Have disposable razors become really good or...

[albsat]

Hello,

I have been using bic metal in my rotation these last 3 months . Lovely razor. I used today a Gillette disposable with two blades. Impressed as well.

Have disposable razors become really good or is it just me that I had forgotten them these years? Maybe shaving with a de/se/shavette/injector razor for some years can make you get good shaves from a disposable as well.

What do you think on this subject?

 

[@ngel]

Technique certainly plays a big role in enjoying certain tools when they are used “properly”

I’ve shaved with disposables a couple times when traveling and can’t have my normal gear. I’ve found that I get pretty good shaves or just as good as with a DE or straight, but I make sure to have a good lather and prepare my whiskers well for the shave and I do short strokes, cleaning the razor often so it doesn’t clog, things I never did before discovering DE’s.

One thing for sure for me is disposables or cartridge will not be an option of choosing because even if I get good shaves they still produce ingrowns. It is what it is

 

[AshleyC]

Two or three years ago I had some reason to use a multi-blade disposable cartridge razor. It was just one time, but using it with the techniques learned in DE shaving, I got a very good shave.

But there is no danger that I'll be going back to disposables. It isn't just the cost of the cartridges, it is also that I know that cost is far beyond what it costs for an automated process to produce that cartridge. Paying that mark-up would make me feel like a carnival rube.

And I still don't like how the stubble gathers underneath the blades, clogging them up. Most sinks, I find, do not have water coming out pressurized enough to dislodge that clog.

 

[AZBronco]

For me, the move to DE was never about the inability to get a good shave from disposables. In fact, for the first year or so, I felt like my DE shaves weren't as good as my Mach 3 or Fusion shaves. But DE shaving taught me a lot about being able to enjoy a morning ritual and I'm not going to give that up. Nowadays I have a Harry's razor I use when I travel--it does the job, but I can't say I enjoy it or that it fills that morning ritual enjoyment.

 

[KW Driver]

I can’t remember the last disposable I used but it’s been decades. I picked up a Trac II and 100 Personna carts well cheaper than Gillette would have sold them for to travel with. Still have plenty since commercial travel is way down for me. I get flawless shaves with it doing the rest of the routine. The routine and techniques we pick up all contribute to a good shave, no matter which razor we choose that day.

I have no desire to try out any disposables to see what the state of things are today.

 

[DesertIguana]

Hello,

I have been using bic metal in my rotation these last 3 months . Lovely razor. I used today a Gillette disposable with two blades. Impressed as well.

Have disposable razors become really good or is it just me that I had forgotten them these years? Maybe shaving with a de/se/shavette/injector razor for some years can make you get good shaves from a disposable as well.

What do you think on this subject?

Making a general statement about Disposables they work well for some, work OK for some, don't work for ElCrapo for some. One thing they do well for all is cost mucho dollars or cent per shave.

 

[Chickencutlets]

Hello,

I have been using bic metal in my rotation these last 3 months . Lovely razor. I used today a Gillette disposable with two blades. Impressed as well.

Have disposable razors become really good or is it just me that I had forgotten them these years? Maybe shaving with a de/se/shavette/injector razor for some years can make you get good shaves from a disposable as well.

What do you think on this subject?

If I ever said to heck with DE’s , the Bic Metal is the razor I would use. I’d say I use one 50% of the time if I’m being honest.

 

[Alum Ladd]

Maybe shaving with a de/se/shavette/injector razor for some years can make you get good shaves from a disposable as well.

Precisely.

Good technique is a transferrable skill, which applies to a variety of wet shaving platforms.

I would say that you have become 'really good'

Congratulations!

 

[AimlessWanderer]

The last time I had to endure a full shave with a cartridge or disposable razor, was during the great blade drought around the turn of the millennium. The English Wilkies had ceased to be, but it was several months before the German ones replaced them. I'd been using the double edge razor for about 10 years by that point.

