Black handle safety razor

[ThreadBbdr]

EEEKKK! those things are wicked sharp. I remember when I first started shaving my legs (back in the dark ages LOL), and I sliced a chunk of skin off my ankle bone. Bloody h@!! (literally).

Sorry, guys, I LIKE the double cartridge blades - ankles and shins have more topography than chins and are harder to reach - imagine shaving the back of your knees and other places you can't really see well!

But there's something very sensuous about watching a guy shave with the old school brush and mug, etc.

[Alaskan Kilted Guy]

I would someday like to try my hand at a DE blade or straight razor, but for now I see shaving as a necessity and not a leisure activity. Someday...

[berserkbishop]

I LOVE MY DE RAZOR. Rogerson, make sure you get a good badger hair brush and some glycerin shave soap/cream. The goo in a can is crap. I dont think the feathers will be that bad to start on. I actually just switched to them and it is great. Dont get too discouraged if your first shave isint spectacular. You will have to re-teach yourself to shave as the technique is completely different. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.

BB

[Cat]

I bought a vintage 1952 Gillette SuperSpeed DE about a year and a half ago (for the princely sum of $7 from an antiques store.) and I won't use anything else anymore! I usually just use the the Kroger grocery store brand blades ($1.99 for 15) and they work just fine. I personally don't like paying the extra for Feather blades, although they're very nice (plus I generally don't like having to order anything online if I can help it.) My cheap blades work great, although they tend to wear out faster (I still get a week or two out of them though.)

DE's give great shaves, and I'm convinced that having multiple blades is completely useless, just a marketing gimmick and a reason to charge outrages prices for little tiny pieces of metal.

I'd recommend checking out Crabtree & Evelyn, they have probably nicest "affordable" badger-hair brushes, around $35. A lot of malls have a Crabtree store, and although they mostly sell women's stuff (moisturizer, lotion, etc.), they do have a small men's shaving area. Don't bother with the cheap boar's hair brushes, they're not worth the five dollars most stores charge for them. C & E also sells some pretty decent shaving soap (I like the almond stuff.) I will admit that I do still keep a can of Barbasol around, for when I'm in a hurry...it works, but it's just not as nice a shave as real shaving soap.

Be prepared to get a few nicks at first (and you WILL get them!) Do yourself a favor and buy a styptic pencil, usually found in the pharmacy department of any grocery store. They stop the bleeding instantly, and although it stings just a little, it's a lot better than walking around with a bunch of little toilet paper squares on your face (at least one of which you'll forget to remove and you'll walk around with it on your face for half the day!:-) You'll learn within a few days how to hold a DE, because they work at a different angle than disposible razors.

I will disagree with berserkbishop on one thing though...the Kiss My Face shaving creams (in the tubes) are really good and a lot of guys that are into DE's and straight-razors like them quite a bit, especially for when you don't have time for a full hot shave. Whole Foods sells them, and I've seen them at a lot of other regular grocery stores too. They're unisex shaving creams, meant for men and women, and they lather and lubricate very nicely.

[Standard]

Man, haven't used one of those for a very long time seeing the photos sure does bring back some memories. I think that I still have one packed away in the basement with some of my old backpacking equipment that has been cycled into the seldom used section in favor of updated equipment, but not quite ready for the disposal bin. When (if) I shave my beard off I might have to dig that one back out.

[Mike1]

Sorry, guys, I LIKE the double cartridge blades - ankles and shins have more topography than chins and are harder to reach - imagine shaving the back of your knees and other places you can't really see well!

I know a couple of ladies that shave their legs with straight razors.

[JerseyLawyer]

My GF uses a DE razor to shave her legs.

I'm a straight-razor guy myself. At the very least, it makes you pay attention when you get up in the morning.

[PaulX608]

I love my DE, I use an adjustable:



Have used nothing else since I got it about 15 years ago.