Blade recommendation please

[bsmith]

Obviously this is all new to me. I was lucky enough for my father to find a really nice in original box, Gillette Tech at a flea market after I spoke to him regarding my thoughts on starting to use a DE razor in attempts to rid myself of the incessant irritation/burn I experience every time I shave.

So you know the razor I have and also know that I have pretty sensitive skin. The last piece I suppose is that I have a tough beard that is quite thick as well.

Thank you for your time!

 

[mastershake]

lots of different blades i also have very sensitive skin and a VERY tough beard to shave. my personal fav's or the super iridiums. the gillette silver blue and 7 oclocks are all pretty nice each "color" has its own character you would have to try them. then i also like the voskhods for a bit more mild blade that still is very smooth to use. but there are a TON of blades to try either you jump right in like i did and start ordering lots of blades or get a nice sampler pack. if you want to just test the waters the astra sp is a great all around blade 10$ for 100 from amazon. the personna lab blues are also a really nice cheaper blade 13$ per 100 on ebay.

you may want to hop on a site and make your own sampler. order 1 pack of a number of different ones and see what you like. but my top personal fav is the polsilver super iridium if i answer the question as to which is my top blade. i will also add that just because you are using a de do not think there will be zero irritation this is NOT true it all depends on the razor, the blade, how you use it, your skin etc.. i tried to use a weishi for example and after it caused burn so bad i looked like i had stuck my face in a oven i will never touch it again, i also have a merkur hd and a edwin jagger 89 that work perfect for me so....hope not to much info for you

 

[Mendel]

You will often read YMMV (your mileage may vary). And that's why it's often recommended to purchase a blade sampler. If you will, send me a PM with your name and address I'll send you a few of my favorites:

By the way, blades that seem to get a lot of love here on B&B are (in no particular order)

Astra SP
Personna Labs/Meds
Polsilver Super Iridiums
Feather
Gillette Blacks/Yellows

Your Gillette Tech is a mild razor and will work extremely well with the blades above especially the sharper ones- Gillette Blacks, Yellows, Feather, Polsilver Super Iridiums. I don't consider Astra SP to be a very sharp blade but it is a very good blade.

Conversely, blades that often get bad reviews here are:

Merkur
Derby
Dorco

Once again, your mileage may vary.

Hopefully, this helps.

 

[zygalski]

I'm quite new to this & have fairly sensitive skin with moderate beard growth.
All I can say is that my Tech + Feather blade gives a pretty much effortless 3 pass BBS shave. Most Tech devotees will suggest pairing this mild shaver with a Feather.
I would say that you need to prep well if you have a thick beard. The best prep is a nice long, hot shower.
Jermyn St by Taylor of Old Bond Street is a fantastic cream that lathers easily, provides great protection, is designed for sensitive skin & smells sublime.
You could do worse than those suggestions as a starter.

 

[ahoiberg]

+1 to the Gillette 7 o'clock yellow suggestion.

 

[Mason_07]

I'm a couple of months into wet shaving. I primarily use an EJ DE89 (although i've purchased a number of vintage Gillettes which I want to learn to use). I started with a blade sampler. I have sensative skin yet course stubble. I found that all brands were inadequate for cutting my hair without tugging until I got to the following:

1) Feather
2) Gillette 7 O'Clock (black as # 1 | yellow as # 2)
3) Astra SP

# 1 & # 2 are the most consistent for me. The Feathers provide the best performance but I need to be a bit more careful since they're so sharp. The other thing that's helped make a difference for me is using a pre-shave oil. I find that it adds a bit more protection and allows me to do things with the Feather that I couldn't do otherwise.

 

[toucanpint]

Astra SP, sharp and comfortable
Shark SS, smooth and comfortable

 

[BubblesTGB]

My current favorites are the Astra SP and the GSB but I'm still working through a few sampler packs.

 

[bsmith]

First sorry for the late response, I must have forgotten to enable reply notifications. Second, dang! What a bunch of very useful and (I'm very happy to say) consistent info/suggestions.

I was waiting till I got a shave at TAOS this past Thursday before blading up and using my Tech for the first time. Which will be Monday. I was hoping that the straight razor shave would have kept me somewhat decent till the beginning of the work week but that was not in the cards I guess. The ONLY other SR shave I had was from my cousins barber in Japan and that clinic on "how the (you know what word!) you shave a man proper" was the first and only time I had ever experienced a BBS face for two full days! Again, that was not the case from the shave I got in the Galleria, I was slightly smoother than my Mach3 left me in the morning and I even had a bit of burn/irritation that evening on my neck It was a pretty uncomfortable exercise. Even though he put a hot towel on my face for a minute, twice and also used hot lather. His straight razor tugged at my facial hair and I knew that wasn't going to be good. Needless to say I was let down knowing full well I wasn't going to get the Japanese treatment but still I thought my face would be smooth. Just for a minute at least!

