on both my hands. That is quite the achievement considering the large ugly scar on my chin and a mole on my cheek. Before when I would break down and shave when I had to with the latest and greatest cartridge razor I would have horrible razor burn and get lots of ingrown hairs. With the switch to a DE, I don't get razor burn that often and its always my fault if I do, and have had zero ingrown hairs. My complexional is better and I enjoy the time it takes to get a good shave with a DE razor.

My start up shaving kit was a Edwin Jagger 89L razor, Poraso sensitive skin soap, a blade sampler pack that had 6 different blade types, and a cheap brush, all for less then what you have to spend.

I now have 5 vintage Gillette razors, 3 different soaps, and will have a couple badger hair brushes to add to the original kit, and I rotate through every one of the razors and soaps to suit my taste that day.

Jump into the traditional wet shaving pool, chances are you will get hooked and start to look forward to shaving.

***Warning***
Faceterbation is a common side effect of traditional wet shaving:D
 
You may think that you have only $60 -- which is enough -- but the very real cost savings that you will achieve with DE shaving make it well-worth the up-front start-up investment. Cartridge-and-can shaving costs over a dollar per shave; those cartridges are expensive. DE shaving costs pennies per shave. And this is a very real cost savings. You can spend $20 each month at the local grocery store for yet another pack of cartridges, or you can spend $50 with West Coast Shaving and by a hundred blades and then for 12 to 18 months you will NOT make that monthly $20 purchase and that will be $200 is real savings, money in your pocket.

Oh, and you'll get better shaves too.

For some guys, shaving does, itself, turn into a pleasant hobby which is good for them. But this is not necessary. It is possible to switch to DE/wet shaving and keep shaving as a utilitarian thing.
 
You can pick up a cheap and simple Merkur razor for under $30 (I think I got mine from classicshaving.com) and enough blades to last you for at least a year for under 10 (I love the Astra Platinum blades I got from westcoastshaving.com).

I already had a brush and a nice bowl of soap I got as a gift years ago, but a nice soap won't cost you more than $5 and you can use any old coffee mug for it... don't even need a brush, really, I used to just lather up soap with my hands.

For under $50 you can get some super simple, high-quality kit that will be substantially, stupidly, cheaper than cartridge razors and give you a better shave as well and will outlive you. DE shaving all the way!
 
walmart brush
tub of shave soap (mamabear runs about 10$ and will last over a year )
antique storr DE easy under 20$
and then blades
you can (and mostlikly willl) spend way more tring new stuff later
 
My suggestion is to buy a nice Merkur for about $30 and a nice brush for about $30 more. Blades and soap are consumable supplies which you would buy anyway maybe in cans and cartriges, so don't consider them part of your $60 startup costs. And you will recover that $60 cost within three months.

You'll also need a bowl or mug, but you can find something in the kitchen or in the kitchen aisle at K-Mart which will work just fine for $5.
 
Since you like sharp blades, what about a straight razor? :D

Otherwise, I'd settle for a Fat Handle Tech with a Feather blade. That's a very inexpensive setup that's very effective. To really take advantage of the old school way of shaving, though, you'll need to use a better lathering product as well as a brush (most likely).

Be prepared for the shaves to not be great at first, but they will be superior in terms of results and skin health after you figure out the learning curve (this is true of DEs and Straights).

I'm really new to bladeforums, but I'm very familiar with traditional shaving methods. I hope you enjoy it!
 
Boy you got me beat I am lucky to get my self to shave once a week. I too have sensitive skin and coarsish facial hair. It actually hurts to shave sometimes. New cartridges seem to help but like Gollnick said thats expensive. I have been looking at some of the safety razors and am thinking this may be the way to go.
 
Gollnick said:
My suggestion is to buy a nice Merkur for about $30 and a nice brush for about $30 more. Blades and soap are consumable supplies which you would buy anyway maybe in cans and cartriges, so don't consider them part of your $60 startup costs. And you will recover that $60 cost within three months.

You'll also need a bowl or mug, but you can find something in the kitchen or in the kitchen aisle at K-Mart which will work just fine for $5.
Click to expand...

richmondesi said:
Since you like sharp blades, what about a straight razor? :D

Otherwise, I'd settle for a Fat Handle Tech with a Feather blade. That's a very inexpensive setup that's very effective. To really take advantage of the old school way of shaving, though, you'll need to use a better lathering product as well as a brush (most likely).

Be prepared for the shaves to not be great at first, but they will be superior in terms of results and skin health after you figure out the learning curve (this is true of DEs and Straights).

I'm really new to bladeforums, but I'm very familiar with traditional shaving methods. I hope you enjoy it!
Click to expand...

HAKnPocket said:
Boy you got me beat I am lucky to get my self to shave once a week. I too have sensitive skin and coarsish facial hair. It actually hurts to shave sometimes. New cartridges seem to help but like Gollnick said thats expensive. I have been looking at some of the safety razors and am thinking this may be the way to go.
Click to expand...

Take that advice, and you will be set for a pleasurable shave in no time. I started with a Edwin Jagger 89L razor and a 60 blade sample pack from an online retailer. A sample blade package offering more than one brand of blade is the best way to go when starting out, what works for me may not work for you and with so many different blades out there you should be able to find one that works for you.

Blades that work for my are Dorco ST-301, Astra Platinum and Stainless, and Bic. What didn't work for me were Derby and Feather. Derby are the most recommended blade and work for many people just not me. While the Dorcos are low on most peoples list and are my goto blade.
 
I'm actually part way there already, for years I've been using shave soap and brush with my Mach 3. It seems to give better result that shaving cream and a block of soap last me months.

Thanks for all the suggestions guys, I'm going to go over them all and pick out a razor. :)

richmondesi said:
Since you like sharp blades, what about a straight razor? :D
Click to expand...

LOL I'd love to have a straight razor, i probably will some day, but i figured it's work my way up with that.
 
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