Your Most Unpopular/Controversial Shaving Opinion(s)

[Eric_75]

For me, the Yardley English Lavender and the Wild Rose bar soaps provide excellent shaves. Alone or mixed with another soap. If you took all my other soaps/creams away (even my beloved Arko) and I had nothing else, I would still achieve optimal lather with Yardley. I'm looking forward to getting a shave in with the Yardley Oatmeal & Almond.

 

[Ankerwycke]

 

[kikovich]

artisan soaps aren't soaps, are croaps.

a soap is solid piece

 

[JasonJT]

For me it has to be those rotten ‘lubricating strips’ found on most cartridge razors. They do nothing to enhance the shave. Just an excuse to charge even more money.

Jason.

 

[spacemonkey42]

Blades are not mild or aggressive - they are only dull or sharp.

Mild or aggressive comes only in combination with the razor and the way it presents the blade.

 

[Mr. Shavington]

Blades are not mild or aggressive - they are only dull or sharp.

Mild or aggressive comes only in combination with the razor and the way it presents the blade.

I would add that razors are not aggressive either. Some of them may be relatively less safe or less comfortable to use, but aggression is a state of mind that no razor is capable of possessing any more than it could be benevolent or caring.

So rest assured that your razor is not out to get you. It isn’t even aware of your existence.

 

[Eric_75]

It isn’t even aware of your existence.

Don't tell me that. I was talking with my 1946 Gillette Ranger the other day. I asked it how many shaves it had seen in its lifetime so far.

 

[Mr. Shavington]

Ok, so ‘shave-of-the-day’ pics utterly confound me. I don’t get it. Is it simply to prove that you really do own the items you say you just used to shave with, because, honestly, I am prepared to take your word for it? Is it to justify to your wife why you need a new purple/orange-handled brush to match the shaving soap in the purple/orange tub? Is it to create a documentary archive of what equipment you use each day, in case it is found to be of importance to future historians? Is it art, in some sense?

I’m missing the point of it, though I can see many people go to a great deal of trouble to clean and arrange all their equipment for a group photo after (or before?) they shave.

I’m entirely on board with posting pics to make the forum look nice and allow people to see the stuff we’re talking about. But I’m just not getting ‘still-life with used shaving equipment by the sink’ as an artistic genre. Would be great to understand better some of the motivations.

 

[Mike M]

Would be great to understand better some of the motivations.

I only did the odd SOTD pic, until I saw @JAHE photos and they are proper artistic photos then when I started joining challenges it just seemed weird not posting a pic. I am not the artist that @JAHE is, but I give it a go when I have time

 

[NorthernSoul]

Ok, so ‘shave-of-the-day’ pics utterly confound me. I don’t get it...

I think it's just treating shaving as a hobby. There's enthusiasm for the cool equipment and a desire to share it. Like "Show and Tell" when we were kids. You see the same kind of thing in other hobbyist forums.

 

[JAHE]

I only did the odd SOTD pic, until I saw @JAHE photos and they are proper artistic photos then when I started joining challenges it just seemed weird not posting a pic. I am not the artist that @JAHE is, but I give it a go when I have time

First of all, I haven't and I wouldn't consider myself as an artist by any means. Photography was a hobby for me before the kids took over the focus (pun intended ).

Personnally, I like watching shave gear pics. Perhaps that's an odd liking, but I really enjoy these sort of shots, especially when vintage razors are included... can't help it

As per my personal motivation, more than often I don't have anything meaningful to report wrt to my daily shave. Over the years my technique got better and better, shaves became more and more dramafree. Wouldn't it be boring to just state in row "great flawless shave, almost bbs in three passes, no nicks". The SOTD pics add some variety, or at times, they replace a detailed list of gear I have shaved with if there's just nothing spectacular to report. It rarely takes me more than a minute or two to stage my gear (I clean my gear after every shave, anyway), editing in post is done on the mobile with a freeware app (I exclusively use my mobile for my pics...). All this takes rarely more than another three minutes.

Since I get positive feedback every now and then as a reaction from other B&B brothers, I just continue to post pics. It appears, others are just as odd as I am

Happy shaves!

 

[Phoenixkh]

Ok, so ‘shave-of-the-day’ pics utterly confound me. I don’t get it. Is it simply to prove that you really do own the items you say you just used to shave with, because, honestly, I am prepared to take your word for it? Is it to justify to your wife why you need a new purple/orange-handled brush to match the shaving soap in the purple/orange tub? Is it to create a documentary archive of what equipment you use each day, in case it is found to be of importance to future historians? Is it art, in some sense?

I’m missing the point of it, though I can see many people go to a great deal of trouble to clean and arrange all their equipment for a group photo after (or before?) they shave.

