Personally, a DE shave is superior to any cartridge shave I have had in the past. The mere cost of cartridges for myself is cost prohibitive.
Traditional wet shaving is such a joy each morning.
Traditional wet shaving is such a joy each morning.
Anyone feel that they get a better shave with a cart?
- Thread starter cobainngc
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you can still buy Trac carts (Gillette and non-Gillettes) in many drugstores, and even some supermarkets.
Handles is a different story, but carts are widely available and (non-Gillette) cheap.
Distribution must be much better where you live. In my area only Gillette Mach 3, Fusion and Schick Hydro 5 along with store brands are available in stores. Older Schicks and Gillettes are gone.
On-line, of course, is another story.
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Many store brands are Dorco (bad, IMO), American ASR (almost as bad, IMO), or Israeli Personna (good, IMO) carts.
So the trick is simply finding out which of "your' store blades comes from the Israel factory.
Btw, Gillette still sells Trac and Atra carts for the East European and Asian markets. They are easy to find in Western European stores as well, but typically cost more than the store brands.
So the trick is simply finding out which of "your' store blades comes from the Israel factory.
Btw, Gillette still sells Trac and Atra carts for the East European and Asian markets. They are easy to find in Western European stores as well, but typically cost more than the store brands.
A resounding...NO! Althogh back when, Walgreens had the Zone razor which was the best for my mileage at the time. They stopped making it (probably because it actually worked better than most) 
. So very glad back to a DE 
. So very glad back to a DE 
I use both. DE and Sensor Excell 3. First and Second pass with the DE and then finish up the hard to reach spots with the Sensor 3, That works best for my sensitive skin.
This thread makes me want to try the Hydro, although I have doubts because I did not really like the Quattro (unlike my Fusion experience).
Try the Hydro because it is better than the Quattro. The Hydro is easier to maintain because of the wider gap between the blades. Lasts longer, feels better on my face, and also shaves closer
sounds good -- i will start looking for a promo or coupon deal
I've tried many different cartridge razors. For me, none shave as close and as comfortably as my DE. I also had a lot of post-shave irritation with cartridge razors, but not with my effective DE.
Absolutely not! After Shaving with carts and electrics for over 35 years, I switched to a prewar Tech and a Merkur 33C in May. There are parts of my face that haven't been this smooth since I was 12 years old. I haven't touched a cartridge razor in months and I'm getting the best shaves of my life.
I have scars all over my neck from 30 years of cartridge shaving. My face and neck are healing well since switching to de.
The cartridges mauled me and still didn't get as close as a good de.
The cartridges mauled me and still didn't get as close as a good de.
On average, my cartridge shaves come out better than my DE/SE shaves (EDIT: when using brush and soap or cream with the carts, that is; if I use canned stuff, the cartridge shaves are definitely worse than DE/SE). However, my best DE/SE shaves blow what I can do with a cartridge right out of the water. Five years in and I still go through maddening periods of inconsistency...
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It depends...
For me personally I just love the ritual and time taken with nice MWF lather and say a Merkur Progress or Muhle R41. However lately I have been cycling into work and can only carry a Mach3 Turbo and Gillette sensitive foam. If I'm being honest I can get almost as close a shave with the M3, but where I would be looking and feeling smooth after a Progress shave for 6 to 8 hours afterwards, I would feel and see stubble as soon as 4 hours after using the M3 (I have black hair and a beard of toughened steel). I have however noticed with the Gillette Sensor that the smooth result will last marginally longer, which I why I consider it a far superior razor. Must be something to do with the difference in pivoting motion...
For me personally I just love the ritual and time taken with nice MWF lather and say a Merkur Progress or Muhle R41. However lately I have been cycling into work and can only carry a Mach3 Turbo and Gillette sensitive foam. If I'm being honest I can get almost as close a shave with the M3, but where I would be looking and feeling smooth after a Progress shave for 6 to 8 hours afterwards, I would feel and see stubble as soon as 4 hours after using the M3 (I have black hair and a beard of toughened steel). I have however noticed with the Gillette Sensor that the smooth result will last marginally longer, which I why I consider it a far superior razor. Must be something to do with the difference in pivoting motion...
I had always hated shaving with a cartridge. I always hadburning skin on my neck with red bumps everywhere, dry skin on my face andlarge ingrown hairs on my neck. I hated taking pictures because of thecondition of my neck. It wasn't acne it was all razor related. So one day I amsitting on the couch watch TV and that commercial for the Pawn Star One Razorcomes on. He said it would give me a better shave than a cartridge. So I lookedinto a DE bought a Merkur 34 HD. Now I look forward to shaving, my skin isclear and younger looking, no more irritation. So no cartridges don't work forme.
My mom got me a veterans day special USMC Gillette fusion razor a couple years ago. It is certainly much better than the Gillette sensor razor (shaves like a dull rusty butter knife) I was issued in boot camp and used until I switched back to DE razors about 10 years ago. I get about the same quality shave with a fusion as I do with a DE. Where the real difference lies is in the price. At $36 for 8 blades which will last about a week each which will cost me about $350 a year. Or I can go with DE which will cost me $2 for 5 blades which will last about a week each for a whopping total of about $20 a year. I can shave faster with a fusion (about 3 minutes) vs with a DE (about 5 minutes). I'll take the extra couple minutes and save $330 a year.
Been using the same Sensor for over 30 yrs. It performs better than my DE's, unless I have a full 25 or more minutes to do a proper shave.
I can use the Sensor with my eyes closed, the DE takes more concentration and skill.
I can use the Sensor with my eyes closed, the DE takes more concentration and skill.
You don't necessarily have to take 25 minutes for a proper DE shave. And the need for concentration and skill is part of the fun, like driving a stick shift.
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