Which razor to buy?

[k5m]

Ok,

I am a newbie to this whole DE thing, but I really like what I have seen thus far. I've taken the first step of getting away from my beloved shave gel's and have moved to a badger/water/shave cream mixture with an aftershave and I absolutely love it. I'm ready for step 2, getting the dreaded DE itself.

Here are the challenges I face.

1) I can find some great deals and probably great razors on ebay. I can find all sorts of varieties from gillette to murkur to whoever. BUT???? Can I find the blades? Say I get a great deal only to find the blades are a total pain in the *** to find?

2) Amazon.com seems to have a good selection of Murkur razors and blades, seems like a reputable and reliable source for the future. I should be able to easily replace my blades with this method.

3) Combine the two problems together with the fact that nowhere in my town does a store offer ANY of these products. God help you if you go to a store and ask for a DE, you will get sent to the electronics section of the store without doubt.

So that begs the question "What to do?"

Thanks in advance gents!

BTW, on a side comment, I should tell you all that I converted to my shaving experience with L'ocitaine products. I find them to be absolutely top notch. I bought the cream and aftershave. This was about $50 upfront, but based on the usage I am seeing so far I should get about 3 months usage out of the pair, which lowers that price to about $17.00 a month.

The state of shaving in this country (USA) is a direct reflect on the integrity and overall state of the country. No more quality and products manufactured here, just cheap Chinese crap we're supposed to pay too much for and toss out after 2 uses. No thank you!

 

[JBHoren]

So that begs the question "What to do?"

Find a B&B member (or several of them) who is/are willing to loan you several DE razors for a month or two, so that you can "test drive" 'em. A posting in the "Newbie" forum will get replies.

Try one model from each of the Gillette generations: "Old Type", "New Improved", "NEW", and TTO. If you don't find one to suit you, try a different model (King C. Gillette came out with a wide variety of models, over the years, so you have what to choose from).

They'll all take the same DE razor blades. My advice is to try the different razors with a single, standard razor blade -- the Israeli Personna (IP) is good to start with.

Let us know what happens!

 

[brooklynlou]

The usual recommended starter set for a new guy starting out is:

1 - A Merkur DE or some sort (Usually the HD)
2 - A good starter Badger brush ($30 range)
3 - The letterk sampler pack of blades from westcoastshaving.com
4 - A simple puck of shaving soap or cream

A new Merkur DE is recommended simply because its a known commodity and you avoid the crap shoot that is ebay. Later on when you get adventurous, you can always try some old gillettes

Starter badger brushes go anywhere from 10 - 30 bucks. Pick one. Whether its a Tweezerman, a Vulfix, Omega, etc. you'll get years of service from it.

Blades are the wild card in all this. Some blades / razor combos do well for some people and horribly for others. For example, I dislike Derbys and prefer Merkurs blades. Most people on B&B prefer the opposite. Find the blade that does the right thing for your face. The sampler pack give you 5 different types to try.

The better the soap, the more enjoyable the shave, but push come to shove you can use high end bath soap and not suffer all too much. Soaps and creams offer you a great variety of scents. think of a scent you like and find the corresponding soap.

 

[crankymoose]

The usual recommended starter set for a new guy starting out is:

1 - A Merkur DE or some sort (Usually the HD)
2 - A good starter Badger brush ($30 range)
3 - The letterk sampler pack of blades from westcoastshaving.com
4 - A simple puck of shaving soap or cream

A new Merkur DE is recommended simply because its a known commodity and you avoid the crap shoot that is ebay. Later on when you get adventurous, you can always try some old gillettes

Starter badger brushes go anywhere from 10 - 30 bucks. Pick one. Whether its a Tweezerman, a Vulfix, Omega, etc. you'll get years of service from it.

Blades are the wild card in all this. Some blades / razor combos do well for some people and horribly for others. For example, I dislike Derbys and prefer Merkurs blades. Most people on B&B prefer the opposite. Find the blade that does the right thing for your face. The sampler pack give you 5 different types to try.

The better the soap, the more enjoyable the shave, but push come to shove you can use high end bath soap and not suffer all too much. Soaps and creams offer you a great variety of scents. think of a scent you like and find the corresponding soap.

