Technique over Equipment

[SCWilson]

I just wanted to throw this out there to the masses of B&Bers. In the past few months there have been several instances where my wife, the boys, and I took last minute over-night trips. Well, I have usually been at work when the decision was made and my wife has us all packed up and ready to roll when I get home. A few, two or three, times my shaving equipment has been left behind. I don't like going for too long without a shave, especially if we are going somewhere nice or to church, so I always have a Mach3 in my shave kit.

I believe that it is just as possible to get a BBS shave from a Mach3 and goo (in these experiances I've had to use ladies goo and it works pretty dang well) as is is from my beloved brush, soap, and Slim Adjustable. You just have to use propper prep, later well, and use a multiple passes. TAKE YOUR TIME AND DO IT RIGHT. Don;t just rush though it like the average duffer.

And no, I'm not going back. It takes me twice as long with a Mach3 as it does with my current setup. But you can get good result.

 

[Spatterdash]

I don't think your conclusion rocks the boat around here.

Most people when I got here were saying that even semi-low quality equipment could provide a decent shave with proper prep and technique, whereas even the finest of materials would give a miserable scraping if the technique was bad.

So no, I wouldn't worry when you say the Mach and goo gave a decent shave with good technique.

 

[Mike in Cincy]

I absolutely agree. As an experiment, I used canned goo and a Gillette Sensor for 4 days. I got fantastic results because of the techniques I learned on this board and from using DE razors. I will never go back to a Mach 3, even for travel purposes as I find the Sensor to be superior to it. But using canned goo in a pinch can work just fine.

 

[RBE17]

Before I started wet shaving w/ a DE, brush and cream I started modifying my technique w/ my M3 and goo. The main thing I was interested in was a light, gentle touch w/ no pressure. I found the shaves more enjoyable, but even making three passes I couldn't get BBS. I didn't have my first BBS until I started w/ a DE. However, I could deal w/ shaving w/ an M3 during travel. I would just hope my ingrown hairs don't return.

 

[JdB]

The M3/Fusion razors are good: my skin was as smooth as it is with a DE nowadays.

The DE-shaving experience is a lot better though (and cheaper!)


Happy shaving!

JdB

 

[Tom C]

I was afraid of being skewered for mentioning this - glad I'm not alone. With a Gillette Good News pivot and a can of Foamy, I get a BBS shave with no irritation every time. That was my equipment for as long as I can remember. But like yourself, I'm not going back either. I vastly prefer a shaving ritual over a routine.

 

[JDE]

Both true and false for me. I'm confident that I can get an awesome shave with canned goo - still do sometimes, just to try a new cream or save some time. In fact, sometimes the chemical-filled canned stuff gives me less of a skin reaction than some nicely fragranced top shelf creams and soaps. Hell, I could probably get an ace shave with handsoap or just plain water if I felt like it.

However, I can't use multiblade razors. Whatever I try gives me ingrowns after one or two shaves, regardless of angle, prep, phase of the moon, yadda yadda. It's probably my grain pattern I suppose, but one nice blade works so well for me I don't want to mess too much with it.

 

[strat1117]

Just like any other sport, your best shaving results will come only when you use proper technique, but that will be made somewhat easier if your equipment is well-suited to you and properly set up.

Enjoy!

 

[treebeard]

I vastly prefer a shaving ritual over a routine.

I like that. It's the same for me. Not necessarily a big difference in whisker reduction per se, but definitely a difference in the quality of the experience. From 'meh' to something I really look forward to every morning.

You can basically replace the 'shave' with any equipment and good technique. What you can't replace is the feeling you get when you see those silo doors open as you load a fresh blade, or how you feel when the scent of your soap fills the room, or how you feel when that hot lather is worked into your beard with a great brush.

Ritual over routine. I do like that.

 

[Ohio]

Ill be the odd-ball here, I guess.

If I use any multi-blade razor, I get ingrowns.
This shave might be good, but in a few days I will be cutting the tops off the bumps and bleeding all over the sink.

For me it's either single-blade or a beard. Nothing else is an option.

 

[TheGrooveking]

As I like to do with anything I do and that is to get the best quality equipment, that way I know any problems incurred are all from operator error. I have proven this with golf clubs, fishing gear, photography equipment, guns, music equipment and now shaving gear.

 

[Gogo]

Ill be the odd-ball here, I guess.

If I use any multi-blade razor, I get ingrowns.
This shave might be good, but in a few days I will be cutting the tops off the bumps and bleeding all over the sink.

For me it's either single-blade or a beard. Nothing else is an option.

Same for me. My neck looked like raw hamburger for years. Even a with a DE I sometimes get razorburn. Now that I'm pretty much a straight guy, my neck irritation is pretty much a thing of the past.

 

[SiBurning]

My answer depends... Let's not lose sight of the audience.

My guess is many of us could shave okay with a splinter off a 2 by 4. We know how to push the limits and when to stop. For us, good equipment is nice, but not necessarily essential. My main reason for giving up disposables was simply the quality of blades they use. That was at least 12 years ago--maybe 20, I forget--and back then those things had huge burrs. They're much improved since then.

Those who don't yet have the technique need decent equipment to learn much more so than those that already know. It's much easier to learn to properly guide a single blade across your face than a 5-bladed, battery powered, ultrasonic vibrating kamikazee contraption, and it's much less irritating to ineptly scrape one blade across your face than 5. The only thing the disposables have going for them are soft strips, proper blade angle, and very little blade exposure.

Finally, I have the feeling people making this comparison are strictly comparing against a DE. A DE has a very limited allowance of blade angle, similar to disposables. While it's the right angle, it's not the most suitable angle for every part of a shave. The possibility of using other angles is what intrigues me about SEs and straights. (Actually, noone here made that comparison. I just don't know how to express the half-baked idea in my head.)

 

[Stubblefield]

Well, any improvement in technique will yield better results, so anyone using a cartridge could conceivably get a better shave just by improving their technique. It worked for me, my shave improved with better technique and blade technique. Mind you, this is after 35 years of shaving, so an improvement after that much time is a big deal.

But when I switched to a DE my shave improved by leaps and bounds again. So I'd say it is part technique, part equipment.

 

[SiBurning]

But when I switched to a DE my shave improved by leaps and bounds again.

Well said.

Wish I could be that on point. I meant to say something like that, but I go on and on never getting to the heart of the matter and people just get fed up listening and ignore me and...

 

[Fernando]

There are legends of samurai masters that could easily outcome hordes of enemies with a Boken (wood sword) or in the Bible where Samsom beat the hell out of an army with a sheep's jaw i believe.

I thougth the true meaning of this thread would be something about the relevance of preparation and solid technique over marketing and the new gizmo gadget with "ultrasonic solar power quantum energy".

I think that a master barber can make a BBS even with the blade in his own naked hands without a Safety.

Thechnique over Equipment, Mind over matter, call it as you like.

 

[BroJohn]

I have repeatedly said " 'technique' (what you do) is more important than 'stuff' (what you use)."

The above folks are right; you can get a great shave with modest products.

-- John Gehman