I'm about 3 months into wet shaving and I finally got around to shaving with my German-made bakelite slant. I aligned the blade with the top head piece and had at it. My impressions after 3 shaves? I'm not sure what to think. I wanted to start with a milder blade and Derbys were on the bottom of the "try it again" list so I started with a Derby. The resulting shaves were no better or worse than with my EJ DE89. It was a bit easier to shave with than I had anticipated. I didn't need to be as cautious as I thought I might, I ended up treating it like a regular razor. I was kind of expecting it to be a bit more efficient but I still had to do the same number of passes and touch ups as with the DE89. Perhaps it's because of the blade and my getting used to the new razor so I don't want to make any final judgements until I've tried some better blades and got a bit more experience with it. One thing I don't like about it is that it is so light, I prefer something with a little more heft. Another thing I don't like is that it's plastic. I'm a cold water shaver and I like the feel of cold metal against my face. There's probably several factors that contribute but I'm getting more razor burn than with the DE89. I know I need more time and experience with it but I hope this razor starts to stand out a bit more.
My first slant razor shaves.
- Thread starter mikelz777
- Start date
Congratulations and it may work better for you. i believe your technique may need more refining with the EJ89, or it could be the blades that you are using as it is a fairly mild razor and it sounds like you may be applying too much pressure. Why don't you try using one shim in it to see if that makes a difference. Good luck.
- Thread starter
- #3
Update:
I took out the Derby and pitched it. I've determined that Derbys aren't for me in either of my razors.
I put an Astra SP in the bakelite slant and got noticeably improved results. I was able to get a fine shave in 3 passes with no touchups needed. I could notice that each pass was further along than the ones using the Derby blades. I've been pretty happy with Astra SP in both my razors now but those wax blobs are kind of annoying. I'm still getting a bit of burn so I think I need to work more on pressure and blade angle but I've already seen improvements since the last shave.
I took out the Derby and pitched it. I've determined that Derbys aren't for me in either of my razors.
I put an Astra SP in the bakelite slant and got noticeably improved results. I was able to get a fine shave in 3 passes with no touchups needed. I could notice that each pass was further along than the ones using the Derby blades. I've been pretty happy with Astra SP in both my razors now but those wax blobs are kind of annoying. I'm still getting a bit of burn so I think I need to work more on pressure and blade angle but I've already seen improvements since the last shave.
