Any Wet Shaving Fans?

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 Post subject: Re: Any Wet Shaving Fans?
Unread postPosted: Wed Nov 18, 2015 5:03 pm 
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Those soaps are truly among the best - you can't lose with any of them... They're my favorites, certainly.

Yeah, disposables might be easy but they're really not economical... Or all that good. You should definitely break out the Merkur! The Futur is my favorite razor; not sure which one you have? As for Mühle, my favorites are the R89 and R41 heads - though I use a third-party handle made of stainless steel.

Feather blades are great; definitely sharp. But they can be a little rough on the first shave. Try some PolSilvers some time... You might be pleasantly surprised!

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 Post subject: Re: Any Wet Shaving Fans?
Unread postPosted: Wed Nov 18, 2015 9:08 pm 
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The Merkur Futura is the one I have, I think: brushed finish, click-adjustible blade angle, cylindrical integral handle rounded at the end. I'll give the PolSilver blades a try...I never heard of them. Thanks! :)


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 Post subject: Re: Any Wet Shaving Fans?
Unread postPosted: Wed Nov 18, 2015 10:47 pm 
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I have tough/rough beard, so the feather ones seem to work nice. Merkur Futur is a choice I'm thinking definitely. The adjustable blade is an interesting idea and having a lighter shave on the last pass of triple pass shave ought to be nice...

(puts the meditation hat on)

//Juha


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 Post subject: Re: Any Wet Shaving Fans?
Unread postPosted: Thu Nov 19, 2015 9:50 am 
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That's the one, James! Might be a Vision, but I suspect it's the Futur. Fantastic razor. The PolSilver blades are dependable and smooth, have a great lifespan (I get five days no problem) and are cheap. Check out http://www.polsilver-blades.com/ to order (where I get mine).

What's nice is, like Juha said - you can use a higher setting for those woolly Monday mornings and then dial it back for the other days. Very smooth shaver and very, very efficient (I hate to use the word aggressive, but some do).

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 Post subject: Re: Any Wet Shaving Fans?
Unread postPosted: Thu Nov 19, 2015 3:05 pm 
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I know what you mean about the Futura (I confirmed that that's the model I have). So this morning, in order not to return to DE shaving with too "aggressive" a touch, I cleaned up my trusty old Merkur 34C heavy-duty safety razor, loaded it with a Merkur blade (the only brand I had in the drawer), and enjoyed a nice, slow, careful shave. I ended up with a nicer shave than I got with the disposable razors, with no nicks or burn at all.

I'll order some ProSilver blades today, and after using the 34C for a while I'll change to the Futura and see how I do at different settings.

I was thinking about the fellow having trouble with his shaving brush, and I wonder if he's cleaning after each use and hanging it brush-down to dry. I've heard of people laying their brush on its side or setting it on its flat handle-end so the bristles are pointing up...in which case the moisture can penetrate the connection between the bristles and the handle, shortening the brush's life. I've been using my George Trumper silver-tip badger brush with imitation ivory handle for at least ten years and it's still in great shape.


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 Post subject: Any Wet Shaving Fans?
Unread postPosted: Thu Nov 19, 2015 4:38 pm 
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^ thumbs up! Well done.

And yes, I rinse the brush throughly after every use. Then gently squeeze out excess water and hang it brush down on a holder that's got a place for brush and razor. And it's not stuck inside a cabinet, but left on top of the sink. So should be all kosher in that sense.

And I've only been using the kit for almost exactly 6 months.

"evidence" below :-)

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 Post subject: Re: Any Wet Shaving Fans?
Unread postPosted: Thu Nov 19, 2015 4:53 pm 
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That's awesome, James! The 34C is a well-known razor that's been around quite a while. Should (continue to) serve you well... Sounds like you had a good go though!

Juha, that's really strange. Kent makes very nice brushes; they're more on the high end. What's weird is that it looks like your brush hairs are breaking; they should be a smoother, more uniform length around the shape. I'm guessing you're a face (rather than a bowl) latherer? Do you lather with circular strokes? That could be the problem. Either that, or too much pressure.

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 Post subject: Re: Any Wet Shaving Fans?
Unread postPosted: Fri Nov 20, 2015 9:24 am 
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Double Negative wrote:
Juha, that's really strange. Kent makes very nice brushes; they're more on the high end. What's weird is that it looks like your brush hairs are breaking; they should be a smoother, more uniform length around the shape. I'm guessing you're a face (rather than a bowl) latherer? Do you lather with circular strokes? That could be the problem. Either that, or too much pressure.


Indeed, was quite surprising to me as well. I usually lather in a bowl, but then do tend to continue lathering on face in circular motion. So mixed martial arts for me! 8-)

So it might be the combination of circular face lathering and my rough beard. My face is like a hedgehog after a day or so.. give it a week and it turns into porcupine!

Was thinking maybe I should try and pay more attention to softening the beard with hot water in advance. At least in theory that ought to help with it.

//Juha


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 Post subject: Re: Any Wet Shaving Fans?
Unread postPosted: Fri Nov 20, 2015 2:45 pm 
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Juha: I can't add to the suggestions already discussed as to why your Kent shaving brush is deteriorating. Kent is a good product, in my experience. I have a couple of Kent hair brushes (admittedly shorter and stiffer bristles) that see daily service and look like new after about ten years. Maybe not a good comparison, but I just mean to say that Kent has a reputation for quality. And you certainly are caring for it. It might be interesting to email a photo or two to Kent in England, just to see if they can figure out what's happening.


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 Post subject: Re: Any Wet Shaving Fans?
Unread postPosted: Fri Nov 20, 2015 4:49 pm 
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I'd definitely give Kent a try to see what they say.

You might also want to try lathering in straight(er), rather than circular strokes. The latter can be damaging and some brush manufacturers recommend against it.

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