It has been an interesting month (a little more actually) for me. After 5 years of using the same razor, same blade and same cream I began testing some new stuff April 1st.
My usual gear has been: A Tweezerman badger, Merkur HD, Derby Blades and C.O Bigellow shave cream.
This last month's new items: Astra SP blades, Feather Blades, Semogue 620 boar brush, VDH Deluxe soap, Mama Bear Sandlewood/vanilla soap, Mikes natural soap, Muhle R41 and Gillette Guard.
First let me say that this is not an endorsement nor is it (in the case of poor performance) a definitive review. It is only how it worked for me. Many here have written about some of these items and loved them thus me giving them a shot. You know the saying...."YMMV!"
I won't get into too much detail but briefly:
Blades: The Astra's aren't working for me. Actually I think I got better shaves from my Derby's even though I can feel that the Astra's are sharper. Smoother too. But they don't get all the hair or close enough in some areas. I constantly have missed spots and I have to go over my face more. I've tried different mixes of lather. I love the feel but not the results.
The Feathers are fantastic. I get a weeks shaves (everyday) out of these (actually I haven't had any blade brands that I don't get at least 5 shaves out of. Derby's or Astra's). But the feathers give me a close and lasting shave with little touch up needed. No missed spots. Comfortable too. I have even been giving Astra's another shot this week but so far still haven't got a good shave out of them. Well...I get a "good" shave but that's about it. And I have to work too hard for it.
Razors: I'm still using my Merkur HD. I love it. No complaints. I tried the Muhle R41 a couple of times and the second time was better than the first. I need to get used to this. Against the grain will take some work. It's an interesting razor. The jury is still out at the moment. I need to work on this.
The Gillette Guard: I really wanted to like this. I wanted it for my head shaving to save money on carts. I know others have sworn by this razor but for me it was worth the two bucks I payed for it....and no more. I tried it on my face also. It isn't working.
Soap:
I liked the VDH Deluxe and the Mama Bear. Mama Bear seemed to make my face burn for a few hours at first but that went away and doesn't happen anymore, and it isn't bad. Smells great. The VDH worked well also. I never used soap before last month, and as I started on this testing adventure, it is the soap that basically got me started. When I started with the VDH and Mama Bear I had nothing else to compare them to. That is until I got hold of Mikes natural a few days ago. Well let me just say that Mikes (or, I am assuming it may just be tallow in general) is a whole different animal. Wow, not the same. Not even in the ballpark imo. I have already experimented in the last few days with thick and thin. I made a lather with a brush shook out of excess water. No water added to my bowl (no pour off from top off water on my soap while showering) and very little...I mean very little water added while whipping. I got a nice (although not too much of it) thick lather. It lasted me 3 passes and touchups with lather remaining. But it wasn't overflowing from my bowl. Actually it wasn't that much at all. But man was it a nice feeling brushing that on. I also made one slightly wetter and finally one with a lot more water. On this last lather it was a good deal thinner and I could see some skin through it but it still had substance. There is something about this lather/soap, thick or thin, that feels like it is part of my face. It just feels good. It made the other soaps I've used seem fake.
Brush:
The Tweezerman was good when I got it but what the hell did I know as a beginner? It worked and it worked for awhile. I probably used it way longer than it's lifespan. That was my first post here when I joined April 1st. "What happened to my brush?" It was beat up. I bought a Semogue boar and I love it.
So that's it for my face shaving.
In between all of this I have been messing with various headshaving stuff also. I put down my Fusion for a Mach 3 and so far after almost a week I am close to giving up. But I will hang in there just to see how many shaves I can get out of one cart. They never lasted me long in the past and it's why I don't use them. My Fusion goes for like 30 shaves per cart. If I remember correctly the M3's last me less than 20. I'm tempted to say 10. On my head a VDH Boar brush and Kiss My Face cream have been working great on days off from work. On work days when I have to rush it's been King of Shaves shave gel (no brush) and it is a real winner.
I don't know how long I can last with the M3. I already bought a new 4 pack of Fusion carts
Expensive yes but I get great shaves and 4 carts ($14 and change) last me 4 months.
