justifiably dissing the DE

[ShaversBane]

Now I'm not a DE Basher, but I have to be honest I'm growing sick of anything short a REAL Straight.

Does Anyone else here have these little Red Dots/Bumps appear on their face and neck after using a DE? Am I the only one? They Are Not ingrown hairs, the are simply these little red *Irritation* bumps. It use to be much worse before I started Wet-Shaving, but they still rear their ugly little red heads when I use a DE.
When I use my Straights, there is nothing but the most wonderfully clear and smooth skin I've ever had. I LOVE my Straights.

So... There has to be someone else who gets these little red bumps, isn't there?

 

[luvmysuper]

Lots of people who have not perfected the angle or pressure issues with DE's get these red bumps.
If you're doing well with a straight, sticking with that would probably be best for you.
Getting an irritation free shave with a DE is possible, and certainly has less of a learning curve than a straight, but it does take time and dedicated effort.

 

[Walter Sobchak]

lots of people who have not perfected the angle or pressure issues with de's get these red bumps.
If you're doing well with a straight, sticking with that would probably be best for you.
Getting an irritation free shave with a de is possible, and certainly has less of a learning curve than a straight, but it does take time and dedicated effort.

+1

 

[Walker]

Now I'm not a DE Basher, but I have to be honest I'm growing sick of anything short a REAL Straight.

Does Anyone else here have these little Red Dots/Bumps appear on their face and neck after using a DE? Am I the only one? They Are Not ingrown hairs, the are simply these little red *Irritation* bumps. It use to be much worse before I started Wet-Shaving, but they still rear their ugly little red heads when I use a DE.
When I use my Straights, there is nothing but the most wonderfully clear and smooth skin I've ever had. I LOVE my Straights.

So... There has to be someone else who gets these little red bumps, isn't there?

I use a Merkur 33c while I'm away from home and a Merkur HD when I'm home and I get those bumps for the first shave at home because I apply too much pressure with the HD, but then again I am a rookie at this.lol. I've never shaved with a straight so I can't comment on the differances.

 

[mark_mw]

I'll take little red bumps from a DE over thin red lines from a straight, oozing red fluid, your reward for the SLIGHTEST handling mistake

 

[dantodd]

I too am relatively new to DE coming from straight razors exclusively. I still like my straight razors but also use DE's now regularly. IME Straight razors are more sensitive to angle and DE's are more sensitive to pressure. Try staying very light with the DE and be sure to use good blades, the feather that I am just trying now is an excellent performer. I bought a sample pack of blades from bullgooseshaving.com (a vendor here) and will be working my way through most of the blades to see what works and what doesn't.

So far I have been most satisfied with a Fat Boy set to 7 and a feather blade. The next best was a fat handled Tech with the feather. The Tech is much cheaper to get right now so if you don't have one I would suggest trying it out.

ETA: Mark MW, the "slightest" handling mistake will not slit you from ear to ear. I use square tip straight razors and while I got a couple nicks when first learning the weepers I've picked up learning DE shaving have been more painful than the occasional nick on warm skin with a keen blade.

 

[Copierguy]

I used to think I was using no pressure and still getting my neck worked up.
Then I tried holding the razor by the TTO knob. That's when it clicked and I started getting close yet comfrtable shaves...

 

[DE Shaver]

Your technique needs to be refined a little more. It will take a little adjustment time to get the hang of the change in shave gear. I've come from using straight razors to DE razors and found that there are differences in approach. Personally, I get better shaves with the DE than with the straight razor.

 

[82R100]

I thought you were going to name a DE razor that justified disrespect in its own right. I have one that I'll write up in a couple of weeks.

Justifiably dissing all DE's? Puleeze.

- Chris

 

[ShaversBane]

I'll take little red bumps from a DE over thin red lines from a straight, oozing red fluid, your reward for the SLIGHTEST handling mistake

in my experience (so Far) any handling mistake from a DE is worse than a straight. When you cut yourself with a straight, the blade is SO sharp there is absolutely no pain, just a little blood. with a DE, it cuts, then grabs the cut skin and pulls and tugs at it, causing incredible irritation and bleading before you even know you've cut yourself. I've also (Only once though,) had some Ridiculous Razor Burn from a DE, but I've never had any Razor Burn from a straight. Like I said, I My straights...

 

[mark_mw]

in my experience (so Far) any handling mistake from a DE is worse than a straight. When you cut yourself with a straight, the blade is SO sharp there is absolutely no pain, just a little blood. with a DE, it cuts, then grabs the cut skin and pulls and tugs at it, causing incredible irritation and bleading before you even know you've cut yourself. I've also (Only once though,) had some Ridiculous Razor Burn from a DE, but I've never had any Razor Burn from a straight. Like I said, I My straights...

So I guess it's a matter of QUANTITY of cuts (Straight) vs. QUALITY of Cuts (DE)....and when you factor in the shakiness that will come to all of us in time -

I'm so glad the safety razor was invented!!!

...and I won't even get into the maintenance headaches / cost of Straight razors....

 

[dantodd]

So I guess it's a matter of QUANTITY of cuts (Straight) vs. QUALITY of Cuts (DE)....and when you factor in the shakiness that will come to all of us in time -

I'm so glad the safety razor was invented!!!

...and I won't even get into the maintenance headaches / cost of Straight razors....

Your bashing of all straight razors is no more constructive than ShaversBane' bashing all DEs. There are many approaches to shaving, from mach3/fusion/quattro guys to Wet Shavers who simply get a better result than they do with "modern" razors and on to people like me who like to take the daily chore and turn it into a small luxury. Yes, handling an open blade does require some level of confidence and practice but so does getting a superior and comfortable shave with a DE. While a straight razor may not be your cup of tea it is for many of us and some do not like ridiculous myths about killer razors being propagated, particularly from within our our "family."

 

[Slivovitz]

We all take a certain pride in mastering the technique for some kind of razor, and getting close, irritation free, shaves. No need to take it personally if someone else prefers a different type, and doesn't like ours.

It's absolutely possible to get a great shave with a DE razor, but if something else is already working for you, you may not want to put the effort into getting the technique down. I'm sure straights work just as well as their fans claim, but at the moment I don't care to put the effort into learning them.

 

[Mojo88]

I used to think I was using no pressure and still getting my neck worked up.
Then I tried holding the razor by the TTO knob. That's when it clicked and I started getting close yet comfortable shaves...

This is probably the best advice you will ever get. Think of it this way it's like holding a pencil by the eraser and writing on a piece of paper . It's almost impossible to create a heavy line. The same goes for a DE, the closer to the head the more pressure, the farther away the lighter the stroke.
I always thought that I was applying little or no pressure until I tried this. It cleared up my neck in just a few days.

 

[Uncle Erik]

It sounds like you need to work on your technique, try different DE blades and possibly a different razor.

I get zero irritation from DE today, and I used to use a straight.

Straights are fine, but I found that shaves took too long and I wasn't keen on the upkeep. Maybe I'll go back to straights in retirement, but I much prefer the time saving with DE and I get fantastic shaves.

 

[illiniruss]

Hi,
Everyone that has mentioned technique are right. I keep my knives at "SCARY SHARP" so that i don't have to put pressure to cut food etc. " LET THE KNIFE DO THE WORK NOT YOU". The same holds true with ALL razors. The lighter the touch, the better. Also if your blade isn't sharp enough for the job, you can tend to use too much pressure. I have used every type of razor ever made including straights, and still do, with no red spots. Electric shavers are the worst thing i've ever used for irritation. Keep trying.

Russ