Thread: 1st time using a razor

I think part of the answer might be in your budget, yes you will need soap/cream and a brush for both, but a D/E can be picked up very cheaply, blades are cheap too, astras can be had for about $15 for 100 from ebay. Whereas a straight will cost more to buy, you will also need a strop, and you will need to factor in honing costs, and eventually a/ some hone(s).
Thats not to say that you should necessarily use a D/E just that the initial investment will be somewhat less, and you will have a D/E for when you want to use it should you decide to buy a straight razor eventually. All that being said i almost never use my D/E anymore.

Originally Posted by edhewitt

I think part of the answer might be in your budget, yes you will need soap/cream and a brush for both, but a D/E can be picked up very cheaply, blades are cheap too, astras can be had for about $15 for 100 from ebay. Whereas a straight will cost more to buy, you will also need a strop, and you will need to factor in honing costs, and eventually a/ some hone(s).
Thats not to say that you should necessarily use a D/E just that the initial investment will be somewhat less, and you will have a D/E for when you want to use it should you decide to buy a straight razor eventually. All that being said i almost never use my D/E anymore.

I think what Ed says about a budget really makes sense to take serious consideration of. Either method of shaving will give you a very good shave once you get your technique down but the initial cost to get into straight razor shaving is higher considering all the extras you will need to keep it shaving. On the other hand if you start and stay with shaving with a straight it can be cheaper in the long run.

Bob

I started with a straight last summer. didn't get my first safety razor until about a month ago. Best advice i could give is to watch a LOT of videos and read up on this site.

That's what I'm talking' 'bout: Getting started young. I started late. Good for you for starting young. You will have decades of wonderful shaving experiences.

It's entirely up to you. Since nobody here knows you the advise you get is basically a projection of what worked for the person who is giving you the advise.

Regardless of how are you going to cut the hair, the preparation makes enormous difference and it's really easy to figure out. Get yourself a shaving brush and a good soap/cream (do spend the $10 on proraso/bigellow because that's the wrong place to cut costs) and then take the half an hour to make lather over and over until you figure out how to do it properly - you start with a bit of cream, then swirl the brush over adding a little bit of water gradually until the lather forms and then breaks down because you have added too much water; with few tries you'll find out when to stop.

Then you can use a disposable, cartridge razor, DE, shavette, straight razor, just make sure the blade is sharp and you don't use pressure (the cartridge razors and to some extent disposables are pretty much designed for people who bear down on their skin).

Which particular method to pick depends on your temperament - you can be successful with any of them. If you want instant results a single blade bic disposable is probably best as it has the shallowest learning curve. Single blade scraping your skin at each pass = less irritation.