Flirting with the dark side.

Gentlemen, I've decided to try my hand at DE shaving.

I did some light reading in the forums and decided to go with a Merkur 38C and some Derby blades from SRD, which should be delivered by this weekend. Honestly, I felt a bit traitorous placing the order. :)

The DE will be almost exclusively for head shaving. I use my straights to shave both my head and face currently, and the dome can be time consuming. More importantly, shaving my head seems to do a number on my edges and after many weeks of experimenting I've decided to just try a DE for comparison. It'll be easier to travel with as well, and maybe the wife might take an interest.

So are there any DE head shavers here? If so can you make a comparison to head shaving with a straight?

I'll post my shaving results when applicable. Cheers!

I've never shaved my head but I've shaved with a DE often enough before going straight. :) IME the Derby blades should be a good choice. They are milder than the Feathers but when I used them I got smooth and comfortable shaves. The Feathers seemed sharper but I seemed to always have weepers and a bit of irritation wasn't unusual. Take it slow when you get started since you're new to DE shaving. I nicked myself way more with a DE than I ever did with a straight. :gl:

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Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

I've never shaved my head but I've shaved with a DE often enough before going straight. :) IME the Derby blades should be a good choice. They are milder than the Feathers but when I used them I got smooth and comfortable shaves. The Feathers seemed sharper but I seemed to always have weepers and a bit of irritation wasn't unusual. Take it slow when you get started since you're new to DE shaving. I nicked myself way more with a DE than I ever did with a straight. :gl:

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Thanks, and points taken. I read several of your posts along with Obie's when I was reading up on razors and blades. I went with Derby to start because SRD had both them and the Merkur razor in stock. If all goes well then I'll get myself a sample pack of blades to find out which ones are best for me.

EDIT: 1000th post! But it's not about straights. :(

I do it sometimes.
Usually I use feather for the head, but recently I've invested in a couple of DE's.
The main reason for this is that it speeds things up a bit, and I can do it without actually seeing anything back there.
With my feather or a straight I usually go by a two-mirror setup.
And I totally agree with you, shaving the whole head does take a toll on the edges of my straights. I prefer feather blades for my shave up there, going against the grain in the back of my head requires a sharp tool indeed.
Good luck with it, I'm sure you will be satisfied with the result of your DE.

Well I placed my order just before midnight (EST) on Tuesday, it shipped about 9 hours later on Wednesday morning, and arrived on Friday. Props to SRD for that!

Opened up the Merkur box to check it out and tinker with it, as I don't think I had even handled a DE before this point. Played with it in the mirror without a blade for about 10 minutes just getting used to how it should be held and all that. Fools rush in where angels fear to tread, so I loaded a blade, lathered my head, and went to town.

Success! Took almost as long as with a straight but most of that was, again, time spent figuring out angles of attack, particularly the back of the head. One weeper which is typical but otherwise it went perfectly.

Now I just need a cleaning routine, which I've been reading all about. Even with my thinning crown there's a lot of hair to mow through. Since there's more surface area and thicker growth than my face, I must rinse often. I have hard water loaded with minerals and I want to avoid the razor collecting gunk, even if only cosmetic.

Just updating as promised. Thanks for the support and knowledge. :)

Commiecat

Congrats on both your 1,000 post and the shaving success.

Lu

Hello, Commiecat:

I envy you and the other head-shaving gentlemen. Oh, not for shaving your head, mind you, but for having something on your head to shave. My dome has soared as a convertible for quite sometime. Ah well, I keep telling myself that means I am getting smarter.

Although I shave straight, I still am quite fond of my double edge razors, and use them whenever I can. I rotate 15 of my favorite straights, with the rest parked in the rack until one day I decide to sell them. With the count of 15 straights in rotation, I have a ritual of devoting every sixth shave to the double edge.

As I said, I am still fond of my double edge razors, and the more color I add to the ritual of traditional shaving the better I feel about my place in the 19th and early 20th centuries rather than the present. Also, I use the double edge when short on time. You see, I don't want anything to rush my straight razor shave, much in the way I don't want anything to rush my dinner.

After having sold most of my double edge razors, now I am down to the Edwin Jagger "Chatsworth" barley, the Muhle-Pinsel, and a Gillette "Red Tip" which don't like and no longer use. I have been considering an Edwin Jagger lined bulbous lately, too. But I digress.

I still envy you and the other gentlemen for having something to shave up top. I think your thought of using the double edge for the dome sounds like an excellent idea — but then, what do I know, since I can clear my dome with a sneeze.

Regards,
Obie

I also cant say much about head shaving but nothing compares to a str8 razor once you "train your hands" well enough..I was a DE/SE user and one day will pass em down to my kids ;-)

pcdad

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Originally Posted by pcdad

I also cant say much about head shaving but nothing compares to a str8 razor once you "train your hands" well enough..I was a DE/SE user and one day will pass em down to my kids ;-)

pcdad

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Oh, I wouldn't say that. I can get a shave with a DE that comes very close to a straight. Sure the straight is better but nothing shabby with a DE at all.

Closeness r similar but irritation is another..I always got something from de/se blades but my str8 saves me from redness :beer2:

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Originally Posted by pcdad

Closeness r similar but irritation is another..I always got something from de/se blades but my str8 saves me from redness :beer2:

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I've found the trick to getting a comfortable shave with a DE is matching the razor with the blade. It made all the difference for me anyway.

I believe there is no other way other than suffering with blades that don't like yer face..whereas a str8 doesn't differ ;-)

pcdad