I'm sure we have some wet shavers here.

[Alowisney]

I was thinking that there is probably a great deal of overlap between photographers that prefer film or using rangefinders and wet shavers. The love of craftsmanship that goes into a good tool, appreciation for the "old ways", and the almost zen feeling of the ritual of a good wet shave or developing your own film seem to be inherent in the two.

I learned to shave with a cartridge razor and was never happy with the results. I have a coarse beard and shaving with a multi-bladed razor was tearing me up and leaving stubble. I was never in love with the smell of "mountain" or "sport" or whatever smelling goo that came out of shaving cream canisters. That all changed a few years ago when I discovered wet shaving.

After some research I found out that you really can't go wrong with a Merkur Heavy Duty double edge razor. I got it and a sampler pack of blades. I was pretty happy with the results I was getting, but I had GAS for shaving gear. I upgraded my brush from a boar hair drug store model to a pure badger brush, then upgraded that to a super badger brush. I settled on Feather blades from Japan and bought 100 of them on eBay for around $30, which is very expensive for double edge blades. Those should last me a couple of years though. For shaving cream I had to search around for a bit longer and have really fallen in love with Taylor of Old Bond Street's Jermyn Street shaving cream. The performance and the scent can't be beaten for me.

I spent a little time trying to get into shaving with a straight razor but it just wasn't for me. I wound up selling my modern straight (a 5/8 Dovo Special) and strop late last year and giving away a Marsh and Ponds ROXO (made in the mid 1800s) from my collection of straights to a friend. I've kept one Boker that was made around 1900 that was sold in a defunct hardware store here in town.

I went through a few vintage Gillettes, a slim adjustable and Fat Boy, and just wasn't happy with them. I'd like to get a red tip Super Speed to try out, but that's about it with the old Gillettes. I'm also thinking about getting a Merkur open comb HD to see if it will cut down on the passes I need to get the stubble off of my neck.

So, are any of you as big a shaving nerd as I am?

Here's my old straight shaving kit, minus the strop.

 

[andreios]

Indeed, they are.. 🙂 Although I don't take pics of my utensils.. But the open comb Merkur is indeed very nice and very usable thing - cope it with a good soap and proper blade and there you go!

 

[MC JC86]

I've only begun to be able to do it correctly with a Mach 3 🙂. There's an "The Art Of Shaving" store here with a lot of very pretentious effeminate employees and expensive stuff that I've never bought anything from, but this seems to be getting more and more popular, along with "old fashioned" barber shops. A backlash from the whole "metro-sexual" thing perhaps?

The only time I'd let something that big and sharp get that close to my jugular would be if things just aren't working out anymore 🙂

 

[wolfpeterson]

Not sure I'm ready to get a straight razor, but I definitely would like to get a safety razor. This 3 blade BS is getting on my nerves. I like to grow it out, and shave it when I feel like a change, but those gillette/schick things clog at the first sign of a cm-long hair...

 

[Alowisney]

Shaving with a straight is unnerving the first time, well, for me it was anyway. The razor was honed professionally when I bought it and the blade was sharper than anything I'd ever seen. The edge is so thin that the act of shaving with it bends it, which is why you strop it, to straighten it back out. I would shave with my straight when I had a lot of time to enjoy the shave and take my time. That got to be less and less and I wasn't able to really work on getting the skill down like I should have.

A double edge is much easier. The learning curve isn't so steep with it if you're used to modern cartridge razors. I picked up a couple of old Gillette adjustables for $5 each, both still in great condition. I cleaned them up and used them, but they were both too tame for me. If you want to start shaving with one, check your local flea markets and antique shops. A lot of them have old razors sitting around for a pittance. All they need is a good sterilizing usually and are good to go.

A good resource for wet shaving info is Badger and Blade. They have discussions and reviews that are invaluable.

 

[Alowisney]

Indeed, they are.. 🙂 Although I don't take pics of my utensils.. But the open comb Merkur is indeed very nice and very usable thing - cope it with a good soap and proper blade and there you go!

Being in the Czech Republic, you've probably got a much better local selection of wet shaving gear than we do in the States. Have you ever tried the Gillette 7 O'Clock blades? I've been wondering how they stack up.

 

[acheyj]

Its off topic I know, but when I was three years old I tried shaving with my fathers blade razor (" Cut Throat ") !!!.
When we were drafted for national service in 1952 I shall never forget my field shave every morning at dawn, a long trough with freezing cold water and army soap GEEZEUS !

cheers all

ron

 

[Roberto V.]

I haven't gotten around to buying a nice razor, but I'm planning on getting a Merkur soon, along with a nice brush, soap, etc.

 

[B.J.Scharp]

My main razor is an old Gillette Aristocrat that's even older than my M3s...

 

[andreios]

Being in the Czech Republic, you've probably got a much better local selection of wet shaving gear than we do in the States. Have you ever tried the Gillette 7 O'Clock blades? I've been wondering how they stack up.

Well, that is not true. Apart from Astra blades and some reeking shav.creams there is nothing on the market. I've been doing all my shaving shopping online from various parts of the world or when traveling to London (Jermyn St), Germany (mainly the Manufactum stores) or Italy (every better drugstore, Proraso and similar useful things dirt cheap, 1/10th the online price). In fact, apart from worldwide brands you can't even get a proper aftershave here.
As for 7O'clock - they're not bad, but I am more satisfied with Feather and Merkur blades.

