It's not unusual for SE blades to be rusty right out of the package. The last five I opened had rust and these were brand new blades.
Richard
In praise of the lowly Gem...
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Richard
- Thread starter
- #42
Yikes Richard! I've never had that happen with any of my blades. Where are you getting yours?
Well, I've seen these GEMS all over the Bay and had pretty much discounted them. One reason is the added expense of buying another type of blade for a razor. I was in an antique store in September and came across a Micomatic from the 30s. It was about 17.00 but in excellent shape and only required a wee bit of cleaning. I bought it on a wim. took it home and made it look brand new.
It sat around until the GEM brand blades came for it yesterday and I was excited to give it a try this morning.
Wwwwwwwow! I have officially had the best shave I have ever had in my life since I've been wetshaving! The weight of the razor was perfect and it shaved like a dream. I shaved the same way I do with my DEs, at a slight angle and with the same speed. It just mowed my wiskers away in one fell swoop. I really didn't need a second pass, but did it anyway, and by the time I was done, I was in shock what I saw staring back at me in the mirror. It looked like I just shaved with a straight razor!
This looks like it will become my razor of choice, knocking the slant bar and Futur into second and third.
A totally underated piece of beautifully simple machinery, I think. What a fantastic morning.
It sat around until the GEM brand blades came for it yesterday and I was excited to give it a try this morning.
Wwwwwwwow! I have officially had the best shave I have ever had in my life since I've been wetshaving! The weight of the razor was perfect and it shaved like a dream. I shaved the same way I do with my DEs, at a slight angle and with the same speed. It just mowed my wiskers away in one fell swoop. I really didn't need a second pass, but did it anyway, and by the time I was done, I was in shock what I saw staring back at me in the mirror. It looked like I just shaved with a straight razor!
This looks like it will become my razor of choice, knocking the slant bar and Futur into second and third.
A totally underated piece of beautifully simple machinery, I think. What a fantastic morning.
I used one of my cleaned up GEMs for the last few days....VERY nice and smooth shave. It was a little ackward at first because it has a different design as the Merkurs and Gillettes I use, but it gave a nice shave. I'm sure when I get the technique (angle) down better, I'll be able to do fantastic things with it.
I finally bought another GEM for only $3 at an antique store in MD. After cleaning it up, it looks beautiful. It's a gold tone Micromatic with an open comb. Anyway, I had my first shave with it tonight. Wow! What a difference. It shaved very smoothly. I don't know what was wrong with the other one. I was getting a lot of drag from it. I had been using some no name blades before which could have been the problem. I used Treet Platinum Blades which seemed to work well. This razor will defintely stay in my rotation. Definitely not one to rush with though!
==Tom
Another Gem fan
The cautious approach and correct angle with a good quality blade are definately the ingredients for great shaves with Gem's.The Micromatic has a different head configuration to other Gem's which makes it a little harder to keep it flat on your face.Start off slow.
The cautious approach and correct angle with a good quality blade are definately the ingredients for great shaves with Gem's.The Micromatic has a different head configuration to other Gem's which makes it a little harder to keep it flat on your face.Start off slow.
Count me as a GEM fan as well. I've shaved with a Micromatic a Featherweight and a cool looking grey push button and they all function and shave differently, but they all shave great if you don't rush.
Here is my new GEM, its really heavy and British made.
Here is my new GEM, its really heavy and British made.
Count me as a GEM fan as well. I've shaved with a Micromatic a Featherweight and a cool looking grey push button and they all function and shave differently, but they all shave great if you don't rush.
Here is my new GEM, its really heavy and British made.
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Would be interested as to how your British Gem shaves. I've seen a few of them on the Bay, but they looked rather scary to me.
I'm still a big Gem fan. People just don't know what they're missing.
Here is my new GEM, its really heavy and British made.
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Would be interested as to how your British Gem shaves. I've seen a few of them on the Bay, but they looked rather scary to me.
I'm still a big Gem fan. People just don't know what they're missing.
