Thread: Mach 3 death knell

Originally Posted by earcutter

“Not only do different people have different rates of growth for their hair, but an individual person's hair can grow at different rates at various places on his/her head. The hair follicles actually act independently of one another.” - google

Which explains those rogue eyebrow hairs of mine.

... and nose hairs and hairs that grow ON your ears. I find that as the follicles die off on my head, others come to life on parts of my anatomy where hair is not supposed to grow.

With a straight no matter the grind or brand or age or size you should be able to get the same exact perfect shave as you go from one to another. With a DE that's not the case. Each one has it's own potential and even with the same blade they are just different.

Some DE's I've used give really tame and (relatively) poor shaves while others rival a straight. Usually the more aggressive ones shave closer but there are exceptions.

With a straight I can usually get away with around 36 hours but that still means I have to shave every day. With a good DE it may be a few hours less but either way it's everyday shaving. Of course that's when I was working. Now retired I shave every other day.

I might get the best of both worlds. My normal procedure is to do two passes with a straight and then do a clean-up pass with a DE. I love using a straight, but I have a hard time getting my chin and jaw line close enough with the straight. I have some arthritis in my fingers and I cannot get the straight to do what I need on those two areas.

Originally Posted by BobH

Never had a straight razor shave that lasted 24 hours or longer. No matter what I shave with I can go 8 - 10 hours before I feel stubble. Has me wondering if peoples whiskers regrow at different rates.

Bob

Definitely! When I was in college, the guys in the dorm made a pact not to shave the last month during final exams. I had more of a beard after one week than most of them had after 3-4 weeks. My beard still grows rapidly, except now it is white, so it does not show up quite as much. However, the white beard is a lot tougher than the reddish-brown beard I had during my college years.

Originally Posted by Gasman

IMO, Lyn and Don didnt have much to do with it. You can buy that razor from hundreds of places. And then there are a few hundred places on-line. I agree that it is a nice DE as it was the first one i bought when going from carts to DE. Loved it!
It is nice to ba able to pick up the DE when in a rush for a shave or traveling. Glad you found the EJ DE. It is a little tame for me but a nice DE. And the trainning you get from the straight can make shaving with anything better as the straight will smack you down if you dont learn correctly. After that....

Now, the 41! Thats an agressive DE. Much closer to the straight.

What I meant for Lynn and Don is that in all these years they have always delivered flawless hardware in 72 hours or less from east to west coast. Never had to return one piece ever.

I have what would be a lite to medium thickness of hair shaft and density per square inch. So it does not take much to shave it, more effort is spent not burning or nicking myself. This is just so cool 10 cent blades vs. $4 mach 3's my son has said he'll burn up the left overs on field maneuvers. He has 2 of my straights for use on base.

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

With a straight I can usually get away with around 36 hours but that still means I have to shave every day. With a good DE it may be a few hours less but either way it's everyday shaving. Of course that's when I was working. Now retired I shave every other day.

That’s got to be sweet.

Every other day would be perfect for me and the old skin. Like you, I can’t really go two days under work conditions. But a two day shave is optimal! Some days I just do a single pass to get away with clean, but not really shaven. The next days shave is always awesome.

Originally Posted by earcutter

“Not only do different people have different rates of growth for their hair, but an individual person's hair can grow at different rates at various places on his/her head. The hair follicles actually act independently of one another.” - google

Which explains those rogue eyebrow hairs of mine.

I realized this earlier this year noticing regardless of shave perfection, my neck stubble grows much faster than those Yankee follicles.

Originally Posted by Zemke

I wonder if the transition would have been as easy without the time on a straight razor?

Probably not.
You touch an interesting point here.

A straight razor requires some beard prep to produce acceptable results.
A safety razor less so, but the shave will certainly benefit from it.

I suspect most users of cartridge razor waste little time on beard prep, splash water on their face, put on some foam or gel out of a can, and go to work. The results are predictable.
I would even go as far as saying that with proper beard prep evene a shave with a cartridge razor could be better, but have never been tempted to try.

The concept of a cartridge razor reminds me of the concept of instant coffee: quick, little preparation required, never anything to look forward to, and never coming close to “the real thing”.

Safety and straight razor users are more like the espresso and filter coffee drinkers in this picture: They take more time, but are able to savour the moments.

Which reminds me, time to make my first coffee of the day...


B.

(I hope I have not offended any instant coffee enthusiasts - should they exist.)

Originally Posted by beluga

Probably not.
You touch an interesting point here.

A straight razor requires some beard prep to produce acceptable results.
I safety razor less so, but the shave will certainly benefit from it.

I suspect most users of cartridge razor waste little time on beard prep, splash their face with water, put on some foam or gel out of a can and go to work. The results are predictable.
I would even go as far as saying that with proper beard prep a shave with a cartridge razor would be better, but the concept of a cartridge razor always reminds me of the idea of instant coffee. Quick, little preparation required, never anything to look forward to and never coming close to “the real thing”.

Safety and straight razor users are more like the espresso and filter coffee drinkers in this picture: They take more time, but are able to savour the moments.

Which reminds me, time to make my first coffee of the day...


B.

(I hope I have not offended any instant coffee enthusiasts - should they exist.)

My freaking mother in-law! And me when I’m camping.

Originally Posted by beluga

Probably not.
You touch an interesting point here.

A straight razor requires some beard prep to produce acceptable results.
A safety razor less so, but the shave will certainly benefit from it.

I suspect most users of cartridge razor waste little time on beard prep, splash water on their face, put on some foam or gel out of a can, and go to work. The results are predictable.
I would even go as far as saying that with proper beard prep evene a shave with a cartridge razor could be better, but have never been tempted to try.

The concept of a cartridge razor reminds me of the concept of instant coffee: quick, little preparation required, never anything to look forward to, and never coming close to “the real thing”.

Safety and straight razor users are more like the espresso and filter coffee drinkers in this picture: They take more time, but are able to savour the moments.

Which reminds me, time to make my first coffee of the day...


B.

(I hope I have not offended any instant coffee enthusiasts - should they exist.)

An enjoyable post as usual.

Personally, I am not so sure about the beard prep thing having tried it and found, for me, it made no discernible difference in the shave outcome. I just splash cold water on my face, face lather and shave regardless of what I am shaving with. That said, it is something every shaver should try for themselves to see if it makes a positive difference for them.


Have to agree on the coffee thing though. If I can't have a regular coffee and want a quick and easy hot drink, a cup of strong tea is as easy to do as an instant coffee and far preferable.

Bob