I don't want to but I do. I was lured into both by those who swore by them and I SO badly want it to work that way for me to. I can get a quick, no brain, zero irritation shave with both, but by no means is it smooth. It's like shaving with a Gillette Sensor excel. Quick, easy, painless, zero irritation (for me) but no matter how many passes, not even close to a BBS shave. There's where the problem starts, I love that stubble free face, so with both the gem and the injector I'll increase the angle of attack, start to use a little more pressure, and FINALLY those stubborn little hairs will start to disappear... along with half my face. Nicks and burn galore, like someone was slapping my face and neck and then decided to sick their accupuncturist on my face. Just awful. The worst of it is I keep trying because I can't believe it works so great for others and just not for me. I've tried the GEM G-Bar (with Treet blades and Pella teflon coated blades) and a NWC fixed and a Type I injector. Nothing is working. Either I've got stubble, or I've got blood. I can't find the middle ground. Anyone else?
I Hate GEM's and Injectors
- Thread starter SLider
- Start date
How long are you shaving with these? Just like with DE wetshaving I guess it'll take time to develop proper technique.
After DE shaving for some time, I tried the GEM with a couple of diff blades. I was not able to get one good shave from it no matter what angle or technique I used. I gave up while I still had some face left. With the injector I was able to get better shaves. But ultimately, the DE gives me the best injury free, close shave.
Yep, me too. I've tried them, just can't get results that would come close to my DE shaves with a Feather blade. Would they be acceptable? Probably. But not when BBS is the goal.
An injector is useful for a quick shave, but I can't get nearly as close with one as with a DE. Mine is generally relegated to the travel kit.
edit: woo-hoo! 3000 posts!
edit: woo-hoo! 3000 posts!
Scotto said:
Wow, like, what ele do you do with your time. Shave. Post. Sleep. Is that it?
Anyway, back on topic, I really can't see the advantage of Gems and Injectors except as curiosities. Injectors do travel well, so I will certainly concede that, but a good DE travel set would do the same thing.
Really, with so much really quality DE stuff easily available and relatively inexpensive, why dabble in this niche stuff.
Get a good DE razor, get the sampler blade pack, and start shaving with a DE and see if that works better. If it does - Hooray! If it doesn't, keep looking.
Just my $0.02 worth - Canadian funds of course. Good Luck.
Peace,
Pierre
Well, Pierre, my .02c (US) is worth ever so slightly more, and I say injectors are great. 
I dunno, actually it is a good point that DE work great, so there is no need to use an injector except novelty. But then, injectors can work great too, so why bother with a DE?
Sam, I have the same problem with the Gems. I just can't get a really good shave that is also comfortable. I especially cannot seem to get remotely close with the G-Bar. I have much more luck with a Micromatic, but I still have not been able to get a really really good shave. I do thing it may be failure to stick with it long enough. But I have not bothered, because I also find the huge head REALLY annoying.
As for the injector, though, I have gotten as close a shave as with a DE, and that is using the crappier Personna blades, rather than the Schick, or even the twinjector that Tye was good enough to send me a sample of. I suspect it may be the Injector you are using. I have seen a lot of reviews from people saying they can't get good shaves out of the NWC ones. Get your hands on an old Brass and Bakelite model, and then tell me whether you don't get a good shave.
That said, Pierre is right, you probably won't surpass your DE, so the only real reason to do it is for the fun.
I dunno, actually it is a good point that DE work great, so there is no need to use an injector except novelty. But then, injectors can work great too, so why bother with a DE?
Sam, I have the same problem with the Gems. I just can't get a really good shave that is also comfortable. I especially cannot seem to get remotely close with the G-Bar. I have much more luck with a Micromatic, but I still have not been able to get a really really good shave. I do thing it may be failure to stick with it long enough. But I have not bothered, because I also find the huge head REALLY annoying.
As for the injector, though, I have gotten as close a shave as with a DE, and that is using the crappier Personna blades, rather than the Schick, or even the twinjector that Tye was good enough to send me a sample of. I suspect it may be the Injector you are using. I have seen a lot of reviews from people saying they can't get good shaves out of the NWC ones. Get your hands on an old Brass and Bakelite model, and then tell me whether you don't get a good shave.
That said, Pierre is right, you probably won't surpass your DE, so the only real reason to do it is for the fun.
- Thread starter
- #8
I have a Merkur HD and slant, the only reason I went with the injector and gem is I was looking for an alternative those mornings I hit snooze one too many times and really need to hurry. I know some people can get a quick shave with a DE, but I move fairly deliberately, and because I'm addicted to that crazy close shave, my touchup session can last awhile. I was hoping I could improve on the time with the gem/injector without sacrificing that close shave, but it appears that won't be the case. I do have an older model injector because I suspected the NWC was sup-par, and that one gave me slightly better results, but not as close as I wanted. Now what do I do with the 200 teflon coated GEM blades from Ted Pella? 
They're great as utility blades for those household projects. My GEM blades were
This doesn't sound too good for me. I just had my first GEM micromatic shave this morning and I couldn't finish it. I had 4 nicks after the first pass and had to finish up with a DE. I do have a G-bar enroute, hopefully that won't nick me as hard as micromatic did. Any advice would be very welcome, I am lucky enough to only having 10 teflon coated blades instead of 200.
moses said:Well, Pierre, my .02c (US) is worth ever so slightly more, and I say injectors are great.