I'll give a report after Rocket month. It weighs close to twice what my Micromatic weighs, it has a thick brass plate at the top like an Aristocrat Jr. and a solid handle.
I have several British made Gem's.Definately heavier than their American brothers.The handles have a different thread pattern also so you can't interchange handles.
Last night I used a Gem G-Bar (aka G-Love) with a Gem SE blade. Wow.
At first I was incredibly nervous, but three strokes into it and I was as calm as a...[something that is very calm].
It's really not bad at all. And the shave is wonderful.
It's a little strange feeling the blade popping through each hair. But it's a good solid feeling. And fitting under the nose is a breeze. And the neck was simple.
The G-Love is pure LOVE.
$0.02,
Christopher
At first I was incredibly nervous, but three strokes into it and I was as calm as a...[something that is very calm].
It's really not bad at all. And the shave is wonderful.
It's a little strange feeling the blade popping through each hair. But it's a good solid feeling. And fitting under the nose is a breeze. And the neck was simple.
The G-Love is pure LOVE.
$0.02,
Christopher
The drug store Gem blades perform well in my G, but the Ted Pella coated blades give a shave that lasts a bit longer for me. The only problem with the latter is availability in smaller quantities. I mostly use str8s, so a hundred blades would be a ridiculous number.
Wayne
Wayne
There were some interesting posts here on Gem razors, and I thought I'd share my own experience with one.
I won a brand-new, never-used Micromatic open-comb (age unknown, but it is in beautiful shape and opens and closes nicely). The razor was in its original box, but didn't come with blades or instructions. All that was included was a little tag around the handle that said "Hold razor FLAT against face", and that was it.
I'd read posts before saying that the Gem is like a straight razor, so I was curious enough to get one. I bought a pack of Gem blades in a local drug store (these ones were in a white plastic dispenser with a used-blade section on the bottom). Obviously, these blades are intended for shaving, not for box cutters (which are very similar, but not coated, so they would rust quickly when they get wet).
This morning was my first shave with the Gem. I did my usual prep with Proraso menthol cream out of the shower, then two hot towels. I've been using King of Shaves Sensitive Skin cream for a while, and put some of that on. I heard the strong cutting sound that has been mentioned (probably due to the open comb letting the blade vibrate freely), but I found that it just didn't seem to shave me as well as my regular Gillette Tech DE or my Type L Injector do. I like the feel of the Gem in my hand (nice and solid, and a long handle, too, for good control), and I kind of like hearing it actually cutting hairs. The open combs make it easy to wash out, too, because the brushless creams tend to be heavier than soaps, and gum up the blades on the Tech and the Injector.
I did my usual WTG pass over my whole face, an XTG on my neck (where the hair grows in all sorts of directions), and then an ATG on all my face again. When I was done, I felt a lot of razor-burn on my neck (probably because I go over it a lot to try to get it smooth, especially on either side of my larynx, where it's hard to clean up properly) and some on my cheeks as well. I got a few small weepers, but no really big or serious cuts (a bit of styptic usually takes care of the weepers). I wasn't really impressed with the quality of shave I got, and my wife agreed. She figures I should go back to my usual tools. We haven't decided to toss the Gem just yet, but I won't use it tomorrow because I don't want to aggravate the rash I got this morning from it. I'll definitely give it another chance later on, because maybe the blade has to wear in a bit, or I've got to get my technique down better with this rather different type of razor. I tend to take rather long strokes, maybe press a bit too hard, and go over some areas a lot (almost like blade-buffing). This could be leading to the rash and not-so-good shave - yet with the other razors, I get constant BBS every time.
There's my experience. Any comments?
I won a brand-new, never-used Micromatic open-comb (age unknown, but it is in beautiful shape and opens and closes nicely). The razor was in its original box, but didn't come with blades or instructions. All that was included was a little tag around the handle that said "Hold razor FLAT against face", and that was it.
