Trying Something New To Hone My Shavette Skills

Aloha!

OK, I'm not ready to give up on Shavettes yet. I originally thought they'd be a DANDY option for a traveling gentleman like many of us, but it's been nick and cut and razor burn city since I picked one up for the first time years ago. I bailed out many times and went back to my Straight and/or my DE.

Tonight I thought of two things. Perhaps my beloved Voskhod DE Blakes that I love so dearly simply do not work for me in my Shavette razors? Could this be true? So I switched to the Derby half blades I have had in the shave cabinet that came with one of my Shavettes. And right off the bat - A much more "forgiving" blade for SURE in my Shavette.

So I am doing the following to try and improve my Shavette form and function.

1.) FIRST pass with a Shavette with Derby blade nice and easy.
2.) Second pass with my DE and Voskhod to clean up most of what the Shavette missed.

This worked nicely tonight. I really took my time with the Shavette and the Derby blade and made sure I was following proper form and function with the "Train Whistle Pull" on the strokes and a very good angle of attack. I got about 40-50 percent of the whiskers on the first pass really taking it easy. Why push it? Otherwise, there will be blood. With the DE the second pass yielded a very CCS. One more pass and I'd have BBS, but I don't want to push it when I'm potentially punishing my skin enough with the Shavette, since my technique is not there yet.

I'll take a break tomorrow and go back to my Straight. But I think this may just work for me. I'd LOVE to master a Shavette.

-Zip

Your choice but maybe it's just the shavettes your using. I have a Feather RG that I use for travel, and have used quite a bit when I got it. Closest thing to a straight in feel and balance. A choice of blades( I understand some even like the Kai blades for being smooth) plus they have a guarded blade.

Now I may not be the one to give advise, cause I love my Feather blades fresh out the pack, I don't even use them more than be shave, but I've also heard you can"cork" the blade if it's too keen for you. Which I would try if that's an issue, but going to the Feather system really gives a straight feel in your hands which may translate to more confidence. I go back and forth without any issues, it's always in my travel bag and I travel more than I,m home. Tc

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Originally Posted by tcrideshd

Your choice but maybe it's just the shavettes your using. I have a Feather RG that I use for travel, and have used quite a bit when I got it. Closest thing to a straight in feel and balance. A choice of blades( I understand some even like the Kai blades for being smooth) plus they have a guarded blade.

Now I may not be the one to give advise, cause I love my Feather blades fresh out the pack, I don't even use them more than be shave, but I've also heard you can"cork" the blade if it's too keen for you. Which I would try if that's an issue, but going to the Feather system really gives a straight feel in your hands which may translate to more confidence. I go back and forth without any issues, it's always in my travel bag and I travel more than I,m home. Tc

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Aloha!

Thanks.

I like Feather, I just prefer Voskhod on my skin. It's more forgiving and gives me a smoother shave with no burn. But we're talking DE here. With a Shavette, I have tried Feather and it was a disaster. I'm sure with practice I can get control of it. And you may be correct. It may be the brand of Shavettes I am using (I have three), so perhaps I should look at another.

There is a Barbershop in Honolulu that features straight razor shaves, and what they really use is a Feather bladed Shavette. I've had them shave me a few times and no issues, so it is obviously my technique, perhaps combined with my Shavette itself.

For now the light pass with a Derby blade is working well followed by the DE razor second pass.

I'm bound and determined to "get a handle" on my Shavette skills.

Mahalo!

-Zip

Well to address the issue, I think the shavettes that use a DE blade, I haven't found one that feels like a straight in hand for ergonomics, where as the Feather " System" is sonething that as Obie once said is not a shavettes its in a league all its own. I think Kai makes one similar that's cheaper, it just feels like a straight, and if you try the guarded blade for a while to learn it will save a lot of nicks too. I never could get a DE type shavettes to work, Good luck. Tc

Aloha!

I hear you, tcischd. I hear you. I originally joined SRP because I wanted some ideas for traveling with my Straight razor as I had given up on Shavettes after tyring SEVERAL times over SEVERAL years to use a Shavette. It's just not a straight razor (obviously) but I thought I could make it work. This time I am trying in earnest. And I shall endeavor to persevere.

Mahalo!

-Zip

For DE type shavettes, the stiffness of the blade is important. The flexibility of the blade and it's angle to the skin defines the shave quality on an individual face. Same with DE's. I use most types of razors and enjoy the differences. The Feather and the Kai are good shavers. I went back to the guarded blade in both. I use the Pro blade in my "Alumigoose" SE. Blade angle is a very important part of the shave. The blade should slide along almost flat the the skin. The method is to shear rather than scrape. Razor burn is usually caused by scraping, a too alkaline soap, or both.
YMMV!
~Richard

Aloha!

Recently, I have begun shaving more in the evening. Not all the time, as I mix it up, but recently I have been doing many more eveining shaves than I have ever done in my life. It's nice relaxing in the shave den for an hour, taking a long shower, slowly working through a complete shave, and then relaxing in bed rather than shaving and running off to to my career in the morning. If I can get a BBS shave, I'm usually good through about 2 or 3 PM the next day before I start to shadow. And it's not that bad. Especially in today's business world. Most guys show up to work with a 5:00 shadow.

I have noticed that since I started shaving in the evening, I have less tendency to nick and cut than when I was Shavette shaving in the morning. Could be the caffeine, or lack thereof. Or just my alertness or anxiety differences based on time of day.

