Schick Hydro 3 and 5

[endcycle]

Update -
I've been using the hydro5 almost exclusively for a month.

I miss DE shaving, but I've been getting better and more consistent results with the hydro 5 and a tube of proraso green than I ever had from anything in my shave collection. AND that's saying a lot (if you look over my posting history, I'm pretty well versed with DE shaving and have quite a collection).

The one downside to me is the cost - it's NOT the cheapest way to shave... it's not quite as bad as the fusion, by any stretch, but it's not nearly as good as DE in terms of economics. (though to be honest, I spent LUDICROUS money on DE shaving accoutrement... )

 

[patrisVII]

Now using Cetaphil Gentle Cleanser (Wal Mart knock off actually). I smacked my forehead that I didn't do it earlier as this is what I used to 'wet shave' with my Panasonic.

Works perfectly:

- Shaves closer than canned or tubed gels and Shave Secret oil

- No stink whatsoever

- None of the snot I got with creams

- Great post shave softness.

The trick is to apply it to damp skin - it's mostly water, so if your face is wet, it will go on too thin and the blade more or less pushes it out of the way. I get out of the shower and lightly blot my face with a towel to get up the surface water. Then I apply the Cetaphil (and shave) in sections (neck - cheeks - chin & lip).

 

[Mr.K]

I always find these types of threads very interesting. After reading ten pages of reviews and thoughts, the only thing I come away with is that the shave is different than that of a DE, SE, or sr8.

This sort of thread is akin to the kind you'll find on the car forums. Always comparing the cars of the past to the modern versions. Only difference being, we as wet shavers, can dig up that fatboy, old type, new, or whatever else we want to compare and just shave with it side by side if we desire.

Here's my take. When I have the time, it's DE shaving all the way. Soaps, brushes, razors, and blades, all at my disposal. Sort of like going into my fantasy garage and choosing between my 2002Tii or my 911SC to take that great drive to Thanksgiving dinner where all the relatives get along,(yeah right), and your favorite football team will win the game, and you'll clean up in the office pool.

That said, when I oversleep and must get to the train station, it's going to be the boring as hell 4wheel drive plastic piece of crap that they call a car these days I will go for.

Thanks to all who educated me on the Hydro. I need to buy one now. Sometimes I oversleep and mindless shaving ain't such a bad thing. Every tool has a purpose.

 

[73mountaineer]

I bought the Hydro 3 for travel and used it the first time this morning while on a business trip. Prep: Bonehead simple, shower, wet face, can of barbasol and the Hydro. 3 passes, very good shave with two minor gripes.

First the good:
- I got near BBS in a 10 minute shave
- Absolutely no irritation or burn even ATG on my neck, which is usually very problematic
- Zero pulling, tugging, or dragging. Honestly I wasn't expecting much because I usually get more of this with Schick blades, or have in the past. This one, I couldn't even tell it was cutting.

Now the gripes:
- The lube strip is a little much. To the point of actually seeing goo tentacles when I lifted the razor off of my face. It does its job though, as my face was noticeably coated with the stuff upon final rinse.
- The head design is pretty blocky, which caused it to want to ride up on top of the lather with a no pressure approach. I compensated by thinning the lather layer and applying slight pressure on subsequent passes.

Final decision: I got a great shave with this thing and it will be my go to razor for quick shaves and business trips I think. Not bad, Schick, not bad at all.

- Steve

 

[patrisVII]

Now the gripes:
- The lube strip is a little much. To the point of actually seeing goo tentacles when I lifted the razor off of my face. It does its job though, as my face was noticeably coated with the stuff upon final rinse.
-

I had this problem with every cream or soap I tried. It's not as much an issue if you use a gel (canned like Edge or tube like KOS), oil, or Cetaphil. My guess is the lube was formulated to work with the partner Hydro gel.

 

[salisburyyates]

My girlfriend bought me the Hydro 5 today. Will use it in the morning and report back here.

 

[BladeDE40]

I've been using the three blader now for a few months and really like the results. It provides a great shave with little to no irritation. I previously tried the new Proglide which I got for free in the mail and hated it...it gave some of the wost shaves I've experienced. IMO the Hydro is a far superior razor. I agree with the previous post in that I find that when I use my brush and some of my shave soaps and creams, the razor tends to float on the product and requires a bit more pressure than when used with the canned Shick Hydro gel...but who really wants to use the can stuff when you can use a nice brush and some Proraso! Overall a great cart razor.

 

[salisburyyates]

My girlfriend bought me the Hydro 5 today. Will use it in the morning and report back here.

So I have been using this for a while now and have to say that it is a pretty good razor. I do have an issue with it cutting me, which I guess just means that my technique is awful. It's weird, most of the time I don't get any cuts or irritation with a DE or cartridge, and then I have periods where I completely seem to lose all my knowledge and manage to cut myself with something as idiot-proof as a 5 bladed cart

I don't get the same feedback with this razor that I do with the DE to let me know that its working. The DE makes a sound when it cuts the hairs, this one is silent. Thus, I compensate by applying a bit of pressure. I don't know if the gel reservoir is keeping the blades from touching my face, but when I apply pressure for too long I get a nick. I will keep at it and see how it goes, but I'm definitely getting the 3 bladed version next time.

 

[endcycle]

Alright - my final update on the hydro.

It's out of my rotation permanently. As much as I LOVED how easy the shave was, I found that I was getting ingrowns left and right after a while. I thought it was just technique for a while, but I couldn't figure out a way to avoid the ingrowns.

I've moved back to my reliable fat boy for now.

 

[imabel2]

I remove the goo portion on the five blade and use 1/3 Hydro Gel and 2/3 KMF whipped to a nice lather with my brush and this combo give me a BBS shave in two passes and an occassional partial pass on my neck. I won't give up my DE razors but this is a great travel combination or a go too razor when time is a factor.