+1

 

[lli]

On ebay you can find a variety of blades. I am currently going through a variety of blades to find the one that suits my Merkur 23c best. LINK

Blades are so personal, you just have to find out by trying yourself. However, experiences of others might steer you in the right direction. E.g. if you dislike Sharp because you think it is too sharp, probably stay off Feathers. These if this, then that, I am trying to find out.

 

[Sabledog]

The internet is your friend! This forum is your enabler!!

Trust us, finding blades and razors is too easy once you start! Knowing when to STOP is the tough part!

 

[Groundhog]

The internet is your friend! This forum is your enabler!!

Trust us, finding blades and razors is too easy once you start! Knowing when to STOP is the tough part!

Truer words were never written......

 

[Shave Cat]

The better the soap, the more enjoyable the shave, but push come to shove you can use high end bath soap and not suffer all too much. Soaps and creams offer you a great variety of scents. think of a scent you like and find the corresponding soap.

+1 Ain't that the truth! On the recommendation of one of the mods here, I purchased soap from The Gentlemen's Quarter and ltlsuz. Their soaps have allowed me some very close shaves. I'm not knocking anyone else's products. I just haven't found time to try any others yet.

-Clarke

 

[zatoichi]

You can shave with almost all DEs. It is your technical skills that make the main difference, the razor just makes a subtle difference IMO. A good starter is a Superspeed, any modell or year will do. It is gentle and forgiving. If you want a new razor, you should know that the Weishi is a copy of the Superspeed. It is made in China, but the quality is alright.

 

[Shave Cat]

You can shave with almost all DEs. It is your technical skills that make the main difference, the razor just makes a subtle difference IMO. A good starter is a Superspeed, any modell or year will do. It is gentle and forgiving. If you want a new razor, you should know that the Weishi is a copy of the Superspeed. It is made in China, but the quality is alright.

+1 I like my '53 Superspeed. It just feels right in my hand. Using proper technique, I get a very close shave (almost too close). I've never tried a Merkur though.

-Clarke

 

[dreadpirate]

The usual recommended starter set for a new guy starting out is:

1 - A Merkur DE or some sort (Usually the HD)
2 - A good starter Badger brush ($30 range)
3 - The letterk sampler pack of blades from westcoastshaving.com
4 - A simple puck of shaving soap or cream

A new Merkur DE is recommended simply because its a known commodity and you avoid the crap shoot that is ebay. Later on when you get adventurous, you can always try some old gillettes

Starter badger brushes go anywhere from 10 - 30 bucks. Pick one. Whether its a Tweezerman, a Vulfix, Omega, etc. you'll get years of service from it.

Blades are the wild card in all this. Some blades / razor combos do well for some people and horribly for others. For example, I dislike Derbys and prefer Merkurs blades. Most people on B&B prefer the opposite. Find the blade that does the right thing for your face. The sampler pack give you 5 different types to try.

The better the soap, the more enjoyable the shave, but push come to shove you can use high end bath soap and not suffer all too much. Soaps and creams offer you a great variety of scents. think of a scent you like and find the corresponding soap.

I would offer the following possible mods to the above;

Try a old Gillette Super Speed razor - you can get one delivered to your door for $15 or less off of EBay. Any of the flare tip super speeds. But the Merkur HD is a safe bet if you do not like the idea of using a 40 - 50 year old razor.

Instead of a starter brush that you will end up replacing in three months - spend $60 - $75 and get a decent brush right from the git go. Folks on this board seem to like Rooney, Shavemac, Simpson, or Saville Row. But I think any Silvertip or Super badger brush with a knot size of 22mm or so would be fine.

Westcoast shaving has all kinds of blades you can buy - either as a sampler pack or in bulk. He will sell blades in bulk not listed on his site. I bought 100 Derbys from him even though he does not list that as an option.

I like the Geo. F. Trumper soap if you want to use a soap instead of a cream.

 

[k5m]

Thank you guys, I really appreciate all the information you are sharing with me. I'm probably going to go with the Gillette route and a sample pack. Seems like a good idea to me. I'll let you all know how it goes.

- Kris

 

[michael m]

I think everything you could say has been said . And I could not agree more . I do try and keep and support the people here on this site .