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Older Shavers (like me)

Old Hippie

Somewhere between 61 and dead
When my brother hit 30 he complained to Mum about being over the hill. One problem with having scientists for parents -- they keep up on the research. She told him the latest research showed that an average male human hits his physical, mental, psychological and sexual peak at 26. I ain't seen 26 for more than 26 years, but I am not all that rickety. There is an old joke about taking all night to do what you used to do all night.

But to answer the young man who posted the original question...

When you get old enough your hair starts to disappear. What's left is tough, and the skin where it's growing is thinner and more sensitive. That gives me less margin for error with an aggressive outfit, and means that I have fresh appreciation for all those razors that I thought were too mild years ago. That also means that a mid-range razor (however you define that) still does the best job: mild enough to get enough passes, aggressive enough to get through the tougher but less frequent hairs.

Aside from that, might be a good idea to try binning your blades one shave sooner. Sharp wins against tough hair.

O.H.
 

Tirvine

ancient grey sweatophile
I am 72 and have always had a fairly heavy beard. Mild razors work fine on it. In my opinion once you find the optimum angle for any razor, with any decent blade it can be efficient and effective. Thinning skin does need to be shaved with a tad more care.
 
Aging is a very individual thing, when it starts and what the effects are. At 76 I don't see much difference in shaving, except I need to stretch move because of looser skin.

For the sake of @Ckmaui , I'll add that when I was a young man I used to shave standing in the snow with a broken hoe and pig fat. My father shaved using his fingernails and mud.
 

Ron R

I survived a lathey foreman
In my mid-fifties and my beard has definitely gotten more stubborn and coarse the last few years. Will this continue till death? I'm trying to see if I should keep my more milder razors when thinning the herd but I've also read that skin generally thins as we age. Any advice?
I'm 62 years and I notice weather can dry out my face a little or If I get dehydrated will toughen my beard is what I notice.
The only other thing to try is some Pre shave and it helps soften those whiskers a little. I have been using this for over 2 years and I believe it helps.
Gillette claims you should defoliate your face prior to shaving of facial oils + dead skin and to hydrate your whiskers for easier slicing.
My routine I started over 2 years ago is get the warm water started into a small plastic tub in the sink and then I quickly splash some warm water on the face and then I take my Dedicated Yaqi Cashmere 24mm synthetic brush(very soft brush and dry's quickly) and I heat it with some hot water and then load the brush with some CeraVe hand bar cleanser.
Then I proceed to brush lather my whole face with this state of the art CeraVe soap and I find it better than the hot water towel method and more enjoyable.
A bar of CeraVe soap is a lot more $$ than the mass produced soap most folks use but it lasts about 10> months (10 second load is all that is needed, the lather this produces is out standing with a brush), It is gentler on the eyes if you do get some soap in them, it is one of the better soaps out there IMO.
CeraVe hand bar soap has ran through the women's gantlet test for cleaning the make up off their faces for decades and they are a vocal bunch to say the least if something is not right :laugh: .
Then I rinse with some warm water to remove the bulk of the suds off and then a cold rinse pat dry eye areas with a towel and then I apply a dollop Aloe clear Vera gel to cleaned moist beard area only.
Next I mix my lather in my lather bowl and by then the Aloe has soaked into the whiskers enough and start applying shave soap lather.
Great results I believe and my simple procedure takes about 1 1/2 minutes and does not gum up my shave gear with oils and films and most people wash their faces anyways so it might take a minute longer if that.
Pre shave gear...................................CeraVe soap..........................................CeraVe ingredients.

Z-Pre shave products (2).jpg



CeraVe 2 (2).jpg



CeraVe 1 (2).jpg


CeraVe claims all this interesting information through their testing.

CeraVe 3 (2).jpg


I even did a shave with this soap once and it has reasonably good protection, very impressive.
 
I'm 67. My beard is gray, wiry, grows is swirls (and various chaotic directions), grows fairly fast, grows fairly thick and is, overall, a bear to get to a consistent DFS+ to DFS++ (my target for daily shaving).

Thank God I'm Southern Italian - the skin on my face and neck is not sensitive, but has retained the oily nature of my youth. ;)

I use everything from Gillette Techs to Ikon TEK and everything in between. Even survived 6 days of daily shaves with the Roedter 1909 (lot more blade than even the Ikon TEK) with my face intact.

With proper technique, you should be able to get great shaves with mild, medium and high efficiency razors - as long as they are smooth. Efficient + Smooth = Effective. :cool:

YMMV

You sound exactly like me except I am 79 and now my skin has gotten thinner. My grandfather had tough skin, however, even at the age of 85. However, it may be the medical treatment I undergo that causes thinner skin.
 
Thanks for all the replies. I don't feel so old now:). I was contemplating selling off some of my milder razors because right now Im liking my more aggressive razors, but thought this might change as I get older. I'll keep what I have and hope I live long enough to use the milder ones again.
 

never-stop-learning

Demoted To Moderator
Staff member
You sound exactly like me except I am 79 and now my skin has gotten thinner. My grandfather had tough skin, however, even at the age of 85. However, it may be the medical treatment I undergo that causes thinner skin.

The skin on my shins has gotten really thin. I really have to be careful to not whack my shins on the coffee table. ;)

Luckily, my skin every place else is doing fine. :cool:
 

JCinPA

The Lather Maestro
I would keep your milder razors. When I started here I used a ton of different razors. Now I’m rediscovering milder classics like the fat handle techs and discovering with sharp blades, no pressure, and great lather I’m getting the best shaves of my life. And looser skin means stretching more. I’m 65.
 

FarmerTan

"Self appointed king of Arkoland"
Thanks for all the replies. I don't feel so old now:). I was contemplating selling off some of my milder razors because right now Im liking my more aggressive razors, but thought this might change as I get older. I'll keep what I have and hope I live long enough to use the milder ones again.
You definitely aren't "old", because that would make me "older" than you, and I'm much too immature to be considered anything but "young."

That is what some people, academia types mostly, call "logic."

In case you are still listening, hydration is key: wet whiskers slice off the face better than dry ones.

Try this: use your favorite mild razor and blade and soap. Soak half your face in your sink. Smear soap all over both sides of your face. Then shave. Report back with your results.

This is what the main stream media calls "science."

You need to join in more, @Fsfty42 !
Us really old guys like to razz folks!
 
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