Still doing the Shavette first pass, DE cleanup passes. Three days no cuts or nicks. Straight razor today and through the weekend, so taking a Shavette break.

Mahalo!

-Zip

Occasionally I will bring out my blue beard shavette and do a shave. Every time I do I remember why I switched to the feather SS. It's truly a better shave experience. If you're set on making your shavette work for travel I would say this from my experience. Pick up a blade sampler pack, then whip up your best performing soap or cream. Do wtg passes only until you find a blade that does it right for you. I've found that in certain razors, be it DE or shavette they all like something different. Just my opinion. Good luck.

I do not use a DE type shavette. I do have a Weck Sextoblade that works quite well. Razor burn in my experience comes from one, or a combination of pressure, angle, and poor skin stretching/holding. For my skin I find the stretching and holding to be paramount to avoiding nicks and irritation. Also a nice wet lather goes a long way.

My opinion only. :) For travel, nothing beats a DE razor and blade combo. I have several Gillettes and a couple of Merkur Futur razors. They all shave great and I can lather and finish in under 5 minutes in a hurry. For shavette, and if you do well with straight, I will agree with those on here about the Feather SS shavette with the longer blades. I have now acquired a folding and a more traditional Japanese non folding Feather razor. Both heads work exactly the same. I'm really more partial to the non folding since I don't switch hands shaving. Never did with DE and I have not with straight and shavette. The thing about the non folding Feather is that you can get a good feel and have a bit more vision with it, at least I do. Feather has a very mild blade now called the Feather Artist Club Pro Soft Guard Blades and good for sensitive skin. I ordered 3 of them from this place: Buy Individual Razor Blades for Double Edge, Single Edge and Shavettes Also ordered 2 of the Kamosori blades for Artist Club they have. Nice thing about the razor is it's good choice of blades and amount of exposure. Trying a few blades is nice since you don't have to commit to a whole box if you really don't care for them. See the differences between FEATHER blades here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJFHsajC3MM video is short and shows the difference in sizes and exposure of blade tips.

You can also see Geofatboy shaving with explanations using a Feather non-folding shavette here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNSo-aueVd8

Aloha!

It's been three years since I started this thread. Two years ago I ordered a long blade Shavette from China (via Aliexpress) called the
XYP Straight Razor with Cloud Blades. This razor also goes by various other names including Strong Leopard 77-A. I paid $8.00 and that included shipping and 20 Cloud blades.

Attachment 323456

With the included Cloud blades I liked this out of the box. Nice balanced feel, and long enough blade to mimic my straight razors. After two years I still cut myself on occasion, but it's no where near as bad as the regular razor blade Shavettes that I own. I liked the Cloud blades so much I ordered more. But honestly, you are better off just ordering a new Shavette and blades from AliExpress for a lower cost than the blades themselves.

My next Shavette will probably be the Feather Non Folding Shavette as mentioned in the previous post above. But the last two years have been better on the "nick and cut front" with this razor than when I was using a regular DE blade Shavette.

FWIW, I seem to cut myself frequently with a Shavette on either side of my nose between nose and lip about 1 inch outside where my nose ends. I probably have bad technique that the Straight razor is forgiving at that angle/area whereas the Shavette just cuts me to show me who's boss.

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Originally Posted by Gibbs

My opinion only. :) For travel, nothing beats a DE razor and blade combo. I have several Gillettes and a couple of Merkur Futur razors. They all shave great and I can lather and finish in under 5 minutes in a hurry. For shavette, and if you do well with straight, I will agree with those on here about the Feather SS shavette with the longer blades. I have now acquired a folding and a more traditional Japanese non folding Feather razor. Both heads work exactly the same. I'm really more partial to the non folding since I don't switch hands shaving. Never did with DE and I have not with straight and shavette. The thing about the non folding Feather is that you can get a good feel and have a bit more vision with it, at least I do. Feather has a very mild blade now called the Feather Artist Club Pro Soft Guard Blades and good for sensitive skin. I ordered 3 of them from this place: Buy Individual Razor Blades for Double Edge, Single Edge and Shavettes Also ordered 2 of the Kamosori blades for Artist Club they have. Nice thing about the razor is it's good choice of blades and amount of exposure. Trying a few blades is nice since you don't have to commit to a whole box if you really don't care for them. See the differences between FEATHER blades here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJFHsajC3MM video is short and shows the difference in sizes and exposure of blade tips.

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I have the feather ss in the kamisori styld and the folding style. I like the folder more. And with the feather pro blades i get one of the best feeling and closest shaves ive ever had. I enjoy ine a lot and use it often. Sure its going to cost you more than the china thing for 8 bucks but it works perfectly in my opinion.

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Originally Posted by Gasman

I have the feather ss in the kamisori styld and the folding style. I like the folder more. And with the feather pro blades i get one of the best feeling and closest shaves ive ever had. I enjoy ine a lot and use it often. Sure its going to cost you more than the china thing for 8 bucks but it works perfectly in my opinion.

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Absolutely it will be worth it. Cost is not an issue. I bought the Chinese option only to see if I would enjoy using a Shavette that simulated a straight razor more than the standard DE Shavettes, and also to see if I could actually do a Shavette shave without cutting myself. Then my career got the best of me and I have not been able to focus on any hobbies or passions for the last few years. It's now time to relax a bit and refocus on wet shaving and my other hobbies.

I'll probably purchase a Feather in the next week or two. Thanks for the input.