Any wet shavers?

[Katrina71]

I have shaved a guy with a straight razor. We had to do it for beauty school like 100 years ago. There is an art to it for sure.

 

[naterealbig]

I thought you might appreciate this

Absolutely nothing like a good straight - there are a few good makers still, although Dovo and Thiers Issard are the only two big producers.

I collect, hone, and shave with them. Some are absolutely stunning. Here is a small handful from my collection.

 

[Brad Miller]

I don’t shave
Haven’t for about 37 years or so, swore a razor would never touch my face again when I got out of the Marine Corps

 

[Evan28395950]

Wow, I didn’t even know this was a hobby, cool! I’m more into colognes myself

 

[Rakie]

I’ve never considered or looked into shaving as a luxurious experience. After this thread I may have to reconsider and invest into some quality soaps, shavers, etc. Question is where do I start? Is there any all in one for beginners?

I can pick you out a basic set in any price range you want. Just pm me if you are interested, otherwise maggard razors is a good jumping off point.

It leads to colognes and such as well.

 

[Rakie]

Wow, I didn’t even know this was a hobby, cool! I’m more into colognes myself

If you're into colognes you'd love this hobby lol. We are intimately familiar with fougere, chypres, etc etc. Most of these high end soap artisans study cologne and EdTs, some of them have tirelessly remade some if the oldest and most classic cologne bases around, like mousse de saxe, 17th century cypres, etc etc.

These scents are actually quite well made.

Here's the story behind one of Barrister and Mann's best soaps -- Lavanille

"Some time ago, Barrister and Mann had the extraordinary fortune to obtain a sample of the discontinued, leathery perfume base Mousse de Saxe. Armed with only this small sample and historical records of what went into the original, we set out to re-create the famous design by smell alone. After four months of research, formulation, reformulation, and constant refinement, we successfully rebuilt Mousse de Saxe into its original glory. It seemed only fitting that such an achievement should be used to create a soap inspired by some of the greatest masculine fragrances of all time.

We blend our version of Mousse de Saxe with lavender, vanilla, cedar, and the elegant musk Exaltolide to create a dark, leathery, elegant soap unlike anything seen for nearly a half century."

 

[Hubert J. Farnsworth]

not really a hobby or a luxury for me, its a necessity. i can't stand hair on my face once it starts to get itchy.

its more of the right tool for the job kind of thing, saving money on ridiculously overpriced disposables and having a world with less plastic.

the safety razor hits all these marks for me, and does a much better job. just have to be a little more careful until you get the feel for it.

 

[Flexin]

^^^This^^^ A Gillette Mach3 blade lasts me about a month. Sure, it gets a little, um, plucky towards the end but that just tells me it's time for a new one.

Used them for a long time. I shave my face and head every day, so they last maybe two weeks. A long time ago I would stretch it out as long as I could, found myself pressing down more and more, and did not realize it until I put in a new razor and cut myself bad on my head, twice!! Ever since then I just replace them when the shave is not as clean on the fist swipe. As a result, I'm paranoid to try something different. I may give this a try on my face (razor suggestions in this thread) but the idea of a sample pack or testing different ones is scary after those cuts a few decades ago. I will have to do a ton of research (sounds like this hobby )

On my face in addition to Edge I use a shave oil and I shave in the shower. I've tried a bunch of them cheap to expensive, but like Jack Black shave oil, even over the Art of Shaving shave oil products. I will have to try some soap with a brush. Switching razors I've already put it off for years. My face I can deal with a cut, it's my head I'm sensitive about. TBC

 

[Westside Guy]

So is it a myth that you should always rinse the blade in cold or cool water as hot water will dull the blade faster?

 

[Rakie]

So is it a myth that you should always rinse the blade in cold or cool water as hot water will dull the blade faster?

Definitely a myth haha

 

[Rakie]

Shave of the day.. our typical breakdown for the hobby shaving nerds

- Pre Shave: shower
- Razor: iKon 102 slant
- Blade: Feather
- Brush: Custom blonde maple, synthetic badger
- Soap: Barrister and Mann beaudelaire
- Aftershave: Barrister and Mann Lavanille

And for anybody wondering -- That lather wasn't done yet, I guess I should have finished before taking that picture.. but I remember to clean the glass after I've been taking tank pictures for an hour too, so meh.

 

[Hubert J. Farnsworth]

didn't have a ton of time this morning, but gave the arko and badger brush a spin. definitely a closer shave, even with a blade with 3 or 4 shaves already on it.

i need to work on my technique/procedure. not sure how much lather is should get. ended up just wetting the soap, rubbing that on my face, then wetting the brush and working it into the soap. got a enough lather to coat and cover my stubble then went to town. i hope the brush smells better after some rinses or more use.

thanks for the tips everyone, good call.

 

[Rakie]

didn't have a ton of time this morning, but gave the arko and badger brush a spin. definitely a closer shave, even with a blade with 3 or 4 shaves already on it.

i need to work on my technique/procedure. not sure how much lather is should get. ended up just wetting the soap, rubbing that on my face, then wetting the brush and working it into the soap. got a enough lather to coat and cover my stubble then went to town. i hope the brush smells better after some rinses or more use.

thanks for the tips everyone, good call.