 

[telenous]

Were it not for wet shaving I'd have left a beard to enter a hipster competition. (Not that I would win, mind you.) 😛

I found my dad's old Gilette double-edged safety razor, bought a badger brush and some Proraso green, D.R.Harris, and Arko, whose scents I like a lot, and also a couple of local soaps (Kolynos and Σπλέντιτ, both reminding me of my grand-dad) and I'm a happy bunny. But the OP is right to say that GAS hits hard here too. There is an odd connection with photography, in that regard. With this in mind, I try to keep things sane. No eye-wateringly expensive razors or shaving soaps or exotic stuff that somehow will make you feel so much better than all the other "inferior" stuff. Today I was searching for info on some soap in a related forum. Someone started a thread and asked "what is the best shaving soap?" Guess what the first answer was. "The one you have and you are using". It does remind of something, doesn't it? 😱

.

 

[Frontman]

I use an old Gillette Bostonian razor. I tried various adjustable razors like the Aristocrats, Fat Boy, Toggle, etc. but my magic combination for the best shave was the Bostonian and Gillette Bleue blades.

Here in Japan, the only blades available are Feathers. Some people swear that Feathers are the sharpest blades available, but of all the blades I have tried, they give me the worst shave.

My favourite soap is the stuff made by Kent, along with a Kent badger brush.

For most of my life I used disposable razors, but found them uncomfortable, and the quality of the shave not so good. My first shave with a safety razor was a little bloody, but after a few months, I got the knack of it. It's amazing how much closer and smoother an old razor can be.

 

[bsdunek]

Personally, I liked the Gem single edge razors better. I think the angle of the head was better. Unfortunately, all the single edge blades I can find today are for paint scrapers - not honed enough for shaving.
The other choice would be a Rolls razor. My Dad always used one, and I have it. Have to say, I don't use it though. Maybe I should instead of my Atra (which it is getting harder to find blades for.
The other thing is a good shaving soap/cream. I have a huge stash of Old Spice mug soap I bought when they quit making it. Suppose someday I'll have to find something new. I use Barbasol in the pressure can when I travel, but it's not quite as good.

 

[Turtle]

I'm a film and darkroom fan, but I've gone the other way in that I don't close shave in any way any more. Once a week or two, I use a beard trimmer to keep somewhere between short stubble and short beard. I had been trying to be a good boy and shave more often, but one nasty infected ingrown hair later and I was cured of any desire to do so. It'd take one seriously beautiful and determined women to convince me to wet shave every day again and even then they get sandpaper come evening.

Traditional shaving products do smell incredible though. Maybe I should just get the scented face wash instead 😉

 

[JChrome]

I am currently a brewer, photographer, and programmer and I totally nerd out within each category... I appreciate engineering and adore finely crafted tools. But I shave once every few weeks with a crappy electric razor.

 

[robklurfield]

Skip the Merkur. Go straight for an Above The Tie. Any ATT. They're all good. Built like Leicas and destined to outlast their owners. I use an ATT R2 with Atlas handle. BTW, I have a couple of Merkurs. They are good, but they are made of zinc/zamac/pot metal. The ATTs are stainless steel.

Or, if you want to the vintage route, something like frontman's Gillette Bostonian is a good choice. Lots of fun vintage razors for reasonable prices.

 

[mdarnton]

My favorite shaving video; check it out! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7HcSsKSPw8

I ran through the blade thing pretty fast, then went directly to a straight (I use sharp things and sharpen constantly in my work, so it seemed like a natural progression), so I've got a cabinet full of safety razors and blades that I probably won't ever use. :-(

If you want to use blades, there's a lot of beautiful equipment out there, both new and old!

The straight thing was scary at first, and for the first year my wife asked when I would stop cutting myself, or better yet, stop using the thing, but then all of a sudden it came together. Now it takes me about five minutes, literally.

So I would say, if you're going to try it, count on a long learning period. Also, don't bother hanging out on the razor boards. Even their so called "honemeisters" are pretty much quacks as far as knowing what the process they're doing accomplishes, and the mythical BS about the whole topic of both sharpening and shaving is overwhelming. I learned a lot more about sharpening by using a microscope and reading a very good forum, now closed, run by one of the Belgian stone mining companies, where the participants actually knew what they were talking about. The way I "shaved" 30 minutes from the time I took was by ignoring everything I'd read on the boards, and starting over, working it out logically. Then it fell together very quickly.

I'm open to private conversations on the topic, but I won't get into it here.

 

[robklurfield]

PS, wanna get hooked on a new vice? Visit these forums:

http://badgerandblade.com/

http://shavenook.com/

 

[misterb]

I went with one of these...
http://www.weberrazor.com/products
All stainless steel, rugged build, good heft, made on-shore, great price!

When I take a little time and using a good shave cream (razor's currently loaded with an Astra Superior Platinum blade), I can get that legendary "baby's bottom" feel to my face.
Mind you, at the end of the day, if I need to touch up, I still use a Schick Hydro 5 for a few quick swipes.

 

[robklurfield]

good choice