10 Misconceptions

[Ron Scott]

1. It takes months or more to develop expertise at shaving.

2. Buying lots of razors and brushes…
… gets you better shaves.
…allows you to enjoy shaving more
…means you’re an expert

3. “Aggressive” razors…
…will yield more nicks and razor burn
…are dangerous in the hands of beginners
…shave better than an average razor

4. Everyone can get irritation-free BBS all the time if they use good equipment and the right technique

5. You get what you pay for: The price of equipment and software is correlated with quality.

6. It’s best to match razors with specific blades, e.g., a Gillette blue tip with a Feather, etc.

7. Most people get better shaves when they skip a day or 2

8. Alum and Talc cause cancer

9. It makes sense to match your aftershave with your shaving soap.

10. The Veg was used by soldiers riding horseback to cover up the smell of their body odor after going weeks without bathing. It’s therefore the perfect aftershave!

 

[Labowski]

11. Feather Blades are not for DE shaving newbies.

 

[Prof. Moriarty]

1) Depends what you consider expertise

2) Trying more products can help make shaving more enjoyable. It has by me, but I constantly cull my collection so I stay below five brushes

3) What is an average razor?

4) I get irritation free BBS shaves almost all the time

5) Up to a certain point yes it does correlate

6) I would not put a Feather in an extremely aggressive razor, so I wouldn't dismiss finding the right blade for the right razor

7) No comment

8) Never heard that one before

9) That never made sense to me

10) No comment

 

[Sir Lurkalot]

Arko smells like a urinal puck

Feather blades are the most sharp of all DE blades and made by Hattori Hanzo himself

Modern DE razors will endure the test of time just like a vintage Gillette

having just one DE razor is all you'll ever need

RAD will never happen to me

Vintage razors are full of germs

You need to boil vintage razors to get rid of germs

Derby blades are great

Personna 74's last forever. Pretty close to forever, but, not quite.

5 blades will shave you closer than 1

 

[jedimojeaux]

having just one DE razor is all you'll ever need

So true! I haven't even used mine yet and I'm already shopping around for another!

 

[rand77]

Great post, I agree with most of your points.

3) Aggressive razors can reduce the number of passes required, saving time and yielding better results while avoiding an ATG pass. For some people like myself this results in a close shave with less irritation. Aggressive razors like a Muhle R41 is relatively dangerous in the hands of a newbie.

5) I disagree about the correlation between price and quality, particularly with software. While its true that more expensive products are excellent performers, a lot of cheap software is as good as anything out there. Various RazoRock products, and shave sticks are competitive with anything out there.

7) Letting your face rest for a day is helpful when the skin gets irritated for some reason (poor prep, technique etc...).

 

[rand77]

- Tallow products are superior because the contain tallow.
- There is a substantial difference in the performance of software (soaps and creams). Most well rated products are similar in quality and are relatively substitutable for each other.

 

[Edinburgh]

Great thread, Gentleman!

 

[TallyShave]

- There is a substantial difference in the performance of software (soaps and creams). Most well rated products are similar in quality and are relatively substitutable for each other.

I agree with this, which at the end of the day is a great thing for us...especially as more and more new products come out that fall into this category.

 

[Howie]

#7 - I often do get a great shave if I skip a day.

 

[Pedro Navaja]

The more it weights, the better the razor it will shave....

So how can the Merkur Bakelite be explained?

I'l liking this thread.

 

[DevilDog0402]

#7 - I often do get a great shave if I skip a day.

Same here.

 

[mftoms59]

Please don't take my comments personal, after 37 years of shaving, I felt someone should present a different point of view.

I started with a DE, Brush and Tabac soap @ 17 y/o (1976), went to Injectors and during the first 3 years in the USAF, 78-81, it was disposables and canned cream. I returned to Brush & Soap and advanced to Cartridges, 3 years later I returned to DE's, I became a full-time Injector shaver March 2012. I've used countless soaps and ~10 different creams. I began with Boars, graduated to Badgers ~1985, Horses followed in 2010, and Synthetics 2012. Boars have been dropped in favor of three types of Badger; Best, Finest & Silver-Tips, a couple of Synthetics and Natural White Horse Hairs.

1. It takes months or more to develop expertise at shaving. Expertise would cover all aspects of shaving; Building Lather, which type of Brush is used (Badger, Boar, Horse or Synthetic) with each type, a different amount of water in the brush, load time and the time it takes to build a "Shave-ready" lather will differ... not to mention the particular soap or cream used in building the lather, and the hardness/softness of water. Unless you've spent considerable time with a wide variety of soaps/creams and the different types of Brushes available, it's doubtful you can use any brush and/or soap combo with no difficulty at all.