I’m entirely on board with posting pics to make the forum look nice and allow people to see the stuff we’re talking about. But I’m just not getting ‘still-life with used shaving equipment by the sink’ as an artistic genre. Would be great to understand better some of the motivations.

I'm a photography hobbiest.... so they are fun for me. I did start a journal and will use photos to document my journey for newbies when they show up, if they are interested. Photographs helped me familiarize myself with the gear available on the market currently because when I showed up on B&B, I was a complete novice, though I did get lucky with my initial purchases.

I hadn't considered that some people might fake the whole wet shaving thing and really have beards down to their knees, but I guess that is a possibility. <eg>

 

[Frank Discussion]

I guess my most controversial shaving opinion at this time is my use of 1/2 a (trimmed to fit) DE blade in my Schick L1 injector razor. I shaved with this setup this afternoon using 1/2 a Wilkinson Sword blade and had one of the best closest BBS shaves I've had in years. No cuts and no irritation.

 

[GR5233]

For me it has to be those rotten ‘lubricating strips’ found on most cartridge razors. They do nothing to enhance the shave. Just an excuse to charge even more money.

Jason.

Probably not controversial (except to Gillette and other big name cart makers) but I feel the same way. Same thing with the “new” “exfoliating strip.” I’m like *** is the point of it. It seems like Gillette knows that the canned foams/gels are crap compared to soaps and creams that need a brush and they’re trying to compensate for it

 

[Doc Dan]

Gillette Foamy can be made a little better (not great) by putting it in a shaving bowl and using a brush as usual. Mix it around till it looks better and paint it on.

 

[Ckmaui]

I'm a photography hobbiest.... so they are fun for me. I did start a journal and will use photos to document my journey for newbies when they show up, if they are interested. Photographs helped me familiarize myself with the gear available on the market currently because when I showed up on B&B, I was a complete novice, though I did get lucky with my initial purchases.

I hadn't considered that some people might fake the whole wet shaving thing and really have beards down to their knees, but I guess that is a possibility. <eg>

I might have to do some fun photos one day with some great lighting etc...
since photography and retouching is my full time living last 20 yrs and I used to do commercial advertising doing more retouching these days some magazine covers etc...
pets are my passion though just trying to find the money in it

 

[Tanuki]

Ok, so ‘shave-of-the-day’ pics utterly confound me. I don’t get it. Is it simply to prove that you really do own the items you say you just used to shave with, because, honestly, I am prepared to take your word for it? Is it to justify to your wife why you need a new purple/orange-handled brush to match the shaving soap in the purple/orange tub? Is it to create a documentary archive of what equipment you use each day, in case it is found to be of importance to future historians? Is it art, in some sense?

I’m missing the point of it, though I can see many people go to a great deal of trouble to clean and arrange all their equipment for a group photo after (or before?) they shave.

I’m entirely on board with posting pics to make the forum look nice and allow people to see the stuff we’re talking about. But I’m just not getting ‘still-life with used shaving equipment by the sink’ as an artistic genre. Would be great to understand better some of the motivations.

Yep, the Greeks had perfectly good bards reciting, then they went off into left field wearing costumes and acting in theaters.

Radio had perfectly good comedy and drama, then TV?!? What's with that?

For that matter, our clam-shell-shaving troglodyte forefathers had perfectly good guttural grunting, then messed things up with the elaborate hunting scenes on the cave walls.

Pointless visuals, but they keep turning up.

 

[JAHE]

I might have to do some fun photos one day with some great lighting etc...
since photography and retouching is my full time living last 20 yrs and I used to do commercial advertising doing more retouching these days some magazine covers etc...
pets are my passion though just trying to find the money in it

Wow, that would be fun. Would love to see a professionell take on shooting our beloved stuff

 

[JasonJT]

Probably not controversial (except to Gillette and other big name cart makers) but I feel the same way. Same thing with the “new” “exfoliating strip.” I’m like *** is the point of it. It seems like Gillette knows that the canned foams/gels are crap compared to soaps and creams that need a brush and they’re trying to compensate for it

I just think all of these features are bells and whistles. Like the Gillette heated razor (it’s not rocket science to dip your razor in hot water).

I think cartridge razors have hit a ceiling now. I honestly can’t think of extra features Gillette can add.

Jason

 

[GR5233]

I just think all of these features are bells and whistles. Like the Gillette heated razor (it’s not rocket science to dip your razor in hot water).

I think cartridge razors have hit a ceiling now. I honestly can’t think of extra features Gillette can add.

Jason

Yeah. And they charge $200 for something that probably costs them $2.50 to make and that’s probably on the high side