Try as I might, I couldn't find any double edge blades anywhere, and had to resort to cartridges and disposables again for a while. Straight away, the cost of shaving shot up, and the quality and enjoyment of shaving plummeted. I remember breaking apart one of the plastic DE blade packs to fish out the disposed blades in the back, thinking I might be able to stave off having to use the plastic mounted crap for a few more shaves...

I did find a couple of GII cartridges and a handle in an old travel kit of mine a few years ago, and tried them for old times sake. I lathered up as usual, loaded a cartridge, and took one swipe. Awful. I ditched that cartridge, loaded the next, and took another swipe. I then threw the entire razor in the bin, picked up my regular DE, and finished the shave properly.

 

[Alex Jr]

Few months ago I traveled with a fusion. On the 5th use it filled my face with little tiny red spots. And there was no ATG pass. I tried the skinguard, same.

So I’d say yes, they work, but the short life of the blades makes it impossible to regularly use them.

 

[BigJ]

Precisely.

Good technique is a transferrable skill, which applies to a variety of wet shaving platforms.

I would say that you have become 'really good'

Congratulations!

+2! Good ’traditional’ wet shaving technique translates well!

On the other hand, poor technique (as I developed in my cart days) also translates into poor DE shaves.

The difference is you, my friend!!

 

[BudgetShaverGuy]

I’ve been using disposable razors for the last couple of years occasionally trying good DE’s only to end up going right back to the carts.

For me the best aspect of the carts are the pivoting heads. They just make shaving easier, faster and safer for me. I don’t like goo strips, so it doesn’t make for a lot of options.

Luckily the Gillette Guard exists, ticks all the boxes with the only negs being a slightly bulky head that’s hard to get around my nose and a blade that could be just a smidge more keen and sharper.

Carts for the win, some of them at least.

 

[dotKomo]

The BIC Metal is a good razor which I have used travelling when I had to fly and a DE would be inconvenient.

I have come so far in my shaving journey since switching from cartridge razors - soaps, creams, brushes, pre-shave, post-shave and technique. Using a cartridge razor is just swapping out one of the tools. All that said, I will not be going back to cartridge razors except on occasion.

 

[Bosh Hog]

I personally can´t stand disposable razors. Just to light and feel weird on the skin. My Rockwell 6S ruined it all for me. Works with any blade. Just can´t find anything better.

 

[nemo]

I wouldn't know, I haven't used any since trying a double bladed one years ago and it clogged very quickly.
I'm not about to try any more as I've got a nice arsenal of real razors that don't create plastic waste in landfills.

 

[albsat]

I would never replace my arsenal of de/se/shavette razors with cartridges. However I have become a fan of the BIC Metal cartridge. I can get easily 5 shaves out of it (one pass and cleaning up) and that is really impressive. Yet we are sick in this hobby and I have already orders a 100 usd shaving razor.

 

[thombrogan]

@albsat , I think it’s your technique. I’ve used Bic Metal and Gillette Good News and they’re gentle and I can’t get a quick shave with them.

Bic Twin Select II Sensitive Skin is a lot more efficient in my untrained hands. In minutes, I get a close shave and a surprise marrow biopsy.

 

[Toothpick]

They were never bad to begin with. I used the Gillette Guard, Sensor Excel, Gillette Fusion 23 blade, in the past and they were all just fine.

 

[CPTdeLos]

I travel quite a bit, so I use the old Gillette Trac 2 blade heads on a fixed handle. It creates less waste. I get a decent shave, but I only use them two or three times before they hit the trash. I prefer my DE or straight, but the shave with the Trac 2 is perfectly acceptable.

 

[PintoPlain]

As others have said, skills transfer to using carts/disposable.

I can get perfectly adequate shaves with disposables, carts, DE or as is my preference, a straight. I have not tried SE so cannot comment on those.

Using a cart does not give me the same enjoyment as a straight, but the results are the same.

Looking purely at results, any type of razor will get the job done using the skills you have gained using a more "old fashioned" method.