I have been traditional shaving with a safety razor for close to fifteen years now (cost and chronic razor burn led to my transition). It wasn't until three months ago that I even bothered to search the Interweb on the subject.
B&B, what a welcome surprise!
Anyway, up until I started perusing the forums, I had shaved in my own way with my own technique; no guidance, simply trial and error.
Here's the thing. I wouldn't even THINK about changing my blade for at least the first two weeks of daily shaving, sometimes leaving it for up to a month!
I have a very tough beard and sensitive skin. As I shave daily, I usually got away with two passes.
Fast forward to today.
I now toss the blade around shave #5 (right now I'm using Feathers). BUT, each shave is a dedicated 20min, three pass experience, with touch-ups. I am definitely getting better shaves with this new approach (thank you B&B members), but I would be remiss if I didn't offer as a point of discussion that number of passes is a crucial part of the equation! If you consider my former technique, I am about par for the course when it comes to number of passes per blade.
Perhaps, that is the question that should be posed: how many passes do you get per blade? A little more accurate, iMHO.
For example, if you are tossing a blade after 3-4 shaves and only performing a two pass shave, I would suggest that you might be shortchanging yourself. Of course, YMMV.
Food for thought.
B&B, what a welcome surprise!
Anyway, up until I started perusing the forums, I had shaved in my own way with my own technique; no guidance, simply trial and error.
Here's the thing. I wouldn't even THINK about changing my blade for at least the first two weeks of daily shaving, sometimes leaving it for up to a month!
I have a very tough beard and sensitive skin. As I shave daily, I usually got away with two passes.
Fast forward to today.
I now toss the blade around shave #5 (right now I'm using Feathers). BUT, each shave is a dedicated 20min, three pass experience, with touch-ups. I am definitely getting better shaves with this new approach (thank you B&B members), but I would be remiss if I didn't offer as a point of discussion that number of passes is a crucial part of the equation! If you consider my former technique, I am about par for the course when it comes to number of passes per blade.
Perhaps, that is the question that should be posed: how many passes do you get per blade? A little more accurate, iMHO.
For example, if you are tossing a blade after 3-4 shaves and only performing a two pass shave, I would suggest that you might be shortchanging yourself. Of course, YMMV.
Food for thought.