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The Wet-Shaving Thread

mikev said:
Going against the grain skurrs me :laughing
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I'm with you!

Right now, I'm working on technique with a vintage Gillette Tech (mild shaver) and sticking to WTG and XTG. I can live with getting SAS (socially-acceptable shave) if it keeps the nicks and irritation to a minimum.

zphreak said:
3 passes:
With
Against
Across
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In that order?
 
i rather have no irritation than having a bbs with redness/irritation.

Shit, i sometimes start against the grain below my chin and neck just case it works better for me. It really depends on your hair direction. Mine is all over the place so just try to see what snags less and doesn't irritate.
 
FoolishMortal said:
I'm with you!
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I find it pretty easy if I've done a reasonably good job with the grain first. The passes against the grain are light pressure, plenty of soap, several passes with short strokes.

Washing the oils off my face first also seems to make everything easier.
 
I had a really successful shave this morning. I took my time, lathered up my sample of Barrister & Mann Bay Rum and got 98% of the hair while keeping 98% of my skin intact. Win!

The only bummer was that when I was putting away my sample of Lucky Tiger Bay Rum AS, I dropped it. Tile floor + little glass bottle = tears. I suppose it's okay, though, because my SO likes the Clubman Special Reserve better, anyway.
 
Who's got a boar brush? Are they typically harder to load/lather than a badger?
 
FoolishMortal said:
Who's got a boar brush? Are they typically harder to load/lather than a badger?
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I've got one. I'd say they are easier to load because they have more backbone and dig into the soap more. Lathering is another issue. Until they break in, boar doesn't lather as well as badger in my experience. In fact, when I started using boar, I found it to "kill" the lather. I'm guessing it was oils on the fibers; after a few uses, it lathered OK. Boars are cheap enough that you should just give one a try. My Semogue cost about $15 and it's good. I just I wish they had some smaller knots available.

The only brushes I have that were truly disappointing were a horse hair and a synthetic. I do have a Muhle synthetic, however, that is my second favorite brush.

BTW Maggards is having a sale. Use code MOVE15 for 15% off site wide thru 8AM EST 1/22.
 
CoorsLight said:
I've got one. I'd say they are easier to load because they have more backbone and dig into the soap more. Lathering is another issue. Until they break in, boar doesn't lather as well as badger in my experience. In fact, when I started using boar, I found it to "kill" the lather. I'm guessing it was oils on the fibers; after a few uses, it lathered OK. Boars are cheap enough that you should just give one a try. My Semogue cost about $15 and it's good. I just I wish they had some smaller knots available.

The only brushes I have that were truly disappointing were a horse hair and a synthetic. I do have a Muhle synthetic, however, that is my second favorite brush.

BTW Maggards is having a sale. Use code MOVE15 for 15% off site wide thru 8AM EST 1/22.
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Yes, I saw that. Unfortunate for my cash reserves, but there it is. :teeth

Thanks for the feedback on the boar. I have an Omega and used it for the third time this morning (though I had done some shampoo/rinse/dry cycles with it first). With Proraso, it lathered up pretty well. I need to figure out the water ratio, but it wasn't bad - certainly better than when I tried to use it with B&M soap, but I'm sure I didn't load nearly enough from my nearly-done sample.

I understand what you mean about "killing the lather", since that's what seemed to happen Sunday afternoon. It's nice to know it wasn't just me. :)
 
I started with a Bert's Bees set that my FIL gave me (Soap, cup, brush, aftershave). I was using it with a cartridge razor at first and recently moved to DE (Merkur 34C w/Feather blades works best for me). The brush was boar and although it worked and was more "exfoliatory" (is that a word) than Badger, I didn't like it because the lather wasn't as thick and it felt very scratchy. I ended up going for a Best Badger brush and like it much better. The badger definitely holds more water, so I have to shake more out to keep the lather from getting too wet.

I don't use an ATG pass. I just do WTG and XTG and it's good for me. I'm light skinned with a dark, thick beard and it gets me close enough for a military shave (i.e. my boss doesn't yell at me after lunch for looking like I didn't shave :)

I did a lot my research at the B&B forums and have a couple of friends that DE shave and asked their opinions. For blades, I started off using Razor101's site about blades (http://www.shaving101.com/index.php/education/double-edge-shaving/48-choosing-the-right-blade.html) and worked my way up from the "dullest" to the sharpest from my sampler pack. I'd use one type blade for 1-2 weeks, keeping notes about how they felt, etc. and then change to another type.

For me:
Derby's were pretty good, but seemed to get "tuggy" after about 3 shaves.
Merkur's were more "tuggy" initially than the Derby, but were didn't seem to change after several shaves.
Personna Red's were very smooth. The first shave was great, but the second day irritated my neck badly.
Feather's were the best for me using very little pressure (the hardest thing for me to learn from the cartridge razor).

