Shaving

[Sweep_the_Leg]

@Greenman72

^How much time do you spend shaving?

I’m guessing I spend three minutes a day, or about 18 hours a year. Multiply that by my $150 billing rate, and I spend approximately $2,700 in time alone shaving.

That’s too pragmatic a statement. Most people that really enjoy shaving with a straight razor actually relish the extra time they spend shaving. It’s generally 15 minutes when you’re left alone, nice and peaceful, before you start your day and all hell breaks loose.

For me, like I said above, I’d rather sleep or do whatever else. It’s not that zen for me. But, for those that do find it a relaxing way to start the day, and extra 15 minutes is a small price to pay.

[lxwarr30]

Do you trim up down below with a straight razor too?

[el_macca17]

@Destroyer_of_Worlds

@gringo\_bob

so much douchebaggary

Oh buddy I couldn’t agree more. People operating in this surplus society today have too much time on their hands so we look to make things more complicated, more ritualistic, more “artisan” in our foods, etc. A WWII G.I. on the front lines would have killed to have access to something like a Mach 3 razor; now we seek to go back to antiquity and use the undesirable single razor so that we can feel manly in the mirror for – an audience of ourselves.

This trend needs to stop. When I go to some restaurant and some “working actor” runs some hipster urban lumberjack’s idea of gourmet in front of me containing side mushrooms picked directly off the hills of rural France, it’s like, listen pal, just give me the f’ing steak and mashed potatoes, thanks.

beautiful rant.

At the same time, I do enjoy the the side mushrooms from a muddy hill-sideditch in northern france. Those hipsters really know flavour.

[tjcfa]

My straight razor routine takes 5-7 minutes if I go quick on the weekdays, can take 15 mins on the weekends.

But Im no expert yet. Imo its quicker than the other razors because the blade is large. It also can be rinsed less often because of the shape. U can also angle the blade to your face however you’d like. I’ve never owned any other type of razor. My brothers a barber and he gave me a forged straight razor at 16 and I plan on using it my whole life.

[system]

Once you go safety you never go back. I will never use gilette proglide again

[bchad]

@geo

Bchad > I change my safety razor once every three to four shaves, or about once a week. My understanding is most people stretch that out further. While the Mach 3 guys claim superiority here for whatever reason, I pay $6 for 10-12 weeks of ultra sharp fresh Japanese crafted blades.my annual shaving cost is about $100 including creams and aftershave. Saves a lot of money and I think it offers a superior shave.

Interesting. I didn’t realize there is a cost savings too.

I use Mach 3 cartridges and I am basically happy with their performance, but I do get quite frustrated at the prices for replacing them.

[Sweep_the_Leg]

I’m pretty shocked by the love for safety razors. They’re probably the worst shaving option available, at least for my skin/beard type.

[Sweep_the_Leg]

@lxwarr30

Do you trim up down below with a straight razor too?

That’s what I do during the nights on Rust.

[geo]

@bchad

@geo

Bchad > I change my safety razor once every three to four shaves, or about once a week. My understanding is most people stretch that out further. While the Mach 3 guys claim superiority here for whatever reason, I pay $6 for 10-12 weeks of ultra sharp fresh Japanese crafted blades.my annual shaving cost is about $100 including creams and aftershave. Saves a lot of money and I think it offers a superior shave.

Interesting. I didn’t realize there is a cost savings too.

I use Mach 3 cartridges and I am basically happy with their performance, but I do get quite frustrated at the prices for replacing them.

A pack of 10 blades for a safety will run $6 at the high end and $2 at the low end. Some guys prefer the cheaper ones as they aren’t as sharp. The high end ones are insanely sharp and will cause irritation and what not if you’re not careful. Much cheaper. And Greenie - I doubt a safety razor takes any more time than a Mach 3, unless I want to enjoy a 3 pass or what not. A one pass shave is as good as a cartridge razor. Perhaps the extra 20 seconds to build a nice lather instead of smearing chemical paste on my face might take longer. My skin is much nicer since I switched though.

[higgmond]

I switched to electric a few years ago and couldn’t be happier. I get no zen-like feeling while shaving and almost certainly get an inferior shave, but I’m done in less than 2 minutes and the buzz helps drown out the sound of the kids screaming at each other.

[Sweep_the_Leg]

@higgmond

the buzz helps drown out the sound of the kids screaming at each other.

There’s your zen buddy. Namaste.

[former_trader]

@higgmond

I switched to electric a few years ago and couldn’t be happier. I get no zen-like feeling while shaving and almost certainly get an inferior shave, but I’m done in less than 2 minutes and the buzz helps drown out the sound of the kids screaming at each other.

Electric shavor is all I know.

[woodywoodford]

@Sweep_the_Leg

I’m pretty shocked by the love for safety razors. They’re probably the worst shaving option available, at least for my skin/beard type.

I’m the complete opposite. Cartridge razors are only good for one use and then I start breaking out - something to do wtih catching dead skin/bacteria between the baldes - so mach 3 type blades are out of the question. But since I’ve switched to a safety razor and derby extra’s, which I can buy a new blade for every shave for a year for $15 on Amazon, I haven’t had any breakout or razor burn at all. So sure, people can call me a hipster for shaving like that, but screw em. I found what works for me, and nostalgia/trendiness has nothing to do with it.

[Destroyer_of_Worlds]

@mk17

@Destroyer_of_Worlds

@gringo\_bob

so much douchebaggary

Oh buddy I couldn’t agree more. People operating in this surplus society today have too much time on their hands so we look to make things more complicated, more ritualistic, more “artisan” in our foods, etc. A WWII G.I. on the front lines would have killed to have access to something like a Mach 3 razor; now we seek to go back to antiquity and use the undesirable single razor so that we can feel manly in the mirror for – an audience of ourselves.

