Thread: Shavette?

well quick question, is it a good idea to start with a shavette as i can get these for about £4 from Ebay or are they total oposites to the Straight?
I also posted last week about a steamy Mirror and rubbing soap over it and then wiping it off with a Towel really worked all i need to find now is a shaving towel or something i do not mine ruining. Last question honest, how long to leave shaving when you nic your self??

I've got a shavette and really dislike it. It's almost, but not quite, completely unlike shaving with a straight. It's very very light, and the blade holder isn't terribly stiff. The only replaceable blade razor that seems to come close to the straight shaving experience is the Feather "Artist Club", but that's $$$ and comes with it's own set of issues.

As for nicks, you don't *have* to lay off shaving just because you nick yourself. If you nicked yourself a bunch of times then it's probably a good idea to shave with something else for a few days, but IMO that's as much to allow you to ponder your technique as to allow your face to heal. But if you just nicked yourself a little bit, then keep shaving, just be careful around the nick.

I started off with a shavette, a cheap knock-off of the one Fromm makes. They are light which can give you a few issues. I enjoyed mine for a few weeks and decided to take the plunge, then gave the shavette to a friend. If you go this route, watch out on your blades. I had some Personna blades which had a burr on them and cut myself several times because of it.

I started out using a shavellet that cost me about £7.

I used it because it was cheap. That way I could continue to have a SR like shave while I started to bye the required equipment. I could not afford to get everything for real SR at once. Therefore I bought a cheap ebay razor first, then a strop and then a hone. All the time I was using my shavellet.

I must admit though that my shaving experience is a LOT better with SR and I nick myself a lot less aswell.

Steven

No comparison between a shavette and a well-sharpened straight.

I find the straight much more forgiving and easier to use.

People try the shavettes to see if they might like straight shaving and I suspect this turns many people off the idea. The funny thing is that, IMHO, other than the fact that you shave with both, they are not at all similar experiences.

I agree with what others have said. I've advised repeatedly (Is everybody sick of me being a broken record yet? ) that people not start with a shavette or feather. Especially a feather, where the need for imperceptably light, or even negative, pressure might lead a newbie to cuts and other ouches.

If you want to try straight shaving, just get a shave-ready straight razor. You won't want to go back to a shavette afterwards.

Originally Posted by sensei_kyle

I started off with a shavette, a cheap knock-off of the one Fromm makes. They are light which can give you a few issues. I enjoyed mine for a few weeks and decided to take the plunge, then gave the shavette to a friend. If you go this route, watch out on your blades. I had some Personna blades which had a burr on them and cut myself several times because of it.

I have started off the same way with the same shaver, and am still not quite into the swing of a full straight yet. and have had the same experience, though with store brand blades. It will give you a closer shave than anything short of a real straight but It irritates the skin more, more than a DE too. Also watch out for the tip, if you don't keep the razor level and allow the tip or heel to drag it will leave a scraping cut where the tip of the blade digs in.

For me, while it is easy to cut yourself and may not be as comfortable on the skin, it was a good enough introduction to get me hooked. I'll be hanging on to mine for travel once I get going with a good straight.

I just bought a Dovo "Rasotta" (thats the name on the handle) and it looks like it takes 1/2 a DE blade or is there blades for this? And could it be the same as a shavette?
Thanks!

Do you have pics?

Allow me to add my wisdom.
I am newbie to straights, but have shaved for years with a shavette, simply because when I started (before internet was common) I couldn't find real straights, and nobody I knew used them.

With a straight, the edge is smooth. when shaving you can make certain movements with the blade to insure a better shave. I.e. you introduce slight lateral movements to have more of a cutting action on your hairs instead of a hacking action. (or so I'm told)

Do this with a shavette and the blade will sink into the flesh immeditley.
If you look at a shavette blade under a strong microsoft, you will see something that resembles the blade of a wood saw.

As a result, the technique for using a shavette is considerably different from the technique for using a straight.
I find my straight much more forgiving then my shavette.

Another problem with the shavette is that your face will be covered with nicks and droplets of blood when you replace a dull blade with a new one, because your technique takes a while to adjust to the changed sharpness.

Btw, are those feather shavettes really so much sharper than the shavettes that use solingen blades?