As a nice aside, I found a nice little drug store in Carmel that had a very nice selection of soaps, creams, balms, aftershaves, etc. It was nice to be able to smell and feel things instead of guessing online. Unfortunately, I didn't need anything at the time.
 
Cool, Dodd, welcome to the discussion. :)

I'm on B&B, too - same username.

I've only had the Israeli TopCare blades that I started with, but I'm about to start with blade #6. When I've gone through the 10, I'll switch to the Astra SP, which get good reviews as being "just right" for many people.

I'm settling into a pattern like yours - WTG and XTG. I am perfectly happy with a CCS/DFS and don't feel the need to chase BBS. I feel like that will just lead to misery in the form of massive irritation and/or bloodletting, probably with a side of ingrown hairs. The fact that I can shave every day, and that I actually look forward to it, is a massive shift already and quite enough for me.

I'm headed into SF this weekend and there's a shave shop that I want to visit. I'll report back if I actually make it in!
 
Cool...what shop is it? I have to take my wife into town in a few weeks and was thinking about stopping by Nancy Boy to try out some of their products.
 
Looking at getting my groomsmen a starter kit as a gift... any suggestions on where/what to purchase. Figured maybe the soap and brush would be good starters
 
Maggard MR7
Semogue 1438
Arko soap stick
Clubman Pinaud aftershave
Crystal razor blades

Congrats!
 
1sicv8 said:
Looking at getting my groomsmen a starter kit as a gift... any suggestions on where/what to purchase. Figured maybe the soap and brush would be good starters
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Congratulations! Can you give us an idea of what you want to spend on the starter kits? Do you want to keep it to just soap and brush, or go wild? The list of a "big kit" would look something like this:

Pre-shave oil or cream
Shave soap/cream/croap
Brush
Razor
Blades
Shaving mug or bowl
Witch Hazel
Aftershave oil or balm
Aftershave cologne

There are a number of good "starter" items that can keep the cost down - you could build kits like the above for about $75 delivered. CoorsLight offered some options and there are plenty of others.

If you want to go with a brush-and-soap combo, you can get an Omega 10066 or 10049 (both are boar) and some RazoRock soap for $20/set shipped and that's probably the best deal you'll find. The Semogue 620 (considered a better boar brush) and some Strop Shoppe soap (considered high-end) will run you about $50 shipped and will be a step up.

Give us more info so that we can help...and live vicariously!
 
audiododd said:
Cool...what shop is it? I have to take my wife into town in a few weeks and was thinking about stopping by Nancy Boy to try out some of their products.
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We went in on Sunday and several of the shops are closed. I was going to try to hit Fellow Barber and Wing Tip.

I did make it to Nancy Boy and got a travel tub of their shaving cream. It doesn't lather very well, but it has a great scent and when combined with Proraso, does an excellent job of providing cushion and slickness. The shop does have some Simpsons brushes and Solinger razors along with some mugs and scuttles, so they at least understand the idea of wet shaving.

B&B has a "Locations" wiki, and there's an entry for "SF Bay Area". I have notes on shops that have closed and some shops that I found in Rockridge that have a little bit of shave gear. When I have the time, I'm going to update the wiki and would love to include any information that you can provide!
 
FoolishMortal said:
Congratulations! Can you give us an idea of what you want to spend on the starter kits? Do you want to keep it to just soap and brush, or go wild? The list of a "big kit" would look something like this:

Pre-shave oil or cream
Shave soap/cream/croap
Brush
Razor
Blades
Shaving mug or bowl
Witch Hazel
Aftershave oil or balm
Aftershave cologne
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Good God.

I started using a DE razor because I thought the price of multi-blade cartridges was absurd. Still do, but if I went for all the above paraphernalia, I might be better off with the cartridges. :laughing
 
tzrider said:
Good God.

I started using a DE razor because I thought the price of multi-blade cartridges was absurd. Still do, but if I went for all the above paraphernalia, I might be better off with the cartridges. :laughing
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Like I said, he could "go wild". :teeth Did you start riding a motorcycle so you could "save on gas"? ;)

I'm starting to understand what I do and don't need, and that list doesn't represent my regimen. Still, I do use five of them:

Shave soap/cream/croap
Brush
Razor
Blades
Witch Hazel OR aftershave balm

The thing is, now I actually look forward to shaving. Before, it was a horrible chore. It's like working on motorcycles - much more enjoyable with the right tools, and quality tools make it even better. :)
 
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thanks for the advice. and the congrats!

I was trying to stay under 40 for this part of the gift. I am throwing together some other things as well. Was thinking just brush and soap because I am not sure how some of them would feel using other types of razors.
 
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