The Wanderer's Journey

[AimlessWanderer]

I've seen that video before. It had me shouting at the screen. The words I used are not forum friendly...



I prefer to remove the bulk before I go ATG. I can (and sometimes do) go for it on the second pass, but beneath the jaw it's normally the third pass. It doesn't take many more seconds for me to take three passes, than it would would for me to do that nasty scrubbing thing

If I'm going for a standard three pass shave, the first two passes
are ten strokes each. Three strokes per side from the top of the beard, round the jaw, and down the neck, and four short passes below the Goatee. I'm reaching for the brush to relather in about 15-20 seconds. The next pass is the same thing in reverse (upwards), so I've probably taken about a minute to do the first two passes, including ATG above the jaw.

Under the jaw, the hair grows from my left ear to my right ear. Starting at the right ear, its three or four sideways passes from right ear to goatee, then same again from goatee to left ear. Aside from the odd touch up, that'll be a DFS approaching BBS with a blade that's settled in nicely. Chasing BBS takes a little longer.

I can do a full shave in under three minutes, or I can take my time and let it last ten to fifteen. That doesn't vary much from one razor to the next on my beard.

As my technique is so VERY different to yours, I wouldn't like to guess how the Jagger might perform in your hands. The Wilkinson classic would certainly fail. It's rigid, but too mild. The Merkur open comb might work once you've tuned in to it (very mild, so angle control is essential to avoid missing bits) as it's not phased by extra growth. I have to be VERY careful using it, otherwise my handlebar and goatee will end up inthe sink

Whatever you do, DO NOT attempt that routine with a Rolls I'd risk laceration with my routine. You'd be down to a bare jawbone

 

[Esox]

I was cringing and waiting to see blood from the chopping motion lol.

If I wait 44+ hours before I shave a WTG pass can be effective. Less growth than that and it isnt so much. My second pass is always directly ATG. I cant get a BBS shave without ATG passes or a lot of buffing on a single pass. If I have to shave ATG anyway, why not start there? lol

See my beard map below. Which I admit is pretty simple and easy to follow ATG. I consider myself lucky in that regard.



The two swirls each side of my adams apple can be difficult, blade depending. The one small strip just below my jawline left side I need a steeper angle. Under my chin, the corners of my chin and up the face of my chin I need a steeper angle to get a close shave. The rest just falls off in fear of the Grande I think haha.

If I'm shaving for more than 5 minutes with any combination I'm taking my time. Five minutes or just under is typical for me, but with a Polsilver or Gillette Yellow, 3 minutes is more the norm, but I could shave quicker if I felt the need.

I'd be surprised if the razor was on my skin for 3 minutes total.

Milder razors do the same job, just not as efficiently, so I'd need to buff even more. The one shave I had with the GEM, I did buff, but I'm really not sure its as necessary. SE's seem to me as though they cut with more authority and efficiency, but hard to say with only a single poor shave.

When I'm buffing only very, very light pressure is used. Think of the razor much like an air hockey puck, it just skims and with the shallow angle inherent to the design of the Fatip OC heads its really easy and very comfortable with no worry of drawing blood as long as the angle is maintained. Thats the hardest part because having virtually no gap at all and the exposure it offers, even a slight change in handle angle results in a drastic change in blade feel.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

My beard map is pretty simple too, except for a couple of areas where hair seems to grow two ways in the same place, so even if I go AtG, I also need to go XtG to pick up the hairs that don't want to grow in the same way as their neighbours.

 

[Esox]

I need to go over my swirls at least twice and at 180 degrees different each time. With some blades I've had to go over them 5 times in 5 different directions to get the same BBS shave.

Gillette Yellow, Polsilver and Derby Extra work the best, in that order.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

Polsilver SI and Derby Extra (green) are on the test list

I'm looking forward to testing the Polsilver SI, Astra SP, and Gilette Silver Blue. Those three get a lot of hype on this site, and it would be nice to start getting some perspective of how they work for me. I'm looking forward to the Derby too, as they must have the most polarising responses of all blades. From what I recall, they worked just fine for me.

 

[Esox]

Polsilver SI I believe is one of the best blades made.

Astra SP is a very good blade. Sharp enough and smooth enough, but to me has a lot of 'bare blade' feel to it like Kai and Nacet. I'd be hard pressed telling an Astra SP from a Nacet in a blind test.

Derby Extra is a blade I've liked a lot since first use, but I believe they need a rigid design to get the most of them. They are surprisingly sharp and very smooth and forgiving. They didnt seem to last that long for me in my NEW SC, 4 shaves.

