Newbie hardware question(s)

Miro

Miro

Forum GOD!
BTW, the Snmirn is no longer to be found on aliexpress with that name (at least i could not find it). I found it as "QShave Adjustable Safety Razor with Magnetic Cover"

Remembering the QShave brand from recommendations i found and seeing the positive reviews. i bought it despite the lack of name :)
 
ewkist

ewkist

Forum GOD!
If it is the QShave that looks like this one, it is a clone of the notoriously aggressive Merkur Futur and has a snap-on top cap:
qshave.jpg


The much more friendly Snmirn has a curved tapered handle, and a magnetic top cap (cover):
snmirn.jpg
 
chazt

chazt

shaver
chris.hale said:
Cartridges are designed to be foolproof, the blades are recessed into the head and the head pivots, so you can use quite a bit of pressure and not worry about the angle and it'll be fine.

With a DE razor the blade is usually exposed to some degree, and there is no pivot. This means that you have to learn to apply minimal pressure or none at all and hold the razor at the correct angle. This isn't hard, I got a fairly decent shave on my first go, but it is something to be aware of. You cannot just go at it like you would with a cartridge.

As others have said technique is what matters most, a more expensive razor will not buy you a better shave. There is a bit of a learning curve and I would expect that you will initially not get as good a result as you do with your current system. Resist the temptation to try changing things around in the early stages, I used one non-adjustable razor for probably my first year. It's technique not equipment and consistency is what you want.
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Excellent post here.
 
Chris

Chris

Forum DOG!
Staff member
Miro said:
Did you switch from cart shaving too? if so, how did you know which razor to buy as your first? did it matter to you whether it will be a mild or aggressive?

I still didn't understand what is the answer to my very first question (maybe it's a foolish question)


I guess you are right and my first shaves will not be as good and smooth as with the cart. Yet, it's not clear to me if i can expect a smooth shave from a mild razor (assuming technique is mastered)

Please excuse my English if i'm not clear
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Yes, I started shaving with a cart and canned gel. I started looking into single-blade razors because I found that if I shaved every day it made my skin sore, but if I left it more than two days I spent more time trying to unclog the cart than I did shaving.

Back when I started with a DE (2011) the advice to newbies was to buy either an Edwin Jagger 89 or a Merkur 34. These have a reputation as being beginners' razors but they are solid option for 99% of us. I went for the Merkur because I liked the looks a little better but they're both good. Both work really well but are easy to adapt to.

Virtually any DE razor will have more blade exposure than a cart, so at this stage mild vs aggressive doesn't matter. The other thing to bear in mind is that aggressive razors are in vogue and some people enjoy using the most aggressive razor possible. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but it can skew the perspective for a newbie reading the forums and seeing a lot of talk about razor aggression.

Think on this, Gillette sold the Tech almost unchanged for forty years. They're classed as mild on the shaving fora but for the rest of the world when the DE was a common thing, they were simply classed as a razor and if they hadn't worked well for most men they would not have enjoyed the longevity that they did.

To try and answer your first question, most of us would class a cartridge as mild on the grounds that they have minimum blade exposure and can struggle if you've not shaved for a few days. "Mild vs aggressive" is one of those things that only really exists in the world of the shaving forum, and even here actually defining it is difficult. If the razor blade contacts your skin, it will shave it.
 
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Miro

Miro

Forum GOD!
Thank you so much @chris.hale for this great, enlightening reply.

It was important for me to know whether carts are considered mild or aggressive simply because shaving with carts is what i currently do and therefore, it is my only reference point. Since i get smooth shave with carts, i'd really like to get the same results with DE razors.
Knowing most of the DE shavers will classify them as mild is reassuring for me as it makes me understand i can get the same level of smoothness with a mild razor (or mild setting on an adjustable one). It's a great relief.

Yes, all the razor talk is a lot about mild and aggressive, no wonder there are many others like me. Buying various razors or expansive ones just for the peace of mind.

Being in doubt regarding whether the Snmirn I bought will be good for me or not. I also bought a razor which is to my understanding like the Gillette Tech you mentioned as it's simple, cheap and very similar (as far as i can tell) to the " HAWARD Double Edge " that was recommended to me yesterday.

if this is similar to the Gillette Tech you mentioned that sold for 40 years. I can rest assured I ordered everything i need for a start and just wait for the orders to arrive.