That's fine, lots of people do it that way when they use the shaving sticks. You'll get technique down quickly. When you're more curious test out something like Barrister and Mann soaps. It's more expensive, but for a very noticable reason. But you'll also easily get 100+ shaves out of that $20 soap.

 

[Hubert J. Farnsworth]

That's fine, lots of people do it that way when they use the shaving sticks. You'll get technique down quickly. When you're more curious test out something like Barrister and Mann soaps. It's more expensive, but for a very noticable reason. But you'll also easily get 100+ shaves out of that $20 soap.

i'll have to do this too. you have some thick lather in the bowl in your photo. how's that happen? work it up in the bowl with the brush before you put it on your face?

 

[Rakie]

i'll have to do this too. you have some thick lather in the bowl in your photo. how's that happen? work it up in the bowl with the brush before you put it on your face?

Actually that lather wasn't thick yet -- And yes!

A good beginner rule of thumb for tubs of soap, is to get the brush wet, shake out at least 75% of the water (it'll make sense when you do it) and then load the brush with soap for about 20-25 rotations. Then you work that soap in a lather bowl and add water until its where you want it. How much water depends on the soap, your water, and how much soap you loaded (which also depends on the soap).

It's sounds awkwardly complex.. But it's not, it's just a thing you recognize after a few times. You don't need a 'lather bowl' they're stupid expensive. Any bowl will do. I use a clear glass bowl, others use textured ceramic bowls. Others lather on their face by not loading the brush so much.

You can do the same with Arko, you just have to work it differently if you're going to work it on your face. Or try it in a bowl once or twice. Once you get things figured out, it makes shaving so much more enjoyable.

If you want to try a few high end soaps on the cheap, go to www.maggardrazors.com, and check out their samples. I would highly advise trying a couple Barrister and Mann soaps, and Wholly Kaw soaps. The scents will leave you shocked -- this hobby is basically high end cologne/perfume inducing. The quality of shave you get from Wholly Kaw or B&M will but anything you've ever tried to shame. It's a silly hobby!

 

[12gallonsofhex]

I wanted to try the wet shave when the kits started showing up in most big stores but never got around to it. I met my wife and she liked my trashy 2 day stubble so I buzz my face with an electric razor twice a week. I guess it's true, there's no accounting for taste. Lol.

 

[Rakie]

I wanted to try the wet shave when the kits started showing up in most big stores but never got around to it. I met my wife and she liked my trashy 2 day stubble so I buzz my face with an electric razor twice a week. I guess it's true, there's no accounting for taste. Lol.

I did that most of my life, and still do sometimes. Unfortunately sometimes I need to shave. I don't have to spend like $300 a year on shaving soaps though, that part is on me LOL

 

[Sod Buster]

I collect, hone, and shave with them. Some are absolutely stunning. Here is a small handful from my collection.

Nice. A samurai sword blade and engraving like an heirloom shotgun. Those are really nice.

When I was around four, my G Gpa would let me shave after I watched him. I never noticed him taking the blade out while I was brushing the soap on in the mirror. One of my earliest memories.

 

[Hubert J. Farnsworth]

Actually that lather wasn't thick yet -- And yes!

A good beginner rule of thumb for tubs of soap, is to get the brush wet, shake out at least 75% of the water (it'll make sense when you do it) and then load the brush with soap for about 20-25 rotations. Then you work that soap in a lather bowl and add water until its where you want it. How much water depends on the soap, your water, and how much soap you loaded (which also depends on the soap).

It's sounds awkwardly complex.. But it's not, it's just a thing you recognize after a few times. You don't need a 'lather bowl' they're stupid expensive. Any bowl will do. I use a clear glass bowl, others use textured ceramic bowls. Others lather on their face by not loading the brush so much.

You can do the same with Arko, you just have to work it differently if you're going to work it on your face. Or try it in a bowl once or twice. Once you get things figured out, it makes shaving so much more enjoyable.

If you want to try a few high end soaps on the cheap, go to www.maggardrazors.com, and check out their samples. I would highly advise trying a couple Barrister and Mann soaps, and Wholly Kaw soaps. The scents will leave you shocked -- this hobby is basically high end cologne/perfume inducing. The quality of shave you get from Wholly Kaw or B&M will but anything you've ever tried to shame. It's a silly hobby!

;Bookworm

thanks for the detailed explanation, its very helpful. i was wondering/assuming if i was doing it wrong.

i'm going to stick with the arko for a while, and maybe get a foofoo soap next time i need to order some blades. only 88 new blades left to go ;Joyful

 

[Rakie]

;Bookworm

thanks for the detailed explanation, its very helpful. i was wondering/assuming if i was doing it wrong.

i'm going to stick with the arko for a while, and maybe get a foofoo soap next time i need to order some blades. only 88 new blades left to go ;Joyful

Yep, I understand! Samples are like $2-3, it's also a great way to test out aftershaves/splashes and EdT's without dropping a fortune too!