Damn exchange rate. Or is it because your opinion is simply superior? Actually, probably both.
moses said:
Well, I really didn't want to be "right," I was just throwing out my view. But you're right about the injector. I have one that I don't, and probably wont, use because I just don't like the choices for blades. I do, however, see that there is something to be valued there, I just don't want to use it. And, now that I have three solid DE razors in my rotation with easy to buy blades, and I'm getting the best damn shaves in my entire life, I don't feel the need to experiment with injectors, Gems, or anything esle, with the possible exception of straight razors.
Still, you make valid points, and injectors should not be dismissed. It's still a YMMV thing though, of course.
Now, about those household projects with those Gem blades, hmm....
Peace,
Pierre
Pierre,
It was definitely the exchange rate.... I'm not about to seriously suggest that my opinion is superior.... Hope no offense was taken.
Anyway, I am definitely going to keep my gem blades around for home projects. If those don't get window stickers off, nothing will.
As for the Injector/Gem v. DE. I said you probably won't beat a DE with an injector, but after some thought, I'm not sure that is true, factoring speed in. The real advantage I have noticed is the stiff blade. With a DE shaving against the grain is very difficult for me on parts of my face, because the skin is a little rough and sensitive, and the hair is very tough. The thicker blades of the injector plow through much better without irritation. So, honestly, I have been able to get a good shave more quickly with one that with a DE. I do think it has a place for what SLider suggested - the quick shave. A two pass shave with Futur and feather is about as good for me as a quick two pass with an injector. But I have to be a lot more careful, so the injector is faster.
It was definitely the exchange rate.... I'm not about to seriously suggest that my opinion is superior.... Hope no offense was taken.
Anyway, I am definitely going to keep my gem blades around for home projects. If those don't get window stickers off, nothing will.
As for the Injector/Gem v. DE. I said you probably won't beat a DE with an injector, but after some thought, I'm not sure that is true, factoring speed in. The real advantage I have noticed is the stiff blade. With a DE shaving against the grain is very difficult for me on parts of my face, because the skin is a little rough and sensitive, and the hair is very tough. The thicker blades of the injector plow through much better without irritation. So, honestly, I have been able to get a good shave more quickly with one that with a DE. I do think it has a place for what SLider suggested - the quick shave. A two pass shave with Futur and feather is about as good for me as a quick two pass with an injector. But I have to be a lot more careful, so the injector is faster.
moses said:
Offense? Me? Why on earth would that be offensive? Revealing, yes. Offensive - no. We're all firends here, I was only joking - as indicated by the smiley thingy. Really, just take it as a compliment.
moses said:
moses said:
Yup, I think that's the key right there - the injector acts more like the modern cartridge razors that way - faster, but maybe a bit more irritating. Again, I'll have to defer as I really am not a fan of either and, honestly, why would you put yourself in a position as to be in a hurry to shave?
Really, just slow down, get the shave you really want with the shaver that works the best, and live life properly. Go ahead, hit the snooze. Then shave in the evening before bed. When I do that, the shave is still so close the next day it doesn't matter, and I'm never in a rush. It's a beautiful thing!
Opinions, you gotta love them. But nothing beats personal experience, I'll use that everytime, even over the opinion of someone I trust, like moses for instance!
Peace,
Pierre
Point taken about shaving at night, and taking it slow. The only thing is that there are an awful lot of other things that add to my quality of life, that take time, and one BIG thing that directly detracts from quality of life, and takes most of my time. In other words, between spending more time shaving and getting in a little extra quality reading time before bed, or cooking a decent dinner (on rare occasions I'm home in time), etc., sometimes shaving does loose out.
That said, I do find that a careful shave at night leaves me decent the whole next day. I am getting a very light five o'clock shadow now. At least I would call it that, enough though it probably isn't visible yet (well not really, as I have some degree of permashadow). Right on time, except I shaved last night instead of this morning. Futur + feather = long lag time.
That said, I do find that a careful shave at night leaves me decent the whole next day. I am getting a very light five o'clock shadow now. At least I would call it that, enough though it probably isn't visible yet (well not really, as I have some degree of permashadow). Right on time, except I shaved last night instead of this morning. Futur + feather = long lag time.
....
With The Grain said:
Shhhh... do you hear that? It sounds like, I'm not sure, but kind of like the voice of reason.
Who let that into the room, and what does that voice think he can teach us?
But really, how succinct, how clearly stated. Nicely said James. Now I feel like my responses were simply knee-jerk reactions to things I really, quite clearly don't have experience with.
Thanks for the clarity, it does come in handy sometimes.
Peace,
Pierre
OldSaw
The wife's investment
GeeQue said:
This sounds like my experience with the GEM Micromatic. Even after carefully following the manufacturer's directions I was surprised at how it could nick me where no other razor has and still leave stubble immediately surrounding the nick. I also found it difficult to use around my chin.
It's not something I am interested in learning, since I find DE's to be rather intuitive. This doesn't mean it is a bad razor, but I can see why the DE has held such a high place for so many years.
- Thread starter
- #18
Still trying... I put a cutdown feather pro-guard in the type I injector (gold, with white ribbed handle), and got my best injector shave so far. My two main issues are still 1) I don't get as close as I do with a DE, and 2) I get irritation on my neck.
