Thread: Inquiring minds want to know

I forgot to mention that you can make a single stroke, from the forehead to the nape of the neck, top to bottom, in a single pass. Try that with any cartridge, with even a single day's growth. I have. No way. Irritation with multiple passes.

I have found it is more about the prep. I can get just as good of a shave with a mass produced multi-blade razor as I do with my straights if I take the time to prep like I do with my straights. That being said, I enjoy shaving with my straights more than a multi-bladed razor and it forces me to calm down and relax or I cut myself. I do take a newer razor with me when I travel, just due to convenience of disposable heads I can find anywhere and I only use a carry on the majority of my travels.

Nope, wouldn't switch. If SRs were simply about saving money, I would stick to DE razors. My old Gillette OCs shave well and don't cost much of anything to obtain. SR shaving is simply enjoyable, so it is taking over DE shaving for me.

Originally Posted by Benz

I started shaving 48 years ago with my Grand Dad's straight. Would I switch......NO!

Yep, I carry a pocket watch a lot too. It's a Waltham made in 1906.

Other antiquated things I do is cook with old cast iron skillets because the food tastes better and in the winter I light my house with Aladdin kerosene lamps because I hate electric light.

I'm a bit of a weird combination of modern and antiquated. I LOVE modern technology, my house is fully smart, heck I even have a smart toothbrush. But, I mean come on, how can ANYONE think they can do better than solid cast iron cookware over fire (induction is a close second, but only because I don't have gas connection for the fire stove at home ). I've tried everything and while pressure cooking is a nice second, there's really nothing better than cast iron cookware, why people choose to use ANY OTHER material for their cookware makes ZERO sense to me.

Also, I don't really use old style lamps anymore (used to have them in my backyard when I had one of those), but OMG I LOVE the light they produce, maybe I should get some!

Frankly if I could go back to living the hunter gatherer life, it'd be a bit of getting used to but I'd SO do it, 100% dive right in no questions!

And to answer the OP's question - I wouldn't go "back" to Gillette. Couple of things, some of which many here have already mentioned:

1. Using something that is a piece of history that has VALUE because it was used many years ago by people long dead, it was likely cherished by someone who saved up for months to buy it hundreds of years ago. This isn't why I got into Straight Razor shaving, but this is a BIG reason why I do it now, there's just SOMETHING about using something that was used 250 years ago that's just amazing!
   
2. Every other shaving thing is inherently flawed for ME. Even Safety razors. THIS is the original reason I came into straights - not because my grandpa gave me his, or because I thought I could get a better shave - part of it was the idea to save money (which a DE can do, just as well or even better) but it was mostly initially because of clogging! I have very thin hair, consequently hair growth on me is very DENSE - which means everything gets clogged in like 1/4 pass. Cartridges are the worst for this ofc, since they have no way to "open up" cleaning them between passes (or even mid pass) often required me to use my fingers, just splish-splashing them in water doesn't always get all the hair out...and I end up lightly cutting myself on the blades EVERY SINGLE time I shaved at some point while attempting to unclog the blades.
   
   Safety razors are a bit better, you don't need to use any physical means to unclog just open the razor up fully and run it under water and it's fully clean, which is great, but it's annoying as hell to do it, again every 1/4 pass or so.
   
3. CONTROL - this is about two things. First is that straight razors afford me most control, even with a safety it's hard to control the exact angle and pressure of the blade for me at least, because of all the mechanism that prevents me from seeing and feeling the blade directly. Second, I feel like the amount of control and co-ordination you need to naturally pick up or end up doing so by the time you get even decently good at shaving with a straight (however long that takes you) is a skill that I feel is not only nice to have but something that can be used elsewhere as well. A light touch can be appreciated in MANY other places outside of the bathroom!
   
4. I've ALWAYS wanted a hobby, never really found something that captured my interest for too long...until now! Straight razor collecting and learning about it's history as well as the history of metalworking in GENERAL has really turned into a genuine interest for me. For now, it's just about straight razors, but who knows may go into knives and other stuff as well. There's just something about how metalsmithing through the years actually is an interesting microcosm of historical events that were happening AROUND the time as well. Like, you'd know that certain metals were less used around 1920s because of the war. Learning about metalworking and it's history in europe in late 1700s to early 1800s is how I started to learn and appreciate the history of that era even more - the revolutions, the change in general philosophy and culture etc.
   
5. My ultimate wish is to shave with something that was used by an ancient egyptian. This would combine my utter fascination with the khemets (what the ancient egyptians called themselves) AND shaving.

Would not go back.. Ive enjoyed the whole journey since poking my head down this Rabbit Hole.. And who ever gets tired of hearing the ladies say " You smell nice" I dont care if they are 18 to 80, blind, crippled or crazy.. I love when they say it!! .. Nice reading your replies gents and good thread Senor' Spendur!