I'd read posts before saying that the Gem is like a straight razor, so I was curious enough to get one. I bought a pack of Gem blades in a local drug store (these ones were in a white plastic dispenser with a used-blade section on the bottom). Obviously, these blades are intended for shaving, not for box cutters (which are very similar, but not coated, so they would rust quickly when they get wet).
This morning was my first shave with the Gem. I did my usual prep with Proraso menthol cream out of the shower, then two hot towels. I've been using King of Shaves Sensitive Skin cream for a while, and put some of that on. I heard the strong cutting sound that has been mentioned (probably due to the open comb letting the blade vibrate freely), but I found that it just didn't seem to shave me as well as my regular Gillette Tech DE or my Type L Injector do. I like the feel of the Gem in my hand (nice and solid, and a long handle, too, for good control), and I kind of like hearing it actually cutting hairs. The open combs make it easy to wash out, too, because the brushless creams tend to be heavier than soaps, and gum up the blades on the Tech and the Injector.
I did my usual WTG pass over my whole face, an XTG on my neck (where the hair grows in all sorts of directions), and then an ATG on all my face again. When I was done, I felt a lot of razor-burn on my neck (probably because I go over it a lot to try to get it smooth, especially on either side of my larynx, where it's hard to clean up properly) and some on my cheeks as well. I got a few small weepers, but no really big or serious cuts (a bit of styptic usually takes care of the weepers). I wasn't really impressed with the quality of shave I got, and my wife agreed. She figures I should go back to my usual tools. We haven't decided to toss the Gem just yet, but I won't use it tomorrow because I don't want to aggravate the rash I got this morning from it. I'll definitely give it another chance later on, because maybe the blade has to wear in a bit, or I've got to get my technique down better with this rather different type of razor. I tend to take rather long strokes, maybe press a bit too hard, and go over some areas a lot (almost like blade-buffing). This could be leading to the rash and not-so-good shave - yet with the other razors, I get constant BBS every time.
There's my experience. Any comments?
It usually takes me about five days to get the hang of a razor I haven't previously used. I usually begin easy and work for better shaves (e.g., more and different pass directions) as the days pass and I calibrate to the razor. Looks like that will be hard for you now, though, with the rash.
I also use a GEM on occasion - either a safety bar Micromatic or a G-bar. Both of them have given me very good shaves w/o redness or irritation. SE blades are a lot less flexible than DE blades because of the rigid sleeve on the non-shaving edge. So perhaps you should try using the GEM without the pressure you use with your other razor/blade combinations. It's important to identify whatever is causing the irritation you're experiencing, so I'd also suggest not buffing until you can get an irritation-free shave first.
Good luck,
jim
- Thread starter
- #56
+1 I was lucky and ran across a thread explaining the Gem head should be kept flat against the skin. Otherwise, I am sure I would've been covered in blood.
Me
Last year I got a 1912 Star razor (same thing as the Gem Junior?) as part of a trade from The Shark. Scary looking thing. I bought some Gem blades, but chickened out before that Venus flytrap nightmare razor even touched my face. Last Saturday morning, I finally gave it a try. Got a great shave then, and a better this morning (same blade). Wow. If the 1912 razor with the oft-maligned Gem blades is that good, I've got to try the Gem G-Bar with Pella blades. I have a G-Bar and Micromatic on the way, now. The adventure continues . . .
Having now shaved with my newly acquired Gem G bar ($6 at an antique store) and a Ted Pella blade, complements of Brother John, I can say without a doubt: I haven't a clue how to shave with this thing. 
Both shaves were close enough but my face burned like hell all day long. I had to reach for the burn cream. It's like learning a DE all over again. This one goes up on the trophy shelf at least until my face heals.
Both shaves were close enough but my face burned like hell all day long. I had to reach for the burn cream. It's like learning a DE all over again. This one goes up on the trophy shelf at least until my face heals.Third day with the wire-basket Gem, same blade: still going strong. I'm tempted to stay with this blade just to see how long it will last. I usually toss DE blades after two shaves.
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