Thread: Acceptable for a first DE?

Thanks again to everyone for all the great advice. I decided on a sample pack from West Coast Shaving.

DE Blade Sampler Pack, Choice

Now I can't wait till they get here, I've got some shaving to do

I was actually going to recommend finding a nice Merkur to start DE shaving, but it's a little late now! Lord is a recommended one, though I haven't tried one as yet.

The sampler pack looks pretty good. I would suggest starting with the Personna blades; I find them to be smooth and easy on the face. Haven't tried Crystals or the Feathers (yet), but Feathers should likely be last- they're supposed to be incredibly sharp.

Just got the razor, and the blades got here yesterday. I feel like a kid on christmas morning. I'm gonna go shave, and I'll let you all know how it went.

EDIT: Just finished the shave. It was great, closest and smoothest shave I've ever had. I've got a little irritation and a handful of nicks around the jaw line. Thats not much of a surprise though. Nicks on the jaw line were expected as part of the adjustment process. The irritation I think was caused by excess pressure, but that was the standard with my mach 3. I figure I did pretty good for the first one.

Good to hear mate. Remember to keep your wrist locked, find the right angle by placing the top of the head of the razor on your face and moving your arm, roll the head down till you have the blade edge resting against your face. Then without any more pressure than what the razor weighs, move your arm to commence the shaving stroke. For now do nothing fancy, later on you can attempt things like J strokes etc. Once you're comfortable with the razor and your shaving technique.
Oh yes, and since I mostly use a straight, others advice may be more valid than mine, but what I've told you is what worked for me.


Mick

Forgot to ask earlier but I have a theory. I'm sure someone has thought of this before and it is probably common around here. I was thinking of storing my DE in a plastic soap dish or some other box (preferably air tight) with a dessicant pack. The same as you would find in a bag of beef jerkey. I figure a clean and dry razor in an airtight box with the dessicant shouldn't rust. I'd like to hear everyone's thoughts on this please.

Most DE razors are made of brass (or aluminum, for some Weishi's, or plastic for some really inexpensive models). The brass razors are plated with chrome and/or nickel. They don't rust.

The blades, now, are mostly stainless steel -- they don't rust either.

Rust is a real problem for straight razors, mostly made of non-stainless, high-carbon steel. But not for DE's.

Charles

Ditto the above.


Mick

Agreed. Never had a problem with DE's rusting. Shake them off when you're done and you should be fine

Originally Posted by GTIwarrior

Forgot to ask earlier but I have a theory. I'm sure someone has thought of this before and it is probably common around here. I was thinking of storing my DE in a plastic soap dish or some other box (preferably air tight) with a dessicant pack. The same as you would find in a bag of beef jerkey. I figure a clean and dry razor in an airtight box with the dessicant shouldn't rust. I'd like to hear everyone's thoughts on this please.

If you were just wanting a way to carry your razor with you in your toiletry bag or something, I would suggest doing what I did, and make yourself a case to put it in. I made a leather case that slides onto the handle and has a wider flap to cover the head of the razor. It just press studs down. You can buy these things for something like $40. But since I'm tighter than a Scotsman, I made my own instead. Probably costs all of $2 if you do it yourself.


Mick