Thread: seriously thinking about buying a DE

My wife and I occasionally go away for weekend trips. Every time we pack my wife gets irritated by all the shaving stuff I need to take with me. So I have been considering buying a DE to take with me on trips away.
I've never used a DE before. I went straight from an M3 thingy to a straight.
I'm looking at buying three peice razor. I would like to know, is using a DE the same as using a straight? Is there anything important that I need to know? Do I just basically do the same passes at I do with the straight? And, how many shaves does one get from one razor?
Thanks in advance for any info you can give me.
Cheers,
Nathan

I use my DE as I use my straight - with one main obvious difference: the grip ;-)
It is important to keep - as with a straight - a 30° angle; it is also very important not to put pressure when shaving; and I do exactly the same passes as I do with my straight: WTG, WTG / XTG and, if needed ATG
The number of shaves depends on the quality of the blades, the thickness of your beard and the frequency of your shaves... but I'll say at least 4-5 days (I don't use my DE very frequently - only for touch ups or when I am in a hurry, so a blade last me for months).

I hope you'll enjoy shaving with a DE... it is a very nice experience... I still like it.

Using a DE is different than using a straight. Some of the same principles though, Angle and Pressure. Otherwise, you still do the same type of passes WTG, XTG, and ATG. You will get multiple shaves from one blade, probably 3 - 5, depending on the blade and your style/beard/tolerance.

I've got a couple of DEs I could get rid of. PM me if you are interested in seeing what I have.

never used a de but i heard they are very unforgiving. wht not buy a arrow or wapi to take with you? if you are going to be gona a long time carry a barbers hone. go as cheap as possible so if you lose something you are not out a lot of money but can still enjoy a real str8 shave

Forget DE. Go SE. Schick Injectors.

Great shaves, easy to use and shave with similar qualities to a cartridge.

The bonus is that you don't need to hunt and peck for the "right" blade for your self.

There are only 3 or 4 blade makers for SEs and the Personnas are good blades and you can get then at the local Mallmart or Drug store.

PM me I have several laying about if you are interested.

Lost my earlier reply...

It is not the same as a straight, but should be easy to figure out coming from straight IMHO.

You all ready know face prep, lather, angles, beard direction, so the hard part is all ready done.

Just like a straight, you do not use pressure. the weight of the razor takes care of that.

The brand of blade(there are many), number of passes, and beard coarseness all attribute to how long a blade lasts.

I would say between 3-7 shaves depending on these factors for a blade, but they are cheap.

mantic's videos have lots of info on DE shaving.

YouTube - mantic59's Channel

you might also consider a wife who becomes less irritated .

how much are you taking? my shave kit is pretty small, with the strop taking up most of the room.

Maybe find a paddle strop that doubles as a case to cut down on the equipment? I think Tony Miller sells a kit.

I would look to condense rather than change over (unless you want to try something new);

-t

Originally Posted by eddielang

you might also consider a wife who becomes less irritated .

how much are you taking? my shave kit is pretty small, with the strop taking up most of the room.

Maybe find a paddle strop that doubles as a case to cut down on the equipment? I think Tony Miller sells a kit.

I would look to condense rather than change over (unless you want to try something new);

-t

Agreed. I use a Tony Miller paddle strop for travel. It fits in an overnight bag and you don't have to worry about creasing it.

If your wife can bring her girlie accessories, why can't you bring your shave stuff?

Jordan

Why not buy a Shavette?

My latest weird suggestion - Straight Razor Place Forums

Bart.

i have a gillette fatboy and a schick injector. i i don't use either very often anymore, but when i did i liked them both.

so besides the strop, would you really be saving all that much space?
i know i used the exact same prep stuff for both the SR shaves and DE shaves, and a DE isn't that much smaller.
to me the Tony Miller paddle strop for travel would be a better option, if you're like me and really like SRs.

that being said, i think DEs are great, neat razors and i still check ebay every so often as i have gotten a couple really good deals on there. no harm in getting one and trying it out right.