Gentlemen:

This morning I shaved with an open comb double edge razor and felt as if I were dragging a rake across my Hollywood face. The shave was good and without nicks or razor burn, sure, but I disliked the way the teeth felt on my skin. No wonder I soured on the open comb double edge razors a long time ago.

The last time I used the open comb was when I lived in San Francisco, in the 1960s, and just before going to Vietnam. At the time I had no idea about the proper shaving technique with the double edge. On the morning I gave up the double edge and bought an electric razor my face held a toilet paper exhibit of cuts and nicks. I must have looked like a mob hit man with a skin rash.

The electric razor experience lasted a few weeks — even that was too long.

After that I went through several different plastic razors, none of which I recall, and with Vietnam came and more plastic razors. By then the double edge had disappeared and the plastic razor hype was in full bloom. The years passed with complaints about worthless plastic razors and expensive blades. Then one day I landed a double edge, a Merkur 34C, if I recall, and little by little became a gentleman shaver, although I had continued to use the brush except for the time in Vietnam.

My Merkur was a closed comb. So were all the other double edge razors I bought in subsequent years. The only open comb double edge razor I have is the Weck, produced some years back by Merkur, and I bought it not long ago in an antique store. It's a good looking razor, in perfect shape, but I have retired it after one shave — because I prefer my face caressed and not raked.

So gentlemen, what is your preference, to open comb or not to?

Regards,

Obie