Thank you all, I am learning a lot from this thread
 
Chris

Chris

Forum DOG!
Staff member
Miro said:
Thank you so much @chris.hale for this great, enlightening reply.

It was important for me to know whether carts are considered mild or aggressive simply because shaving with carts is what i currently do and therefore, it is my only reference point. Since i get smooth shave with carts, i'd really like to get the same results with DE razors.
Knowing most of the DE shavers will classify them as mild is reassuring for me as it makes me understand i can get the same level of smoothness with a mild razor (or mild setting on an adjustable one). It's a great relief.

Yes, all the razor talk is a lot about mild and aggressive, no wonder there are many others like me. Buying various razors or expansive ones just for the peace of mind.

Being in doubt regarding whether the Snmirn I bought will be good for me or not. I also bought a razor which is to my understanding like the Gillette Tech you mentioned as it's simple, cheap and very similar (as far as i can tell) to the " HAWARD Double Edge " that was recommended to me yesterday.

if this is similar to the Gillette Tech you mentioned that sold for 40 years. I can rest assured I ordered everything i need for a start and just wait for the orders to arrive.

Thank you all, I am learning a lot from this thread
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I've not used that razor myself, but according to a thread I found on Badger and Blade it is very similar to the 70s era Gillette Tech. One thing to watch with the Tech is that you need to get the angle right for it to shave well, the upside is that it you get it wrong it won't punish you.
 
Twelvefret

Twelvefret

Forum GOD!
Did anyone mention beard mapping and multiple passes yet? If not, doing one pass in one direction and followed up with something in the opposite direction eliminates trying to accomplish a good result with one pass.

Some shave every day and some once a week. So, this is going to vary the results.

Have fun and don’t spend a fortune. It’s like golf, if it were that hard few courses would exit.
 
Miro

Miro

Forum GOD!
I heard about the mapping on some threads and reviews. The passes are mentioned and demonstrated in all video reviews.
I'm used to shaving with 2 passes and hope to keep it that way.

Usually i shave every other day but there are times in which i skip days and then i'll have a shave after 2-3 days without shave. I believe that if carts can handle that (and they do), so should a DE razor.

Got 2 razors on the way to me, it is indeed tempting to get more but it will actually be useless at this stage.
 
Twelvefret

Twelvefret

Forum GOD!
I gave my relative several sleeves of Astra SP blades and a mid ‘50’s “red tip” Gillette. He loves them and says it saves him over $20 per month. I had no idea that modern blade holder had gotten to expensive.
 
adrian ivanovici

adrian ivanovici

Forum GOD!
My advice is to hold on on what you have for a year and improve on the technique, that comes natural in time.
Otherwise you will end up like the rest of us: compulsive razor buyers that end up with the obsession of matching the razor with a stand and a brush....and in no time you end up having 10 razors, 10 brushes, 5 stands and 300 different types of blades.
 
TheBurgh

TheBurgh

Loyal Order of The Overlander; Athena Afficianado
"...and in no time you end up having 10 razors, 10 brushes, 5 stands and 300 different types of blades."

Bonus points for exceeding this Level One goal? :thankyou:
 
chazt

chazt

shaver
adrian ivanovici said:
My advice is to hold on on what you have for a year and improve on the technique, that comes natural in time.
Otherwise you will end up like the rest of us: compulsive razor buyers that end up with the obsession of matching the razor with a stand and a brush....and in no time you end up having 10 razors, 10 brushes, 5 stands and 300 different types of blades.
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Yes, this exactly. For soME it’s 30, 30 and 3,000 (razors, brushes and blades). Stands don’t count.
 
Miro

Miro

Forum GOD!
adrian ivanovici said:
My advice is to hold on on what you have for a year and improve on the technique, that comes natural in time.
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Thanks, it's a good advice.
When i switched from smoking to vaping about 10 years ago, i've purchased new vaping gear quite often as that industry progressed and new devices that provided better vaping experience were released quite often.

However, i find it hard to imagine the same with shaving at this stage. Why buy more razors if the current razor one uses provides smooth shaving?

I can understand buying a few, especially if you are just making the first step in switching from carts to DE. That's exactly what i did (still waiting for the 2 razors to arrive). or if you need one for your travels.
I can also understand purchasing blades from various brands, trying different shaving creams and so on.
Does it take that much to find a razor that shaves well?

What is it that makes one keep buying razors? i need to know that in order to avoid it
 
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