Real men use real razors

[ilovehr]

Whilst shaving this morning I was pondering the waste of using a five bladed razor and chucking the catridge in the bin when I'd finished with it.

I was thinking of getting an "old fashioned" double edged safety razor and using a proper shaving brush. My old fella uses a Merkur razor and a badger brush and shaving soap and swears he gets a closer shave than with the usual cartridge razor. It also seems to be a little more environmentally friendly!

Are there any real men on here who use proper safety razors who can give me a bit of honest advice? Is it worth it or will I end up cutting myself to ribbons?

[DaveB]

Whilst shaving this morning I was pondering the waste of using a five bladed razor and chucking the catridge in the bin when I'd finished with it.

I was thinking of getting an "old fashioned" double edged safety razor and using a proper shaving brush. My old fella uses a Merkur razor and a badger brush and shaving soap and swears he gets a closer shave than with the usual cartridge razor. It also seems to be a little more environmentally friendly!

Are there any real men on here who use proper safety razors who can give me a bit of honest advice? Is it worth it or will I end up cutting myself to ribbons?

Until you get used to it you will cut yourself regularly. Compared to the old style razors the modern ones are a lot more forgiving if you don't get the angle/direction/pressure quite right.

Not sure about the environmentally friendly side. There is a lot more steel in a traditional razor blade than even the modern 5 blade ones. Does the plastic in the modern ones offset that or not?

[TimberWolf]

Oh, you mean one with a razor blade in? Why not go the whole hog and buy a cut throat razor that you have to strop etc? Must be real skill in that.

[ilovehr]

Oh, you mean one with a razor blade in? Why not go the whole hog and buy a cut throat razor that you have to strop etc? Must be real skill in that.

I don't mind cutting myself while I unlearn the normal shaving techniques but I draw the line at decapitation!

I think I'm also looking to re-macho myself and I think that using a big piece of ironmongery to shave with beats using a bit of garishly coloured plastic every morning.

I also get loads of ingrowing hairs and I'm reliably(?) informed that using a single bladed razor causes less irritation.

[Svalbaard]

Yes I also use a Merkur and would agree with your old fella that it shaves smoother and closer than anything else on the market that I have tried. Initially it is a bit pricey, and it does take some careful getting used to after using a Gilette (unfortunately somewhat bloodily as well) and it's definately not a razor that you should rush with whilst using.

That said, once you get used to it, I would presume that like me you'll never go back to a crappy 5 bladed Gilette or Wilkinson Sword razor.

[ChimpMaster]

Looks interesting and I'll definately get one now that I've seen the razors. The Parker ones look good too - is there any specific razor (Parker/Merkur or otherwise) that you would recommend?

The Razorpit sounds like a great idea too.

[ilovehr]

This arrived this morning

Merkur Progress Adjustable Safety Razor Chrome - £ 39.95 - free delivery available

I managed to shave reasonably successfully despite the nick to the carotid artery and I'm ging to stick with it!

The badger bristle brush it a thing of beauty too and my wife told me I smelled gorgeous with my Taylors of Old Bond street aftershave!

I am a man now.....

[ChimpMaster]

Merkur Progress Adjustable Safety Razor Chrome - £ 39.95 - free delivery available

I managed to shave reasonably successfully despite the nick to the carotid artery and I'm ging to stick with it!

The badger bristle brush it a thing of beauty too and my wife told me I smelled gorgeous with my Taylors of Old Bond street aftershave!

I am a man now.....

Out of interest why did you pick this particular one out of the range available?

[Lockhouse]

I learnt to shave with a "proper" razor and it did take some getting used to. I went back to one a few years ago and I found I kept cutting myself as I was so used to a) rushing and b) shaving absent-mindedly - both dangerous things to do. I lasted a fortnight before I started back with my multi-blade.

[ilovehr]

Out of interest why did you pick this particular one out of the range available?

I read somewhere that an adjustable one is better for beginners. If you're used to using a DE razor, you can adjust the pressure and angle instinctively but when you're not, it's easier to adjust the razor. We'll have to see how true that is...

The only real complaint I have (after using it only the once so far) is that it took me a lot longer to shave this morning. I've no doubt it'll speed up with practice.

It did make me feel much more manly though!