Questions about head shaving, razors, safety razor blades etc.

[Ice09]

Just tried some Feather blades and Astra Superior Platinums the past few days and the shaves aren't much better, so I am guessing that maybe my current razors don't suit me/my head. The Astras gave me a decent DFS, but it took quite a few passes to get there. The Feathers (for whatever reason), I ended up with a SAS/CCS and I simply gave up with it as I was getting some nicks/irritation trying to do more passes. Pretty shocked how bad the shave ended up with them. I used the Leaf Thorn for both blades.

Out of all the blades I've tried so far, I'd say the Parker and Schick blades have been the best. The Parker takes quite a few passes, but they are pretty smooth and give me close to a BBS result with the least amount of irritation, and the Schicks may be even closer to BBS at the cost of a little more irritation. I have no idea where to buy them from as I only had some that came with the cheap Schick DE razor I bought about year or so ago. I would have liked another 5 or so blades to try as I used them with the DE razor and never got to really try them in the Leaf Thorn or Leaf Shave a few times to see how good they really are.

 

[emwolf]

I have a number of razors and blades and whatever I use to shave my face I also use on my head. For blades I have great luck with an enormously wide variety of brands.

 

[Ice09]

Hey Emwolf, I'd say Parker, Schick, Astra Platinum so far have given me the best shaves, but for whatever reason the Feathers I just tried in my Leaf Thorn gave me a very average result. I'd say it was between CCS & DFS, but those other blades give me closer to DFS/BBS(depending on how much time I spend & passes, usually 45 minutes for BBS).

To a lesser degree, I found the 7 a.m. Platinum and Gillette 7 O'Clock Super Stainless to also give good results, but take more time/passes to do so than the top 3 I mentioned.

A bunch of other blades also give me a better result with more passes than I just got with the Feather blades (Tiger, Astra Superior Stainless, Gillette 7 O'Clock SharpEdge). The worst blades I've used so far are both the Shark blades (Super Stainless & Super Chrome) and Derby Green packet (Not sure which model it's called. I think it is Derby Extra). The Sharks were terrible for me, only giving a SAS/CCS at best.

I am a bit stumped as I thought the Feathers are supposed to be the sharpest blade, so I thought with enough passes that I'd get a BBS or near BBS shave. I was even worried about using them thinking I might cut myself up, but nothing more than usual happened (a few nicks here and there and irritation due to the extra passes trying to get DFS/BBS). Maybe it's my razor not getting the best out of them? Also, can there be dud blades in certain batches?

 

[Old Hippie]

If you're having good shaves with the Astra SP (my favourite blade), you might also try a pack of Dorco Prime blades. They are as smooth and sharp, but I find the edge doesn't last quite as long. I've been using them lately just to break out of my rut. And getting some good shaves with a RazoRock Superslant L2OC.

O.H.

 

[Guido75]

Back of the head usually feels pretty stubbly after 2-3 passes in certain areas (I usually got with the grain once and the against the grain at least 3 times),

For me, that is the hardest and most stubborn turf to get smooth.

Welcome to B&B!

The back of the head is my challenge area as well. And I agree with ewk that XTG is the money pas after first doing an ATG. That is when I am chasing BBS which I normally do not do - but then again I am nowhere near as experienced as the other brothers replying to your thread.

As far as razors are concerned there are a couple that give me really close shaves in only one or two passes. The Greencult 2.0 level II, Gillette Old Type , Fatip Piccolo, Razorine Flatboy (nice long handle), Timeless 95SCL, Eclipse Red Ring, Lambda Athena (which is about the only razor that gave me nicks on my head and it’s supposed to have zero blade exposure!). I found the GC2 and Flatboy to be the most effective overall.

Cheers,

Guido

 

[sim1138]

FWIW I shave my head with a Schick Injector. Every once in a while I use a GEM Micromatic, but never a DE. In my experience finding the right angle to shave with a DE on all the whacky geometry of my head is just too difficult. So if you haven't tried a single edged razor on your dome, I recommend it!

 

[Ice09]

Hey guys, just wanted to say thanks for all the replies. I've definitely gotten better at head shaving, but still trying out different razors and not quite there yet.
Just thought I'd ask again what amount of time on average it takes most of you guys that do head shave and what result you're happy with (BBS, DFS, CCS), and also the number of passes, and what your favourite razors are to use.
Do you also use the same razor, or alternate, and how many days between do you go usually?

I ended up getting a few more since last posting (Yaqi Raster, Rockwell 6C (I use the #6 baseplate - pretty smooth shaver, but still takes 45 minutes or so for BBS/DFS), Yaqi Tile (This is very smooth, but too mild for me - takes me about an hour to get mostly DFS with BBS in some spots), and just over a month ago, I got the Blackland Vector).

The Vector is really good (it's definitely much better built than the Yaqi Raster), but so far, I've tried almost every common AC blade in it (Feather Professional Super, Feather Professional, Feather Pro Guard, Schick Proline P-30) with the SB baseplate except the Kai Captain Titan Mild Pink and ProShave S which I will try when I get those blades. The blade that gives me the best result is the Feather Professional Super (This blade did not go well for me in the Yaqi Raster).

I can get BBS/DFS (BBS around 80% of the head and DFS 20% on average in my tougher spots to shave - back of head, top back side of head) with the Professional Super, and I am happy with that, but it's still taking me 40+ minutes and too many passes to achieve that result. It's turning into a bit of a chore. I'm still going to keep trying with the Vector for at least another 3 months or so, but if I can't get it dialed in, going to maybe look at selling it. I also bought the OC and new Lite baseplates (this was released one day before I ordered it, so I thought I might as well go for it) which I will try those baseplates with fresh blades after I've tried the other two blades I want to try with the SB baseplate.

I also think I have coarse hair, but also sensitive skin, so not the best combination to work with.

I'll definitely keep trying with the Vector for another few months minimum before I decide whether or not to keep it or sell it. Since buying the Vector, I'm now willing to spend a bit more to try out the more expensive razors. I figure I can always sell them on if they don't suit.
I've been looking at other razors to try, and here is a bit of a list I now have. I think I am now leaning more towards aggressive razors than mild ones due to the amount of time and passes it's taking me (usually 3 passes to start - WTG, XTG, ATG, and then at least two more ATG on the back of the head (plus buffing to get DFS in certain spots), as I still have quite detectable stubble after the first three passes on the back of the head - the shave also goes good most of the time up to this point (the third pass), and then the irritation kicks in on these extra passes), and it's not enjoyable anymore (at this point, I'd be super happy with just 25-30 minutes and a couple of less passes).

Here are some of the razors I'm looking at next. Wouldn't mind some opinions on them if anyone has any thoughts on them:

Karve CB (With two baseplates. Was thinking #D and either #F or #G - The idea is to get a more mild baseplate for daily head shaves and an aggressive one for when going 3-4 days between shaves)
Guerrilla (With two baseplates - was thinking maybe 0.69 and 0.99)
Karve Overlander
Game Changer 1.05P (A local AU online reseller has suggested this to me. He said it's what he uses and gets great head shaves in 10-15 minute with it. I'm not sure if I will get the same result, though. I'm not expecting to)
Shield Predator/GEM - I wanted to try a GEM style razor out
Wolfman WR4 (I'd probably try this if I can't get better results with the Vector and end up selling it, I'd look at getting the WR4 as my next AC razor to try).
Yaqi Remus/Romulus (I heard this is a bit more mild than the Vector SB? Not sure if that is correct or not?)