 

[salisburyyates]

While I haven't been using the Hydro exclusively, I have used it maybe 5-8 times now and it performs very well. I actually compared a new Mach3 Blade to the Hydro 5, and after a few strokes noticed the Mach 3 blade did not seem sharp at all for a brand new blade, so i switched it up. I noticed that the Hydro was much smoother and far more effective, even though it had seen some use. There was a marked difference in the quality of the blade. I couldn't "feel" any tugging, nor hear the hairs being cut - but I could go ATG with this and not get any irritation. In the end, the DE is more pleasurable but does take a while. This one is easy to use and I will definitely post an update on when the cartridge finally starts dragging or showing any need for replacement. I will be buying Hydro 3 blade replacements.

 

[OldSaw]

I have had one of my original starter Hydro 3 cartridges hanging out in my dopp kit for several months and used it for at least 30 shaves when in a hurry. I finally decided to get a refill, as they are handy to have when I am in a hurry. Well the first shave today made me wish I had the starter cartridge back. Even with 30 shaves it was better than the new one.

I'll need to do more than one shave to draw any conclusions, but I am getting suspicious of the regular production cartridges.

 

[quickie-cookie]

Protector3 does better!

 

[Jobol]

I have had one of my original starter Hydro 3 cartridges hanging out in my dopp kit for several months and used it for at least 30 shaves when in a hurry. I finally decided to get a refill, as they are handy to have when I am in a hurry. Well the first shave today made me wish I had the starter cartridge back. Even with 30 shaves it was better than the new one.

I'll need to do more than one shave to draw any conclusions, but I am getting suspicious of the regular production cartridges.

Shouldn't both the included cartridge and the packed catridges be exactly the same, manufactured in the exact same plant?

Unless the market is being flooded with Schick Hydro countefeits made in China, then that might explain it. I know when I bought a bunch of powerfusion cartridges from an online site, they were fake chinese knock-off that looked *exactly* like the real deal (packaging and all) but shaved like total crap.

 

[michiganlover]

Shouldn't both the included cartridge and the packed catridges be exactly the same, manufactured in the exact same plant?

In theory yes.

But many on the board have long wondered, if Gillette, and Schick make cartridges of two quality levels: those packaged with the razor = best quality, to get you hooked on the product. Those bought as refills= lesser quality, so they don't last as long, and you need to re-buy more often.

The same theory also supposes that Gillette, and Schick over time decrease the quality of the cartridges for their older lines, in a effort to get the customer to switch to their newest, and greatest razor.

 

[Jobol]

In theory yes.

But many on the board have long wondered, if Gillette, and Schick make cartridges of two quality levels: those packaged with the razor = best quality, to get you hooked on the product. Those bought as refills= lesser quality, so they don't last as long, and you need to re-buy more often.

I highly doubt it. The "lesser quality" cartridges would in fact cost extra money to produce because it would require different adjustments to the production facilities. And besides, it is a risk that the consumer will notice by using the regular version that it is of a lesser quality and switch to another manufacturer.

Has anyone ever checked both packaged and production cartridges under a scope for analysis?

 

[michiganlover]

I highly doubt it. The "lesser quality" cartridges would in fact cost extra money to produce because it would require different adjustments to the production facilities. And besides, it is a risk that the consumer will notice by using the regular version that it is of a lesser quality and switch to another manufacturer.

Has anyone ever checked both packaged and production cartridges under a scope for analysis?

I am not saying I buy into the theory at all, but Gillette has more than one blade plant, so it would be a simple one time adjustment to have one factory manufacture the lesser quality cartridges, and another plant manufacture the higher quality cartridges for inclusion with the razor.

If we are talking about partially discontinued product lines (like the Sensor) that no longer have handles readily available, it would no longer be necessary to produce the higher quality cartridges; freeing up that production line for manufacture of the newest line.

A likely scenario? Probably not, but it certainly cold be plausible.

 

[mblakele]

If it happens, I doubt that it's malign. P&G probably thinks in terms of cutting manufacturing costs while keeping the final product within specification. Use slightly cheaper steel, and save a penny or two per unit. Defer maintenance on the machinery, so that it drifts toward the specification limits. Reformulate the blade coating. Outsource manufacturing. Keep cutting costs until the output is just barely acceptable. Maybe the initial manufacturing run was well above spec, and the difference between that and the final spec is noticeable to some of us.

This kind of cost-cutting isn't always bad, as long as quality doesn't slip. In electronics it tends to lead to smaller, slimmer, less power-hungry, and cheaper units. But it can also lead to razors that don't cut, and appliances that die along with their warranties.

 

[dfollett_98]

Some time ago Costco sent me a free Hydro 3 with two cartridges apparently to test drive (probably based on my previous cartridge purchases). Not too bad a shave if you don't know any better. When they needed replacing I went to Costco to buy new cartridges and saw they were over $40.00!

Shortly thereafter I joined Badger and Blade and learned a lot about both shaving AND ADs and have not regretted my transition for a second. Now I find myself looking at the shaving products in the stores I visit and chuckling whenever I see the obnoxious prices of the carts. and silently thanking the Badger God for sending me to B&B.

Merry Christmas and a safe, happy and healthy New Year to all.

Don

 

[Jobol]

Some time ago Costco sent me a free Hydro 3 with two cartridges apparently to test drive (probably based on my previous cartridge purchases). Not too bad a shave if you don't know any better. When they needed replacing I went to Costco to buy new cartridges and saw they were over $40.00!

Weird the price should be around 8$ for 4. Maybe the 40$ was for 16 of them?