Bent bars and lazy gates are the two main things to check. Bent bars will give uneven blade exposure and lazy gates (on the butterfly opening style) can indicate years of over tightening. Bending bars back isn't a great idea unless you know what you're doing. Lazy gates can be fixed but it would take a pro to do that if you don't already know how. Gold finish comes off easier. Especially if it's ever exposed to typical bathroom cleaners that you intentionally use on the chrome plated ones. Other than that it's all the same basically.
Meaning you have a weber arc just sitting around, gathering dust, wasting away in margaritaville, that I could potentially take off your hands for monetary compensation.
On weekends when I have time. I never have gotten of the "hump" like I have with DE's to where I can do it by feel when I'm half asleep. The learning curve is steep. Buy a refurb razor from whipped dog before he drop huge bucks on a new one.
I was just curious. I've been shaving with a straight razor for 4/5 years. Like anything else it takes practice. I've gotten very efficient. 7 minutes beginning to end with stropping/2 passes. I have quite a collection. Very rewarding taking a rusty straight left for dead, restoring it to like new, and honing it to silky perfection.
Raspberries. Have a DLC and a PH, just need a ph to finish out my collection. Haven't bought anything in a long time. Saw musgo real was going for 9 a tube on bullgoose so I picked up a couple. But Ive been pretty much just keeping a full groomed beard for the past year.
last question - if i were to buy one of the 'still in box' models on ebay that were made in the 60s or so....is there anything to know about them quality wise? They say made in USA on the box, for example. Just as one example.. http://www.ebay.com/itm/1964-Gillet...075764?hash=item3d11966bf4:g:-5sAAOSwPc9Wvl1C
I've gotten good and honing razors from experience with knives. I've got the Naniwa stones up through 12k then shaptons at 16k and 30k. In all honesty that's way overkill but nice to have. The hone is there but I haven't taken the time to force myself to live with a bad shave day to day until skill dictates otherwise. That's what I had to do with DE's. When I allows myself to touch up the bad spots with my old disposable razor I didn't get better. Sometimes you gotta just be terrible at it
There's a possibility someone put a used razor in a box and passed it off as new but not with techs. That usually happens with the adjustable models that are worth more. You should be good with that tech. A lot of folks say a tech won't get "BBS" quality shaves. It will, and I have to shave daily or I look like teen wolf. Technique and practice will get get you there. Down the road you can watch videos on fixing up razors. The late '40's no date super speeds are some of my favorites. They are easy to clean and shave a little more aggressively than a tech. If your lady friend does the antiques thing tag along sometime and see if any of the shops have razors. I used to buy them by the handful until someone local opened an online eBay business and started selling them for huge money. Now all the shops save them for him and he overpays. (I used to get them for $5 each, maybe $10 for a fat boy. That's why I could afford to give so many away. I'd even repaint the numbers on the adjustable models with model airplane paint.)
I use the Norton combo stones 1k to 8k and a 12k naniwa. After that I use two Escher natural stones. The dark blue one is about 18k to 21k with/without slurry. The yellow green one is about 22k to 24k with/without slurry. That progression gets the german, american, and Spanish blades very sharp, yet incredibly smooth. I also have a Charnley Forest oil stone that is probably about 26k. It is way to harsh to use on anything other than English and French blades. There is definitely a period of adjustment. Things got a lot easier when I consistently let the razor do the work (no pressure). I also figured out that cold water shaving after a hot shower is much better for me. I also stopped using soaps. Too time consuming. I use CO Bigelow shaving cream. They sell it at bath and body works. It's exactly the same as proraso, but it is always on sale. I also figured out which blades work best for me. I prefer German in the 5/8 to 7/8. Anything larger than that is too hard to maneuver on the top lip.
Was able to PIF some stuff to someone who just took up wet shaving. I was pretty happy, as all that stuff was sitting around not being used.
http://m.ebay.com/itm/221908909992?...vr_id=1029020103454&_mwBanner=1&ul_noapp=true 100 Gillette Silver Blues for $14.43
Pretty close to finishing a bowl of DR Harris Arlington and realized that it will be the first bowl that I've completely used up. I went so crazy buying pretty much anything I read about in this thread when I started back in 2012 or so that I can last for 10 years or more before I get any more soap. I don't even think I've bought any soap in the past few years, and the most recent soaps I've been given were a couple of Mike's Naturals my sister in law gave me in a gift exchange a couple of Christmases ago.
