Lets talk about shaving

Use to be big on Art Of Shaving, and still have their stuff in my cabinet, but a month and a half ago I stumbled upon Bevel, I ordered it and out of the 10 or so brands I've tried it might be my favorite. Right now it's subscription based only, 3 monthly payments of $20 on special. Normal price is $30 a month. So it might even be more expensive than AOS which isn't cheap by any means. If you shave daily it's suppose to last you 30 days, they definitely don't give you extra of any of the product. The 1st order you get the handle + brush for free. If you keep the membership going it's the same monthly price and you get the shaving cream, the balm, the priming oil and I forget how many blades but I think it's 75 automatically shipped to you every 3 months. The handles the best I've ever held, it looks stunning and it's perfectly weighted. I don't know where they get the blades from, but they're better than my Shark Platinums, which is a saying a lot. The only downside is the handle's so flawless looking I don't want to use it and mess it up lol. If you look at their web site without them saying it directly, the systems clearly marketed for men of color. I'm not that, but I do get one of the best shaves I've ever gotten with it. Once the deal's over it'll be back to $30 a month, which isn't cheap but I will more than likely continue to pay for it. I have thick coarse hair and their blades slice right thru it with zero irritation afterwards. They also include a nice little manual on how to DE shave, I didn't need this, but for a n00b to DE it's a cool touch. And while it doesn't effect the shave, I love the packaging and keep it out on my counter. I have some solid stuff from other companies I love, but keep stored away because of the hideous packaging. The brush didn't knock me over, but it's solid and IMHO if you cancel after ordering, $60 for the handle + brush + 3 month supply is not a bad deal at all.


products.jpg




box.jpg
 
DC !!!
Loved your post !

Wish my dear Father was still around so we could sit at the table..

How nice to get a new Norelco, and a Shaving Mirror.. The Norelco works great with a little time and lots of going against the grain if you want a smoother shave..
And yes, they flip up and you turn it upside down and tap it lightly in the sink upside down to get all the whiskers out..
You can probably wash it out with hot water every now and then too, unplugged, etc., first.. I do this to mine occasionally..

I still have a very old but excellent Norelco Speed XL from probably the 80's that gets used if Im in a hurry and don't have time to do it in the shower, where as far as I'm concerned, is the absolute best place to shave anyway.. :)
Dan F
I shaved my dad a couple times with the OLD Norelco and he kept telling me I missed some spots around his ears!:D I didnt like it because wiskers were everywhere . WE did it outside and had him wrapped up in an old table cloth.

The new one contains the wiskers ,not sure how that is done.

I assumed he couldnt shave himself anymore but as soon as his new one came he shaves himself now . Hmmm LOL i think he loves it too much no matter how difficult it use with his arthritis hands.
 
DC,
I think there should be a little button you can see at the bottom edge of the razor head that holds the 3 blades that you push and it lifts up like the hood on a car, and exposes a place under it where all the whiskers fall into.

On mine, you see that area and the 3 little plastic covered shafts that spin the blades - that's the place I was referring to that when its open, hold the razor upside down and tap it lightly in the sink, and about all the whiskers fall out..

The 3 blade cutter assemblies are suspended with that part that lifts up..

Under that part that lifts up is another little piece of plastic that moves counter clockwise and will come off, exposing the 3 cutter assemblies, which can come out if you want to then take them apart (the little round blade assembly drops out) and they also separate so you can clean a little in there also..

If your Dad's razor does this as well, just don't mix up the cutters and the little cups they go into, because they are designed to run in that little cup that is supposed to also help keep them sharp.. I don't know how well they do keep them sharp and after awhile, it will take longer to shave and may irritate a bit, and that's when you know its time to change the 3 cutter assemblies...

Or, just do what you want, and it will still work great for a long time.. :)

Yeah, you are right - we manly-men like to shave ourselves.. Its like a ritual sort of thing - just like we saw our Dad's doing it when we were little.. :)

Hope your new bizz takes off ! I also see lots and lots of headlights that are really cloudy and in need of a clean up..

Dan F
 
DC,
I think there should be a little button you can see at the bottom edge of the razor head that holds the 3 blades that you push and it lifts up like the hood on a car, and exposes a place under it where all the whiskers fall into.

On mine, you see that area and the 3 little plastic covered shafts that spin the blades - that's the place I was referring to that when its open, hold the razor upside down and tap it lightly in the sink, and about all the whiskers fall out..

The 3 blade cutter assemblies are suspended with that part that lifts up..

Under that part that lifts up is another little piece of plastic that moves counter clockwise and will come off, exposing the 3 cutter assemblies, which can come out if you want to then take them apart (the little round blade assembly drops out) and they also separate so you can clean a little in there also..