It's been fun. And I'm not done yet!!
My usual gear has been: A Tweezerman badger, Merkur HD, Derby Blades and C.O Bigellow shave cream.
This last month's new items: Astra SP blades, Feather Blades, Semogue 620 boar brush, VDH Deluxe soap, Mama Bear Sandlewood/vanilla soap, Mikes natural soap, Muhle R41 and Gillette Guard.
First let me say that this is not an endorsement nor is it (in the case of poor performance) a definitive review. It is only how it worked for me. Many here have written about some of these items and loved them thus me giving them a shot. You know the saying...."YMMV!"
I won't get into too much detail but briefly:
Blades: The Astra's aren't working for me. Actually I think I got better shaves from my Derby's even though I can feel that the Astra's are sharper. Smoother too. But they don't get all the hair or close enough in some areas. I constantly have missed spots and I have to go over my face more. I've tried different mixes of lather. I love the feel but not the results.
The Feathers are fantastic. I get a weeks shaves (everyday) out of these (actually I haven't had any blade brands that I don't get at least 5 shaves out of. Derby's or Astra's). But the feathers give me a close and lasting shave with little touch up needed. No missed spots. Comfortable too. I have even been giving Astra's another shot this week but so far still haven't got a good shave out of them. Well...I get a "good" shave but that's about it. And I have to work too hard for it.
Razors: I'm still using my Merkur HD. I love it. No complaints. I tried the Muhle R41 a couple of times and the second time was better than the first. I need to get used to this. Against the grain will take some work. It's an interesting razor. The jury is still out at the moment. I need to work on this.
The Gillette Guard: I really wanted to like this. I wanted it for my head shaving to save money on carts. I know others have sworn by this razor but for me it was worth the two bucks I payed for it....and no more. I tried it on my face also. It isn't working.
Soap:
I liked the VDH Deluxe and the Mama Bear. Mama Bear seemed to make my face burn for a few hours at first but that went away and doesn't happen anymore, and it isn't bad. Smells great. The VDH worked well also. I never used soap before last month, and as I started on this testing adventure, it is the soap that basically got me started. When I started with the VDH and Mama Bear I had nothing else to compare them to. That is until I got hold of Mikes natural a few days ago. Well let me just say that Mikes (or, I am assuming it may just be tallow in general) is a whole different animal. Wow, not the same. Not even in the ballpark imo. I have already experimented in the last few days with thick and thin. I made a lather with a brush shook out of excess water. No water added to my bowl (no pour off from top off water on my soap while showering) and very little...I mean very little water added while whipping. I got a nice (although not too much of it) thick lather. It lasted me 3 passes and touchups with lather remaining. But it wasn't overflowing from my bowl. Actually it wasn't that much at all. But man was it a nice feeling brushing that on. I also made one slightly wetter and finally one with a lot more water. On this last lather it was a good deal thinner and I could see some skin through it but it still had substance. There is something about this lather/soap, thick or thin, that feels like it is part of my face. It just feels good. It made the other soaps I've used seem fake.
Brush:
The Tweezerman was good when I got it but what the hell did I know as a beginner? It worked and it worked for awhile. I probably used it way longer than it's lifespan. That was my first post here when I joined April 1st. "What happened to my brush?" It was beat up. I bought a Semogue boar and I love it.
So that's it for my face shaving.
In between all of this I have been messing with various headshaving stuff also. I put down my Fusion for a Mach 3 and so far after almost a week I am close to giving up. But I will hang in there just to see how many shaves I can get out of one cart. They never lasted me long in the past and it's why I don't use them. My Fusion goes for like 30 shaves per cart. If I remember correctly the M3's last me less than 20. I'm tempted to say 10. On my head a VDH Boar brush and Kiss My Face cream have been working great on days off from work. On work days when I have to rush it's been King of Shaves shave gel (no brush) and it is a real winner.
I don't know how long I can last with the M3. I already bought a new 4 pack of Fusion carts
Expensive yes but I get great shaves and 4 carts ($14 and change) last me 4 months. It's been fun. And I'm not done yet!!