2. Buying lots of razors and brushes…
… gets you better shaves. Experimenting with different types of Razors; DE, SE and Injectors will allow better shaves when finding one that suits your particular needs and Experience.
…allows you to enjoy shaving more See above, using a Razor better suited to the individual can allow him/her to get more comfortable shaves (no nicks, cuts, irritation)
…means you’re an expert I'll agree, if someone owned several Straight Razors and never used them and joey Cupcakes has used the same one for several years... you make the call.

3. “Aggressive” razors…
…will yield more nicks and razor burn A better possibility of this happening to someone lacking in Experience and Technique... I'd consider a Straight pretty aggressive, and a few DE's with a very sharp edge; A Feather is Sharper/less forgiving than a Derby.
…are dangerous in the hands of beginners if you gave an R-41(?) or Slant to someone that's never used a DE, I would say 10-4 on that.
…shave better than an average razor Not Always... see above

4. Everyone can get irritation-free BBS all the time if they use good equipment and the right technique Absolutely true... a matter of time spent and patience.

5. You get what you pay for: The price of equipment and software is correlated with quality. Not always true... or false, inexpensive software or equipment sometimes perform way over their price, and some expensive ones under-perform.

6. It’s best to match razors with specific blades, e.g., a Gillette blue tip with a Feather, etc. IME is true, I have some 68-86 y/o Injectors (produced 1927-45), which are smoother in my L3, than any other Injector I use; B1, E3, I2, J1, J3, M2.

7. Most people get better shaves when they skip a day or 2 When you're shaving, you're scraping the top layers of skin while removing whiskers, no matter your experience or technique, you're at least inflaming/ damaging your skin to some extent. An extra day or two of rest does allow more time for any needed healing to occur.

8. Alum and Talc cause cancer I'll agree, misconception.

9. It makes sense to match your aftershave with your shaving soap. While some soap scents may linger, this is more of a personal preference for any shaver.

10. The Veg was used by soldiers riding horseback to cover up the smell of their body odor after going weeks without bathing. It’s therefore the perfect aftershave! Never heard it before, it made me chuckle

 

[dpmtherrien]

Good post. I agree with most, but not all.

 

[Wayne1963]

#4...I always get BBS with no irritation.

 

[Ducati Scotty]

Pick at or disagree with whatever little bits you like, there is far more truth than fiction in the original list.

Scott

 

[jrp316]

1. I can reliably pick the scents that my wife will like.
2. A Parker shavette + Feather blades is a highly recommended combo for newbies. (Do take care with that combo...it'll bite you as quick as a blink. Take care with any combo for that matter.)
3. Grating soaps with your wife's cheese grater is a good idea and keeps you from having to buy one for yourself.
4. Using an alcohol based aftershave after a weeper or cut is an invigorating experience.
5. The ADs will go away.

 

[mindofsummer]

Awesome post!!! Number 6 is spot on! I have generally not hesitated to criticize the received wisdom here at B&B, but I have never had the courage to dispel the commonly-held notion that some blades are magically transformed from crap to spectacular depending on which razor it is paired with.

 

[wysper]

In reality I am too new and inexperienced to play this game, but I will post one.

Just because it works for someone/everyone else doesn't necessarily mean it will work for you or vice versa. (The one proviso I will add to that, is don't let that attitude cause you to miss out on valuable and pain saving advice.)

 

[Haggises]

1. It takes months or more to develop expertise at shaving.
Yes it does. Just look at the posts here.

2. Buying lots of razors and brushes…
… gets you better shaves. Never heard that here
…allows you to enjoy shaving more It does for me
…means you’re an expert Never heard that here

3. “Aggressive” razors…
…will yield more nicks and razor burn In the hands of an inexperienced user, yes
…are dangerous in the hands of beginners Not if they are careful
…shave better than an average razor Finally one misconception I can agree on!


4. Everyone can get irritation-free BBS all the time if they use good equipment and the right technique. Oooh, a second!

5. You get what you pay for: The price of equipment and software is correlated with quality. A third!

6. It’s best to match razors with specific blades, e.g., a Gillette blue tip with a Feather, etc. I think it's way overblown here, but a Feather in a Blue Tip is better than a Derby in a Blue Tip. Unless you have some level of expertise I wouldn't recommend it in a Futur

7. Most people get better shaves when they skip a day or 2 I think that would depend on the person

8. Alum and Talc cause cancer. Eh?

9. It makes sense to match your aftershave with your shaving soap. Never seen that either

10. The Veg was used by soldiers riding horseback to cover up the smell of their body odor after going weeks without bathing. It’s therefore the perfect aftershave!You may be onto something.


I start to think you might be a Sith - you only deal in absolutes....