2021ers?

[T Bone]

Wondering if there's any interest in a club for us newbies and sort-of-newbies who started wet shaving with a DE, SE, or SR within the last year or so. A place to post technique triumphs or frustrations, or an awesome new-to-you product that you want to rave about even though long-time B&Bers have been using it for years. I feel like I still have a heckuva lot to learn, but am maybe not quite a total n00b anymore either.

IDK, just thinking out loud here. Maybe if it was a good idea, someone would have already done this in the last 16 years or so...

 

[Balin]

Sort of like the Freshman class of 21?

 

[T Bone]

Sort of like the Freshman class of 21?

Yeah, that's sort of what I was thinking.

Either that, or just anyone in their first year of DE/SE/SR shaving, with sort of a rolling membership (which would be mostly 2021ers right now). Whichever folks would prefer. The idea isn't quite fully formed, like most ideas in my head.

 

[Dave himself]

Yeah, that's sort of what I was thinking.

Either that, or just anyone in their first year of DE/SE/SR shaving, with sort of a rolling membership (which would be mostly 2021ers right now). Whichever folks would prefer. The idea isn't quite fully formed, like most ideas in my head.

If your ideas in your head are anything like mine its like trying to heard cats

 

[1Pet5_8]

I'm 52 and I'm a 21'er
Jumping into wetshaving and actually joining B&B after a long "read-only" phase was sort of a B-Day gift to myself last year.
Then I contracted a scorching case of vintage RAD...have purchased 30 DEs since then (only modern one is a Merkur 42c, cuz I loved the vintage look).
Can't say enough about the folks here or how much I learn every day at B&B.

 

[T Bone]

Welcome, @1Pet5_8! As a 21er, I feel like I’ve been around the block enough that I’m not a newbie anymore, but am far from being experienced either.

I like that there are different things to get into from B&B and wet shaving. I’m 50 and more into modern razors and finding my best daily driver, but there are lots of folks here into vintage and collecting. 30 razors, wow! Are they a lot of different types/eras? Did you have to do a lot of cleaning up and restoring?

 

[1Pet5_8]

Thank ya, thank ya! Definitely enjoying both the shaves and the history. My Dad shaved every day with Gillette Good News disposables and Foamy, so that's what I picked up a as a teenager. I worried that DEs would be too difficult, but I'm slowly conquering those difficult areas and intermittent weeper-fests, LOL. And it's much more fun now, all thanks to B&B.
Collection spans 1910-1971. Average cost only $10-13ea. Cleanup has been surprisingly easy and very enjoyable.

 

[Curly Straight]

Wondering if there's any interest in a club for us newbies and sort-of-newbies who started wet shaving with a DE, SE, or SR within the last year or so. A place to post technique triumphs or frustrations, or an awesome new-to-you product that you want to rave about even though long-time B&Bers have been using it for years. I feel like I still have a heckuva lot to learn, but am maybe not quite a total n00b anymore either.

IDK, just thinking out loud here. Maybe if it was a good idea, someone would have already done this in the last 16 years or so...

I’m in! I inherited a few vintage Gillettes. I’d never wet shaved, but finally decided to try some “old school tools”. Fell in love the with the concept and equipment fast and began reading here late last year. Technique: “Still Under Construction”. Joined this January as I found many great threads here and a wealth of knowledge. As noted in the OP, I’m often hesitant to open up a question or thread to the alumni, fearing it’s been covered thoroughly somewhere else as there seem to be relatively few new topics other than new kit, at least in my limited research of the site. Still much to be learned from past posts. But in the interest of sharing new experiences with the freshman class, I’m in!

Thanks for starting the thread T Bone!

Curly

 

[Curly Straight]

I’ll open with a few questions to the freshman class:

“Have you experimented with different blades in the same razor which yield significantly different results?”

“Though many advise against ‘shaving against the grain’, have any of you tried it and gotten a closer shave?”

“Do you use a shave bowl, a scuttle, or face-lather?”

“Soap or cream?”

Many Thanks for your input!

Curly

 

[T Bone]

Welcome, @Curly Straight! I think we have a quorum now, I'd remove the "?" from the thread title but I don't think I can, lol.

I'll reintroduce myself since my back story is a probably a few pages back in the newbie forum by now. I'm 50 and had been using Gillette Sensor Excel cartridges as long as I'd been shaving (other than a few years with electrics) but those carts have become hard to find at grocery/drug stores. Safety razors weren't even on my radar, but around May 2021 I googled "Harry's vs Dollar Shave" and suddenly all my online ads everywhere were for OneBlade, Henson, Leaf, Supply, and maybe 1-2 others. Eventually I bought a Henson Al-13 mild, and here I am.