At this point in time I will be using TAOS starter pack I got Thursday which included pre-shave oil, a brush, creme and post shave lotion. I got unscented since the lady telling me about the stuff said id have less of a chance getting burn with it than if I got the scented stuff. That kinda bummed me out honestly. Since I dont use cologne I thought maybe I would be able to find some rad smelling shave products to give me an even better ambiance than the current. Ill find something and fragrances dont irritate my skin. and for a blade ill just use the Gillette blue ones that came with the razor when it was new.

<a href="http://s147.photobucket.com/user/bsmith782/media/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_4017_zps98b3c5eb.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i147.photobucket.com/albums/r288/bsmith782/Mobile%20Uploads/IMG_4017_zps98b3c5eb.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo IMG_4017_zps98b3c5eb.jpg"/></a>

I'm certain ill tear my face up a bit at first with my Tech but I have become fairly proficient at shaving due to my sissified skin type. Hopefully it becomes what I am truly hoping it can, a closer shave/smoother face and less/no burn.

And Mr.Mendel YGPM!

 

[bsmith]

You will often read YMMV (your mileage may vary). And that's why it's often recommended to purchase a blade sampler. If you will, send me a PM with your name and address I'll send you a few of my favorites:

By the way, blades that seem to get a lot of love here on B&B are (in no particular order)

Astra SP
Personna Labs/Meds
Polsilver Super Iridiums
Feather
Gillette Blacks/Yellows

Your Gillette Tech is a mild razor and will work extremely well with the blades above especially the sharper ones- Gillette Blacks, Yellows, Feather, Polsilver Super Iridiums. I don't consider Astra SP to be a very sharp blade but it is a very good blade.

Conversely, blades that often get bad reviews here are:

Merkur
Derby
Dorco

Once again, your mileage may vary.

Hopefully, this helps.

I wish there was a rep button here because I would blow you up with some sir! I arrived at work today and was greeted by a package of blades on my desk from the above kind man. 13 fine blades that all seem to be what the Dr ordered for my stubborn facial growth and the very sensitive skin it grows from.

Is there a certain order in which you feel I should use these as a beginner?

I will hopefully be able to attribute my first fine shave with my Tech to you, and for that I am extremely beholden to you.

 

[mastershake]

if you have sensitive skin i would start with the astra then polsilver, then labs, then feathers.

 

[bsmith]

I started with the polsilvers and I couldn't have been happier. This was this past Friday and my facial hair had been growing since Monday. I actually only nicked myself once and was extremely happy with that. Went over my face twice WTG and had what I would call the best shave I have had since I can remember. There was a little bit of what I refer to as "after shave sensitivity" or the rawness of my face after im done with the. A few hours later there was no sensitivity but I wasn't sure what the next day or two would bring in the way of razor pimples. All in all I only had 2-3 little pimples after this, what I consider as my first DE safety shave.

I was brazen enough to shave again this past Monday. My pre-shave wasn't quite as thorough as I did above and this was with the same polsilver I used during the prior shave. Not quite as good a shave and I nicked myself quite a bit more but I blame myself for that as I was rushing quite a bit more.

All in all I am blown away with not only the quality of shave but also the lack of irritation/burn that follows. I'm pretty certain that shaving ATG will never be in my future but maybe XTG will give me even better results and hopefully no burn as long as im crazy careful.

Im planning on going at it again Friday morning. Should I use the polsilver for a third time or should I go to another blade, if so which one?

 

[bsmith]

So I got a bit anxious and took my shave this morning. This time I used the Gillette 7'oclock yellow. It was a very good shave IMO. It didnt feel as sharp as the polsilver so I went over my face fully twice then just over my chin area where my beard is its thickest. Although not as productive as the silver I feel like there was less irritation afterward and I wouldn't be surprised one bit if I had no burn/pimples tomorrow at all!

Another great razor for my needs.

 

[SteveWY]

I think you will find (it took me several months to discover) that the shave is 80-90% you, 10-20% hardware. Any of the blades recommended thus far are just fine. A general rule is to pick a blade brand and stick with it. Don't switch often looking for the best or better blades. I may be in the minority here but I think trying a blade sampler too early in my journey was a mistake. I now look back on some notes I took when sampling 5 brands and I have to laugh. I can now go back and use blades that "were not that good" for me and do just fine. IMHO, pick anyone of the top recommended blades (my picks are Astra SP & Personna Super) that are consistently judged as sharp and comfortable and stay with that brand for at least a month of two. Work on your own routine (prep & shave technique) and quality shaves will follow. Later, you can fill your house with blades to try.

 

[mmack66]

Gillette 7 O'Clock Black Super Platinum. Sharp and smooth for me.

 

[Wingnut]

I think you will find (it took me several months to discover) that the shave is 80-90% you, 10-20% hardware...

Very true!