Thread: NEWBIE VERDICT IN: SR8T SHAVING vs. CARTRIDGE SHAVING- WHICH REALLY SHAVES CLOSER?

No the verdict is not in, and here's why:

Every time I think: is sr8t razor shaving really better then cartridge shaving in terms of a close shave. SO, I say to myself, next time I shave, I'll use my Gillette Mach 3 and see because its been so long since I used it, I forgot.

BUT, when the time comes, who the &%$#& wants to shave with a mach 3, I wanna use my sr8t. So, there you go, I'll never know...

I'll save you the agony straight>>> anything else

Originally Posted by mainaman

I'll save you the agony straight>>> anything else

thanks, Blacksburg. I went to Radford University for a year, you know...

Well, I stayed at a Holiday Inn Express. And so I know that once you learn a str8 you will not look back. My gosh, what's a cartridge blade? My M3 blades are finally lasting now! I've had the same one on my razor for months! I can get a smoother, closer shave with a DE. But, I'm still learning the str8. And really, I don't care if I ever get as close as I do with my DE, the str8 is here to stay.

Yesterday we were in a hurry to go to de Efteling, a fairy tale theme park. So no time for a straight (who wants a wife and two daughters moaning "We're running late, why can't you shave with a normal razor?"). So I took out my double blade cartridge thingy. No need to tell you that I had a non-BBS day.

I seriously get nothing out of a Mach 3. Never have. But I would prefer they started calling it the Mach "5 or 6". Or perhaps the Mach "How ever many blades we need for you to send us your damn money". How many blades do those things have now?

Getting a closer shave than a cartridge takes quite a bit of skill I think. Especially if you turn right around and apply your new skills like beard prep, skin stretching, traditional creams, etc., back onto your cartridge system.

I can get an equal shave without much effort though.

I can get a smoother shave with a straight, by far.

Oh sorry, nobody cares about that. The key I think is to learn to hone the razor into a really sharp/smooth pinnacle of shaving perfection and then learn how not to dull it with a strop prematurely.

Once you really learn to apply a Mach 3 like edge to your straight blade you can have unimagined success. This is because you begin to realize just how much those other blades get in the way of the first one.

The other big advantage to a straight is that once you really are atuned to what you're doing you can literally see a series of whiskers and shave them off without actually touching the skin at all.

It takes a lot of effort though to dial in a edge. Once it is right, it stays right almost effortlessly though.

Mach 3s suck! I have my DOVO's and a Edwin Jagger DE. No time for the DOVO or traveling on a plane = DE. Both are superior to an M3 , and the str8 is superior to the DE. What the hell is an electric razor?

I know you can check your str8, but I don't trust any of the TSA goons. I have had so much stuff stolen out of my luggage, my DOVO ain't goin in there.

Someone showed me this one time -- look at the Fusion cartridge very closely. There's plastic or rubber bumpers surrounding the blades on all sides, and all of those bumpers keep the blades from making actual contact with your skin. Instead, the metal blades sit just above the skin and cut there, and not at the skin. Bottom line is that you can never, ever get the kind of shave from a cartridge that you get from a DE or SR.

Hello, Mr. Toplin,

The way I compare a cartridge razor to a straight razor is this way:

Scarfing up a greasy hamburger in a fast foods joint or feasting on a steak with wine in a fine restaurant; guzzling a tasteless light beer from the can or savouring a cellar temperature hearty beer in a beer mug; listening to Beethoven and John Coltrane or to a symphony of tin cans rattling in the backseat; and so on.

I look at straight razor shaving also as an art and a craft, something that takes time and discipline to learn, something that eventually says something about your inner voice. You can get a good shave with a cartridge razor in 90 seconds, or you can spend a bit longer and get a great shave with a straight razor.

You might think I am pumping a little too much philosophy in this. Perhaps I am. That's because I view the straight razor world also from a philosophical perspective — while getting a great shave.

Regards,

Obie

Originally Posted by Kees

Yesterday we were in a hurry to go to de Efteling, a fairy tale theme park. So no time for a straight (who wants a wife and two daughters moaning "We're running late, why can't you shave with a normal razor?"). So I took out my double blade cartridge thingy. No need to tell you that I had a non-BBS day.

I know exactly how you felt Kees... I've been there many a time myself