I have yet to test longevity in my Grande, but it was the first blade I used in it. I have 190 of them left. Mine are all the older pre 2015 or 2016 version I believe.

I started right side mid ear at the base of my side burn and as soon as the razor moved, I knew. That single stroke went right to the bottom of my neck as did all other strokes as I worked my way across my face.

Effortless full length strokes.

In the right razor they're really nice blades.

 

[Esox]

Oh right, you mentioned GSB lol.

Thats a blade I've never gotten along with but I really tried and wanted to like it, much the same as Feather.

My first use of it in my Grande was a blood bath. I was bleeding from 5 different places and had blood everywhere. On me, my razor, in the lather in the sink, in my brush and my bowl lol.

The second shave with the same blade flipped was better, but nope, not a pick for me...

 

[AimlessWanderer]

It could be several months before I get them all tested and can offer opinions in return. I loaded a Wilkinson Sword yesterday (German version, have you tried them?) which I love using, and that first shave was like coning home after a long journey

The next five on the list are Polsilver SI, Super-Max Blue Diamond Titanium, Astra SP, Gillette Silver Blue and Feather. All of which get good reviews on here, with of course a spattering of dissenters Derby is another three places further down the list, so the leaves might be getting ready to fall off the trees again before I get to that one, depending on how the others do

I might knock a few off the list actually. The Israeli blacks are ones that I've only seen sold at one place. I think these are the ones that some stores use as own brand razors, and the card insert just has a generic picture of a blade (white on black background) with no text.

The Bluebeards Revenge are another less common blade, and the Nacet blades that I have are Malaysian Supuer Nacets, which look difficult to get hold of. If I knock those off I might replace them with a few other common ones that aren't on the list, such as the standard Nacets, Permasharp, Gillette Rubie, and maybe the Gillette platinum and blacks. That'll all probably be in 2019 though, so I'll worry about that nearer the time.

I wish I could somehow fast forward through my testing and get the results early instead of waiting 18 months for them all. Anyone got a Tardis I can borrow?

 

[Esox]

I havent used the German Wilkinson Sword since production moved out of England and my father stopped buying them. Thats a long time ago.

See the Gillette Blacks below that I have.



I'm unaware of an Israeli Black, but I believe the Personna Platinum is whats commonly referred to as the Israeli Red and is commonly sold as a "drug store" brand in much of the US. UK packaging below.



I have tried a single blade and didnt get along with it very well in my NEW SC.

Anyone got a Tardis I can borrow?

John Titor took it back to 2036 with him when he left lol.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

I havent used the German Wilkinson Sword since production moved out of England and my father stopped buying them. Thats a long time ago.

See the Gillette Blacks below that I have.

View attachment 845550 View attachment 845551

I'm unaware of an Israeli Black, but I believe the Personna Platinum is whats commonly referred to as the Israeli Red and is commonly sold as a "drug store" brand in much of the US. UK packaging below.

View attachment 845552

I have tried a single blade and didnt get along with it very well in my NEW SC.


John Titor took it back to 2036 with him when he left lol.

These are the Israeli Black blades that Shaving Shack is selling as just "Israeli Made".

I don't know if these are a direct equivalent of a "known" Israeli blade, but they look suspiciously like ones that I have seen on own brand packaging.

For example...

The Tesco blades sell at £2.00 per box, and Shaving Shack sells them at £2.69. Why am I not surprised

 

[Esox]

Rebranded something or other. I imagine it depends who they can get them from for the right price in bulk.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

All I know is they are made in Israel and are platinum coated. I actually got these as part of a deal several years ago when I ordered something else. The upside is that if these work well, the same blades are available as own brands in at least two stores over here.

Here are the other blades that I have for testing.

These will probably take me a good while to work through, but there are several very popular blades missing from this line up.

When I get further through them (I have used two, and have a third in testing right now) I'll consider adding some of the notable absent blades, such as the standard Nacet, 7 O'Clock Black, PermaSharp Super, and so on.

I've no inclination to try every blade on the market, but I would like to try most of the popular ones, and add their shave tally to the list.

 

[Esox]

The more blades you try, the better your chances of finding the best blade(s) for you. Some are hidden gems, like the Astra SS that gets little mention over the SP. I feel the SS is the better blade. Its as sharp and quite a lot smoother.

