To Hell and Back or My Descent into the Abyss of Electric Shaving
Last month I had total knee replacement surgery. An old football injury (1962) had finally caught up to me. (I remember the play it was a cheap shot.) Among the post-op treatments were daily injections for four weeks of an anticoagulant (aka blood thinner). This was to reduce the risk of blood clots that can cause complications in other parts of my body, most notably my heart and lungs. One of the complications/side effects of anticoagulants is the potential for profuse bleeding in what would otherwise be a minor cut or scratch. Therefore, shaving with a sharp-edged razor is strictly forbidden. That left two options:
1. grow a beard
2. use an electric shaver
SWMBO nixed the beard, and since she was going to be my primary caregiver during my recovery, I figured I had better not **** her off.
That left going electric. In my 45+ years of shaving, I have owned two electric shavers. In high school (mid-60s), I received a Norelco for my birthday (or Christmas). Im not sure how long I used it, but I do recall that by the time I graduated, I was shaving with a Gillette Techmatic and whatever aerosol cream had the best TV commercial. In the mid-70s, my employer at the time owned Remington Shaver. Employees got pretty good discounts, so I decided to give the electric one more shot. This didnt last long either. I recall that I just didnt feel clean after using it. For most of the time since then, I have been using a shaving brush for lather. I also used the latest and greatest being touted by Gillette or Schick until my conversion to DE shaving earlier this year. Needless to say, I wasnt too wild about this temporary detour, but I had no choice.
I checked out electric shavers on the Internet. I was amazed at the range in prices from just under $30 to over $200. I certainly wasnt going to spend top-dollar on something I planned to use for a month. I bought a Panasonic wet/dry for just under $30. In spite of the low price, it had good reviews, and I have had good luck with other Panasonic items. I tried it as a dry shaver in the hospital, and it was pretty bad. But in all fairness, I wasnt my best either. The stubble on my cheeks was reduced somewhat, but I dont think it removed much on my neck.
After I went home (four days), I switched to using it in wet shaving mode. I lathered up pretty much the same way I would if I were using a DE razor, and went to town. The lather does lubricate the surface, so the shaving head glides back and forth with no pulling. I went back and forth many times, and could hear my whiskers being cut. It did nothing for the extra growth on my neck. I had a small electric beard trimmer that I used several years ago (remember SWMBOs nixing of the beard it was based on experience), and that helped somewhat. I later tried the pop-up trimmer on the shaver, and that worked a little better on reducing any wayward whiskers to a length that could be handled by the shaver.
The first several shaves were pretty lame, but my techniques improved after a week or so. Overall, I would describe my experience with the electric as providing a serviceable shave, meaning it looks OK from a normal viewing distance, and probably would be OK for work. However, those with heavy beards could have issues by mid to late afternoon. Although I was using wet lather, the final result still lacked the clean feeling I have come to appreciate from using lather and a good blade. More importantly, the final result was definitely not close enough to impress SWMBO. I would call electric the Lite Beer of shaving.
During the final days of this ordeal I was looking forward, with much anticipation, to the day I would return to regular shaving. When I finally got to put razor to face, it was nothing short of wonderful. I think being off traditional wet shaving for a while has made me appreciate it even more. But I do not recommend shaving with an electric just to appreciate wet shaving. Kind of like hitting yourself with a hammer because it feels so good when you stop. Anyway, my ordeal is done! I am back to nice, clean BBS shaves, and shaving is fun again. And, my knee is better, too.
Last month I had total knee replacement surgery. An old football injury (1962) had finally caught up to me. (I remember the play it was a cheap shot.) Among the post-op treatments were daily injections for four weeks of an anticoagulant (aka blood thinner). This was to reduce the risk of blood clots that can cause complications in other parts of my body, most notably my heart and lungs. One of the complications/side effects of anticoagulants is the potential for profuse bleeding in what would otherwise be a minor cut or scratch. Therefore, shaving with a sharp-edged razor is strictly forbidden. That left two options:
1. grow a beard
2. use an electric shaver
SWMBO nixed the beard, and since she was going to be my primary caregiver during my recovery, I figured I had better not **** her off.
That left going electric. In my 45+ years of shaving, I have owned two electric shavers. In high school (mid-60s), I received a Norelco for my birthday (or Christmas). Im not sure how long I used it, but I do recall that by the time I graduated, I was shaving with a Gillette Techmatic and whatever aerosol cream had the best TV commercial. In the mid-70s, my employer at the time owned Remington Shaver. Employees got pretty good discounts, so I decided to give the electric one more shot. This didnt last long either. I recall that I just didnt feel clean after using it. For most of the time since then, I have been using a shaving brush for lather. I also used the latest and greatest being touted by Gillette or Schick until my conversion to DE shaving earlier this year. Needless to say, I wasnt too wild about this temporary detour, but I had no choice.
I checked out electric shavers on the Internet. I was amazed at the range in prices from just under $30 to over $200. I certainly wasnt going to spend top-dollar on something I planned to use for a month. I bought a Panasonic wet/dry for just under $30. In spite of the low price, it had good reviews, and I have had good luck with other Panasonic items. I tried it as a dry shaver in the hospital, and it was pretty bad. But in all fairness, I wasnt my best either. The stubble on my cheeks was reduced somewhat, but I dont think it removed much on my neck.
After I went home (four days), I switched to using it in wet shaving mode. I lathered up pretty much the same way I would if I were using a DE razor, and went to town. The lather does lubricate the surface, so the shaving head glides back and forth with no pulling. I went back and forth many times, and could hear my whiskers being cut. It did nothing for the extra growth on my neck. I had a small electric beard trimmer that I used several years ago (remember SWMBOs nixing of the beard it was based on experience), and that helped somewhat. I later tried the pop-up trimmer on the shaver, and that worked a little better on reducing any wayward whiskers to a length that could be handled by the shaver.
The first several shaves were pretty lame, but my techniques improved after a week or so. Overall, I would describe my experience with the electric as providing a serviceable shave, meaning it looks OK from a normal viewing distance, and probably would be OK for work. However, those with heavy beards could have issues by mid to late afternoon. Although I was using wet lather, the final result still lacked the clean feeling I have come to appreciate from using lather and a good blade. More importantly, the final result was definitely not close enough to impress SWMBO. I would call electric the Lite Beer of shaving.
During the final days of this ordeal I was looking forward, with much anticipation, to the day I would return to regular shaving. When I finally got to put razor to face, it was nothing short of wonderful. I think being off traditional wet shaving for a while has made me appreciate it even more. But I do not recommend shaving with an electric just to appreciate wet shaving. Kind of like hitting yourself with a hammer because it feels so good when you stop. Anyway, my ordeal is done! I am back to nice, clean BBS shaves, and shaving is fun again. And, my knee is better, too.