This trend needs to stop. When I go to some restaurant and some “working actor” runs some hipster urban lumberjack’s idea of gourmet in front of me containing side mushrooms picked directly off the hills of rural France, it’s like, listen pal, just give me the f’ing steak and mashed potatoes, thanks.

beautiful rant.

At the same time, I do enjoy the the side mushrooms from a muddy hill-sideditch in northern france. Those hipsters really know flavour.

Fair enough, but I draw the line if it takes more than 30 seconds for the zero-muscle-mass human being in the Warby Parker glasses to recite the dish, i.e., “Our special tonight is the broiled then braised, roasted venison and duck confit arrangement with parboiled forbidden rice and matsutake mushroom loaf, garnished with a thin slice of densuke watermelon and then lightly spritzed with the preserved essence of Louis XIV’s mistresses. The meats are ensconced in a mixture of melted caciocavallo podolico and camel’s milk, taken just off the pan before searing and demiglaced with a blend of 1998 Chateau Petrus Pomerol and rare earth elements.”

[geo]

@woodywoodford

I’m the complete opposite. Cartridge razors are only good for one use and then I start breaking out - something to do wtih catching dead skin/bacteria between the baldes - so mach 3 type blades are out of the question. But since I’ve switched to a safety razor and derby extra’s, which I can buy a new blade for every shave for a year for $15 on Amazon, I haven’t had any breakout or razor burn at all. So sure, people can call me a hipster for shaving like that, but screw em. I found what works for me, and nostalgia/trendiness has nothing to do with it.

I had a similar experience, that’s why I say my skin is much nicer now than pre-safety razor. You can clean a safety razor much better. I go a few shaves between swaps, but have no issues now at all.

Derbys are a great beginner blade and what I started with. Forgiving and easy on the skin if you’re sensitive. I found the Feathers though, once I got more skilled, hacked through the coarser chin hairs better than anything else with less pulling (I often go a couple days between shaves if I’m not needing to be presentale). The Feather though is completely unforgiving and a poor lather will leave you stinging and even the most subtle slip will result in a bleeder. The Derby is so smooth I could probably shave with just that and water. But after a three pass shave with a Feather I feel like a baby for a couple days.

And I’m not at all doing it for the hipsterism. I’m doing it because it feels good and it’s way cheaper.

[TTKDDFRM]

I have recently ventured into DE and cut throat and I bought all of the following:. The upfront cost is huge when compared to cartridge. But the experience you get from cut throat/straight is unimagainable (good).

Just sharing the below:

Essential

1

Merkur DE Razor

http://www.executive-shaving.co.uk/merkur-futur-matt-chrome-safety-razor.php

£ 49.50

2

Merkur DE Razor blades

http://www.executive-shaving.co.uk/feather-safety-razor-blades-10pack.php

£ 3.50

Super Luxury:

3

Feather Artist razor

http://www.executive-shaving.co.uk/feather-cut-throat-acr-dwpg-teak-handle-artist-club-dx-razor.php

£ 250.00

4

Feather Artist razor

(Option 1)

http://www.executive-shaving.co.uk/feather-professional-super-injector-razor-blades.php*

£ 16.50

5

Feather Artist razor

(Option 2)

http://www.executive-shaving.co.uk/feather-proguard-injector-razor-blades.php**

£ 21.00

6

Shaving cream

http://www.executive-shaving.co.uk/proraso-sandalwood-and-shea-butter-shaving-cream.php

£ 6.30

7

Shaving brush

http://www.executive-shaving.co.uk/simpsons-chubby-1-super-badger-shaving-brush.php

£ 132.80

8

Alum

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00DPMMX96/ref=oh_details_o05_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

£ 8.79

*Very sharp blades; ** beginners level, yet very sharp

[bchad]

So I put together some of the gift cards I got for my birthday last week and bought a safety razor (Merkur 20c long-ish handle), plus blades, plus a second badger brush (upgraded from my old Tweezerman), stand and soap dish (to store at my GF’s place).

I took my first safety razor shave today and have to say that I liked it a lot. No nicks (knock on wood here) and a very satisfying close shave that was not very difficult (though admittedly, my beard covers the areas most likely to get cut, and I’m not shaving that area right now).

So thanks to the AF clan for giving me the idea. I’m looking forward to not shelling out half a day’s comp in order to buy new Mach 3 cartridges, or trying to make old ones last for absurdly long times.

[system]

You white folks have it easy. Us brothas need to take special care when shaving cause our skin is all fxed up with pseudofolliculitis barbae. I’ll be stuck with an electric razor until the day I die.

[geo]

What blades are you using bchad? I was loving the Feathers, and still do, but I recently cracked a box of Israeli Precision blades and I’m actually quite happy. Smoother and less nicks, but not as close of a shave.

[bchad]

I used the Merkur Platinum coated blade that came with the safety razor. It was amazingly smooth and though I’d never used a safety razor, it felt like it cut smooth and close with only one or maybe two passes and essentially no pressure, no irritation. I was trying to be careful, yet it all felt very natural, anyway.

I bought a 100 pack of Derby super stainless blades because 1) they were inexpensive, 2) seemed to get good reviews, and 3) the reviews said they were not so aggressive, so good for beginners (like me). However, that first shave with the Merkur blade was so nice, I might have to see how much those cost…

A question that is on my mind is “what is the safest way to dispose of the blades, once you’re done with them.” Cartridges aren’t usually too problematic, but I could see these cutting their way through a plastic trash bag and possibly hurting someone.