These are the ones I've tried thus far in my Grande and posted about in my journal:

In 21 shaves, 4 blades have risen to the top. There has been the odd shave between due to cheating haha, and a soap or cream review here or there, but the blades uses in this razor thus far, in the order of use are:

Derby Extra
Gillette Green
Perma-Sharp Super
Blue Diamond Titanium
GSB x2
Feather - Starting direct ATG shaves at this point.
Polsilver x2
Gillette Black
Gillette Yellow
Kai
Nacet
Personna Lab Blue
Astra SP
Astra SS x2
Gillette Rubie
Derby Extra

19 shaves with 15 different blades and only four, or maybe 5, are standouts.

Since that list was compiled, these blades have been added to it.

Lord Platinum
Bic Chrome Platinum
Feather revisited with 3 clean up passes needed. Much the same as my first use of it in my Grande.

The blades I have.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

A nice wide spectrum there, Mike. It sounds like you were only trying most of them for one shave though. Have your opinions changed since you've been spending longer with blades?

When I was testing blades for short periods, it was pretty pointless and they all seemed very similar, or at least none stood out as particularly wonderful or desperately poor. It's only since I've started spending longer with them, that I can start to get a better appreciation for them.

A lot of this is simply how long the blades last, but also whether they smooth out, level off, and how quickly they deteriorate at the end of their life.

 

[Esox]

A nice wide spectrum there, Mike. It sounds like you were only trying most of them for one shave though. Have your opinions changed since you've been spending longer with blades?

When I was testing blades for short periods, it was pretty pointless and they all seemed very similar, or at least none stood out as particularly wonderful or desperately poor. It's only since I've started spending longer with them, that I can start to get a better appreciation for them.

A lot of this is simply how long the blades last, but also whether they smooth out, level off, and how quickly they deteriorate at the end of their life.

I've only gone back and tried a few a second time, but no my opinion of them hasnt changed. The Feather blade gave the same performance as the first shave in my Grande. In my Tech I pushed a Feather to 4 shaves and it had become so harsh and uncomfortable that I wasnt willing to try a 5th, but in my Tech it takes me 5-6 passes for the same level of finish I get with my Grande in 1 1/2 - 2 passes. That harshness accumulates with the Tech because its such a mild shaver. In my Grande that harshness is evident at the start because it offers so much more blade exposure.

Polsilver, Gillette Yellow and Derby Extra all performed the same as the first shave or very slightly better. Polsilver became very smooth on the 4th shave and has remained so up to yesterdays 13th shave. It really is a great blade.

The one blade that did give me a better second shave was GSB, but the first shave was so bloody and painful, it's not worth going through again to find out lol.

The most telling part of those tests is the fact that all were used in shaves starting directly ATG after shave #7 with a Feather blade. Few blades, or razors, have what it takes to do that comfortably and effectively. If a blade performs really well in a shave starting directly ATG, it will perform even better used in a more traditional manner.

If I was doing a more traditional 3 pass shave, virtually every blade I've used would have been fine other than GSB. In a more traditional multi-pass shave I still like Derby Extra the best, but the Gillette Black is right there with it. Its a very smooth blade and only lacking a little sharpness for me, which might improve with use.

With Polsilver and Gillette Yellow both being such sharp and effective blades, more than 2 passes really isnt needed as long as I do my part. A WTG/XTG first pass takes so much off, another pass in the same or nearly the same direction is of no benefit. Seeing as I always want a BBS finish, even after the first pass with any of those blades, my next pass is always ATG. The telling part is whether or not I need a second or third ATG pass, with the vast majority of blades I will.

Some of that falls to the design of the Fatip OC head. I really think of it much like a straight razor as there is so much blade in contact with the skin at the optimum angle, with a blade that suits your skin and hair consistency, it shaves you so close you dont need multiple passes in multiple directions to have a close shave. I really dont believe there is a more efficient DE. Some say the R41 will do the same, and I believe it might, but it will not do it as quickly, comfortably or with nearly the same level of security or smoothness and it certainly wont do it ATG first pass, even after 24 hours growth never mind 50+.

My very first shave with my Grande was with a Derby Extra. A blade that is much disliked by so many, but in my Grande I had a nice DFS first pass WTG/XTG. For the vast majority of shavers, especially those that use the EJ type head, they could have the same or even better finish, with one single pass, and it would be done quicker and more comfortably with I believe a very distinct feeling of smoothness and safety. How much better would your skin feel after a single pass shave for a week compared to 3 pass shaves for a week? Mine prefers less shaving time.