I’m looking for 3 things from a shave: (1) close, (2) quick, (3) minimal cuts. After 7 months, I can do any 2 of the 3 pretty reliably, but still need to refine the technique to achieve all 3. I haven’t experimented much yet with equipment other than blades, but I’ll branch out some eventually.

 

[T Bone]

Have you experimented with different blades in the same razor which yield significantly different results?

Oh yes! I’ve used probably a dozen or so different blades. My best results so far have been with Shark SS and Silver Star, I’ve been able to get close shaves with those with very few cuts. They’re not the sharpest of blades though, I think sharper blades like Feather or Astra SP have the potential to be more efficient. I cut myself a lot more with them right now, but I could see them being better as my technique improves.

Though many advise against ‘shaving against the grain’, have any of you tried it and gotten a closer shave?

Also yes. I think a completely BBS shave is almost a myth, but getting as close as I can is a big draw for me. With my Henson ATG, I can come close on some parts of my face, but there’s no way I can even come close just going WTG or XTG.

Do you use a shave bowl, a scuttle, or face-lather?

Face lather exclusively.

Soap or cream?

Since buying a brush in January, I’ve used Speick cream, La Toja stick, Mama Bear stick, and a sample of Captain’s Choice soap that was PIFed to me. All give me a good lather, but I think I prefer the Mama Bear and CC scents.

 

[Curly Straight]

Welcome, @Curly Straight! I think we have a quorum now, I'd remove the "?" from the thread title but I don't think I can, lol.

I'll reintroduce myself since my back story is a probably a few pages back in the newbie forum by now. I'm 50 and had been using Gillette Sensor Excel cartridges as long as I'd been shaving (other than a few years with electrics) but those carts have become hard to find at grocery/drug stores. Safety razors weren't even on my radar, but around May 2021 I googled "Harry's vs Dollar Shave" and suddenly all my online ads everywhere were for OneBlade, Henson, Leaf, Supply, and maybe 1-2 others. Eventually I bought a Henson Al-13 mild, and here I am.

I’m looking for 3 things from a shave: (1) close, (2) quick, (3) minimal cuts. After 7 months, I can do any 2 of the 3 pretty reliably, but still need to refine the technique to achieve all 3. I haven’t experimented much yet with equipment other than blades, but I’ll branch out some eventually.

Thanks T Bone! As I’m confident mine has disappeared also, here’s my backstory:

I’m 55, and inherited a few vintage Gillettes from my father which led me to this site. I’d been using both disposables and succumbed to the Braun marketing campaign prior. Neither produced the exceptional shave I’m now getting from tools older than I am.

I don’t own a Henson, but have read many good things about them. The only modern DE razors I own are a Timeless SS, Blackland Blackbird, PAA DOC, and a Merkur Progress, which is my travel razor. Figure if the airline loses it, it’s no big deal.

My journey here has centered around improving my shaves, gaining valuable experience from those more knowledgeable than I, and learning more about the tools. I’ve several vintage Gillettes I can’t positively identify. I’ll throw in a photo of one just for fun because I really enjoy seeing photos with the posts!

I’ve come to believe I’m unable to get close and quick, without weepers. So I shifted gears and made my shave time, “me time” and go fairly slowly, enjoying the quiet, contemplative experience each day devoid of interruption from the outside world for 20-30 minutes (including shower), and get my most important two-out-of-three, close and no bleeding! And at my age “quick” is relative.

To me, it’s a journey more than an immediate result. I struggle on occasion with lathers. I change settings or blades and get vastly different results. As my technique is still under construction, I always blame my ignorance first. But I posted those earlier questions just to open the field for discussion amongst us freshman. Thank you very much for your response! I hope we all engage in an enjoyable and productive discussion as newbies. And please include pictures when appropriate!

Most Sincerely,

Curly

 

[Phoenixkh]

I'm in the total newbie category. I just started wet shaving in the middle of Feb. 2022. My first shave was with the RazoRock Lupo DE Aluminum our youngest son sent me. I didn't care for the lightness of the razor. The shave wasn't bad but it got me looking around on YouTube. I found the videos from Brian Mulreany, the owner of the Executive Shaving Company. I had decided to buy their Outlaw Mild but I started emailing him and then chatted with him on their website. He recommended I purchase the Claymore Evolution, their Artist Club singe edge razor. I did so and also added quite a few other things for a complete starter kit, if you will.

I couldn't be happier, but I still have a lot to learn. I didn't find B&B until March 1st but I have found the threads here to be invaluable. I'm enjoying the journey quite a bit.