How do you shave across the grain near the top concave of your neck? I kept poking the fuck out of my neck with the corner of the blade.
The Venus lady razors are god tier on my face, guys. Highly recommend them. No burns, close shave, face smells like vagina.
This could be really good or really bad. Like, we talking "it smells like strawberries and hope" or "it smells like the juice at the bottom of a starkest tuna can that's been left out overnight"?
It is with great difficulty that we are announcing the closing of Queen Charlotte Soaps. My mother and I opened our company over six years ago because we felt that at the time there were very few artisan options for high quality shaving soap. We have had a great time these past six years, but our business was always something that we did on the side to our normal day jobs. As the time commitment that those require increases, we have found it increasingly difficult to run Queen Charlotte Soaps and are thusly closing our doors for good. From now through December 25, we are offering 20% off of everything on our website. We have also introduced one new deal: the option to get four bars of randomly selected hand & body soap at an even greater discount. This deal includes hand & body soap from both our regular assortment as well as seasonal specialties. We are still offering free shipping for orders over $75 with the coupon code "FREESHIP". No coupon code is necessary for the 20% off. Thank you for your support. All the best, Your friends at Queen Charlotte Soaps.
Thought of you immediately upon reading the email and bought 10 bars. Also loaded up on Briar, Cracklin Firewood, Clean Cotton and my son loves Dragonblood. Sad to see them go but I've been buying from Funky Chunks for a few years now so I can still get my fix.
At least i can get Dallas Soap Girl soaps at Whole Foods. Her Bergamot + Black Tea soap is a favorite. https://soapgirl.co/barsoap/
Teach me how not to get razor burns on my neck all the time. I feel like a 12 year old trying to shave for the first time. I basically just use a Gillette Fusion but I don't use the blades like 100 times each or anything like that. I only use them a handful before switching to a new cartridge. I use basic Barbosol shaving cream -- usually the sensitive skin kind -- and I've never tried aftershave or anything like that. The neck burn and subsequent red marks have become annoying so I would like to address it. What should I do?
Well, you've come to the right thread - start wet shaving. I'd get gnarly razor burns on my neck with cartridges
Isn't wet shaving what I am doing? I thought non-wet shaving would be using an electric razor or something.
Shaving creams in an aerosol can are garbage. Go to Bath and Body Works and get the CO Bigelow shaving cream. It isnt expensive and it is nearly always on sale. It is literally Proraso shaving cream except it is cheaper to get at b&bw. If you are interested in learning to use a straight...Shoot me a pm and I'll send you a shave ready straight razor.
I don't grow a ton of facial hair so I typically only shave twice a week. It would take me months to grow even a small beard I'm guessing. Just not sure if it's worth switching up but with the way my neck always looks and feels I will probably give it a shot.
Follow-up: Is this going to cost significantly more money than the shitty shaving I'm currently doing? Not a big deal really. Just curious.
Short term more expensive until you have the gear. Long term, it should be cheaper although the safety razor guys should be able to clarify.
I bought 200 blades 3 years ago, and it cost me ~50 bucks, probably about half way throguh. Only thing I've bought in the last 2 years is soap, and it lasts me ~6-8 months because I don't shave much. Still much, much cheaper than cartridges/dollar shave
I always go against the grain with the cartridges because it doesn't seem to get close enough if I don't. Most reviews I am reading make it sound like that won't be a problem with a safety razor.
Gonna place an order tomorrow to get started on this new adventure. So far in my Amazon cart I have.... TYdeFan05 I hope I am off to a decent start. I see several of the items in this set were mentioned on page one.
I'd also get an alum block as well. Only a couple bucks. It allows you to get a grip on wet/lathered skin so you can stretch the skin. Also has anti-bacterial properties and will close pores when rubbed on the skin after shaving. Makes the skin feel tight. Can be used similar to a steptic pencil if you nick yourself.
I've read three pages of this thread now and feel like I've learned more than I did in my four years of undergrad.
When I'm late in the morning I always try to give myself a 3 minute shave like my cartridge shaves and end up cutting myself 100% of the time. One time I had 3 cuts on my face. It was ridiculous.
It always amazes me that all these cartridge companies are able to convince people that they're disposables are going to save them money. Its the biggest racket I'm aware of. Even dollar shave club is a rip off. Welcome to the club Pelican. You'll never go back.