Finish that first quick, simple WTG/XTG pass, wet my hand, wipe and check and had a nice DFS. On one single pass, with a Derby Extra.

Lather again and dive right into the ATG pass as I normally do with no buffing. Let me state that again as I tend to buff a lot. No buffing. Wet my hand, check again and honestly from the feel of the razor and that first simple pass I knew where I'd be, basically finished. Pretty much BBS everywhere. I did do one more quick buffing pass over my neck and jawline just to clean up a little.

 

[AimlessWanderer]

Yesterday (or was it the day before?), I did actually try skipping the first (North to South) pass, and went straight for South to North, which is XTG below the jaw, and ATG above.

The Edwin Jagger and WSC blade handled it fine, and so did my face. However, there seemed to be too much resistance for my liking. I wasn't convinced that I was doing the blade or my face any favours, and reverted back to my traditional shave pattern today. The resistance surprised me actually. I would have thought starting ATG would take a more direct (less angled) route through the hair, but for whatever reason, the resistance is significantly higher. I have tried skipping that first pass before, and irrespective of blade I keep getting similar results (even with the Gillette Yellow, and with different razors too).

I probably have to apply double the effort to go through my beard that way as I would normally. I really don't like having to use that much effort, as one slip of the razor with that much grunt behind it, and I'm in for a very nasty bite. I've happily managed to keep all the red messy stuff on the inside since I started shaving again at the end of October, and I'd rather keep it that way While I can get away with it on a new(ish) blade, it's really not a wise habit for me to get into. That extra pass takes no toll on my skin, and probably is easier on the blade edge too.

It's wierd, after coming back to shaving after a couple of years off, I immediately fell into my old routine. After coming here and reading different shaving approaches, I have tried a couple of different thing, but keep reverting back to the old ways. I reckon I settled on the old ways for a reason. They work! Don't get me wrong, I'm glad I have taken the time to explore different tweaks. I've been doing the same thing so long, I can't really remember all the things I originally tried which failed. Yet everytime I try something different, it just serves as a reminder and a friendly dig in the ribs to keep doing what I've always done.

Maybe I'll be able to take a different approach when the vintage razors come back on line, but as regards DE, I think I've pretty much found my ideal routine.

 

[Esox]

I do my cheeks S-N first ATG, then usually my jawline and below towards my chin slightly upwards, but all of that is buffing. I only use long strokes WTG and XTG. Only ATG after its been reduced a bit but I rarely shave like that anymore. Its become habit already to just shave directly ATG and I have to stop and think about any other direction now lol.

The resistance met is considerable, especially after around the 38 hour mark for me. This is why my buffing strokes are shorter.

I came back to DE shaving after around 35 years away lol. Just like riding a bike, bit wobbly at first maybe, but you remember quickly.

Once you know what works, no harm in trying new things to see if they help, but if they dont, well...if it aint broke, as the saying goes.

Thats exactly how I feel when I do a WTG/XTG pass. Why am I doing this. Its not needed and it wont get me where I want to be any quicker or more comfortably, so I just shave ATG like I should have anyway lol.

 

[Tokyospike]

Hey Al (and Mike). I'm still catching up here, but this is a fun journal.

The order might change, but here's the blades that I've already got . . .

I like your order, cuz it front loads blades I've tried myself . . .

Enjoy!

(FWIW, I only buff my cheeks, and only ATG. Not sure why, it's just what feels right, & I've always done it . . .)

 

[AimlessWanderer]

Yay, Spike's here

Cheers buddy. I just wish there was a way to fast forward though it all I'm up to shave 5 on the third blade now, so it's still going to be a good while before I get results for all the popular blades.

 

[Tokyospike]

I wish I could somehow fast forward through my testing and get the results early instead of waiting 18 months for them all. Anyone got a Tardis I can borrow?

Yeah, I get it. Try to just focus on the blade you've got loaded at the moment. I always keep the tuck visible next to the razor and make sure all others are put away, out of sight. Of course, since I'm trying to get down to one blade/razor, I'm always sort of pretending the blade I'm using is that one . . .

I feel a little funny having drawn a line at 21 DE brands, and only using one blade for 16 of those brands, but like you I wanted to get to the station eventually and not spend my life on the train. What if there really is a perfect razor & blade somewhere and I never even try it? As it turns out, the top few blades I've tried so far are absolutely good enough for my purposes, so I'm comfortable not being a a completist.

9 mos. went by pretty quick for me, looking back . . .