 

[T Bone]

I shifted gears and made my shave time, “me time” and go fairly slowly, enjoying the quiet, contemplative experience each day devoid of interruption from the outside world for 20-30 minutes (including shower), and get my most important two-out-of-three, close and no bleeding! And at my age “quick” is relative.

That's not bad, 20-30 minutes is pretty typical for me, not including the shower!

And please include pictures when appropriate!

Done! My current gear:

(Not pictured: 6 unopened shave sticks, 3 more aftershave samples, about 30 or so loose blades, and alum, which I don't want to put on the marble.)

 

[T Bone]

Then there's this, which I recently used for the first time in 7 months, for 10 days while traveling:

Shaves in 5 minutes with no blood, unless I carelessly go over a bump or shave ATG, but only good for a CCS. Amazed me that I used to find this an acceptable shave. I commented to my wife how it's much faster but my new razor shaves so much closer, and she suggested getting a second DE setup for travel! Now I'm starting to think about what I might get next!

 

[1Pet5_8]

Really enjoyed reading about y'all! I've seen many more folks at B&B posting who are 2021'ers, hopefully they see this thread too.

@T Bone - the mods have helped me with all my thread questions (and are good BST sellers as well) - if you really wanted to change the title, I'm sure they'd give ya a hand.

@Curly Straight - check this out:

https://mr-razor.com/Rasierer/One-Piece%20solid%20guard%20bar/1941%20Ranger%20Tech.jpg

 

[T Bone]

the mods have helped me with all my thread questions (and are good BST sellers as well) - if you really wanted to change the title, I'm sure they'd give ya a hand.

Thanks, yeah, I'm sure they would, I'll find a mod to ping if it starts to bother me.

Really enjoyed reading about y'all! I've seen many more folks at B&B posting who are 2021'ers, hopefully they see this thread too.

We'll need to recruit @JasonJT when he gets back. You're right, I think there's a few others recently too.

 

[Curly Straight]

Really enjoyed reading about y'all! I've seen many more folks at B&B posting who are 2021'ers, hopefully they see this thread too.

@T Bone - the mods have helped me with all my thread questions (and are good BST sellers as well) - if you really wanted to change the title, I'm sure they'd give ya a hand.

@Curly Straight - check this out:

https://mr-razor.com/Rasierer/One-Piece%20solid%20guard%20bar/1941%20Ranger%20Tech.jpg

Thank you, 1Pet5_8! I will!!!

 

[Curly Straight]

Then there's this, which I recently used for the first time in 7 months, for 10 days while traveling:
View attachment 1427314
Shaves in 5 minutes with no blood, unless I carelessly go over a bump or shave ATG, but only good for a CCS. Amazed me that I used to find this an acceptable shave. I commented to my wife how it's much faster but my new razor shaves so much closer, and she suggested getting a second DE setup for travel! Now I'm starting to think about what I might get next!

I also got a similar response from my wife after switching to DE shaving. Much better. Less scruffy. And smell good! Taylor’s of Old Bond Street Sandalwood shave cream did the trick for her. And I decided to purchase a travel kit to keep my vintage Gillettes at home. As noted earlier, it’s a Merkur Progress which I won’t mind losing in my luggage nearly as much as one of my vintage razors. It gives a great shave. Muhle travel brush and I use an empty TOBS shave cream tub to hold my spare blade tucks and serve as my travel bowl. That other silver thing is an old Colgate Shaving Stick tube. I loaded it with shave cream for travel.

BTW, hug that great wife of yours who suggested more kit!

Best wishes on great shaves going forward! Great meeting Y’all!

Curly

 

[Curly Straight]

I'm in the total newbie category. I just started wet shaving in the middle of Feb. 2022. My first shave was with the RazoRock Lupo DE Aluminum our youngest son sent me. I didn't care for the lightness of the razor. The shave wasn't bad but it got me looking around on YouTube. I found the videos from Brian Mulreany, the owner of the Executive Shaving Company. I had decided to buy their Outlaw Mild but I started emailing him and then chatted with him on their website. He recommended I purchase the Claymore Evolution, their Artist Club singe edge razor. I did so and also added quite a few other things for a complete starter kit, if you will.

I couldn't be happier, but I still have a lot to learn. I didn't find B&B until March 1st but I have found the threads here to be invaluable. I'm enjoying the journey quite a bit.

Very nice gift! You must have done right raising that boy!!! And kudos for reaching out to the owner of ESC to further explore this experience. I never thought of contacting the manufacturer for advice.

But I understand your issue with light razors. I have an aluminum handled PAA DOC, and though I nice, good-looking razor, it’s too light for me. I like heavy old Gillettes, and more recently an all SS Timeless. Just seems the extra weight makes shaving easier.

And Welcome Aboard! Ain’t this fun?

Curly