If your Dad's razor does this as well, just don't mix up the cutters and the little cups they go into, because they are designed to run in that little cup that is supposed to also help keep them sharp.. I don't know how well they do keep them sharp and after awhile, it will take longer to shave and may irritate a bit, and that's when you know its time to change the 3 cutter assemblies...

Or, just do what you want, and it will still work great for a long time.. :)

Yeah, you are right - we manly-men like to shave ourselves.. Its like a ritual sort of thing - just like we saw our Dad's doing it when we were little.. :)

Hope your new bizz takes off ! I also see lots and lots of headlights that are really cloudy and in need of a clean up..

Dan F
Thanks Dan!

I am not there to see the new Norelco but I googled it to get what you are talking about and saw some pictures.

Thanks for the encouragement on my new bizz!

I am sorry too I did not mean to "dislike" your post and now I do not know how to undo it!:unsure:
 
I have guys at work that think I should get into one of these "shave clubs" (Dollar Shave Club). But I find that I am kinda lazy and really only shave about twice a week anymore. So my Gillette Fusions seem to last forever for me. I guess I just never really got into high end shaving.
 
When one must shave everyday for work (5-6X week) you have to make it as enjoyable and pain free as possible. A good sharp razor blade (DE, straight razor) will outdo a cartridge based razor all day long. My face would get tore up if I used the cheapie cartridge razors.

 
Just thought I would give an update. My stuff showed up the other day but had already shaved that morning with my Injecta and some Cremo Cream that I had picked up at Wally World. I know you are supposed to give some things a chance but that creme was murder with the SE Injecta. I got a bad case of razor burn and not sure if I want to even try it with the DE or with any razor for that matter.

Been kind of anxious to try the Merkur DE and give a soap a try the last 2 days. Since I haven't used a brush and soap in 15 years I thought last night I would try and work the soap into a lather, Van der Hagen scented soap. This was also to clean the brush out. Practice run went great. Onto this morning. Read that the brush should be soaked, also put a few drop of water on top of the soap to hydrate it while showering. I see the lathering thing will take a little practice but got the brush loaded, seemed a little thin, thought I got a thicker practice run, but if I remember it is thicker than the Williams I tried before. Now time to try the DE, since I have not tried this type of blade before I went really slow. First thing I noticed is that the blade feels like it is pulling on the whiskers before cutting, might be just me since it was my first time with this type of razor. The blade is a Merkur that came with the razor, Feather blades have not arrived yet. Other than the different feel of it cutting the learning curve for using it is the same as the Injector SE. Since I went slow it took me a lot longer to shave but would expect it to be quicker after getting used to the heavier feel of the Merkur. Since I have been reading on a shave forum for a few days I read about making 2, 3 even 4 passes. Brush still had some lather in it and being new to this I only decided on a 2nd pass. In the past I would run the blade across the grain right after a pass with the grain and never had to lather up for that. Since brush had lather on it could just as well use it but wasn't much left though but it got the job done. I don't think my face could ever take a pass against the grain and will probably never try it.

Conclusion, I have a tough beard, product of getting older I guess. I don't get the closest shave when using the Injector, not much better with the twin disposables I use. The closeness of this shave was on par with the Injector, maybe slightly better. One thing I can say is that my face feels a lot better than when using the SE. I feel a slight razor burn but minimal compared to the Injector. Not sure if it was because I took my time and went slow I never got one nick, did not draw blood once, not even on the 2nd pass. That is what impressed myself. I also don't mind the smell of the Van der Hagen soap, which is good because I bought a couple cakes of it when I ordered the razor.

Now the drawback of this is that it is just like auto detailing waxes and sealants here the soaps can be spendy. One soap that gets rave reviews as a slick soap is Martin de Candre at $70 for 200g or about 7 ounces. Comes from France and only one retailer here in the US. There are a number of specialty ones out there at $10 an ounce but to me it is like high end wax, it is just too hard to justify the price, but just like here I wouldn't mind trying it to see what the hype is all about.
 
This thread is epic. I'm so going to get back into shaving with a straight razor.

I had to teach myself to shave because my father had passed just as I was hitting puberty and I had just moved so I didn't know anyone to ask... At first, I was just using water, (LOL) but then I got the hang of it and had friends asking me to help them do their facial hair in no time. I got really good and even got compliments from my hairdressers throughout my teenage years and twenties. After I got married I started to let things slide a little and changed to a short beard that I maintain with regular clippers and a razor to keep it clean.

One thing I learned that I'll never forget is how to make the hair grow/connect. Like from the mustache to the goatee or from the sideburns to beard. It all started one day back when I was in college when a friend suggested I change things up and do a goatee but I explained how my mustache didn't connect on the sides. He explained how he had the exact same problem but his grandfather showed him an old trick from Haiti to stimulate hair growth. He used ash and rubbed it into the area where he wanted the hair to grow (twice daily) and after a few months the hair would start to fill in. I was extremely skeptical but eventually tried it and it did work for me (while I was doing it people thought and said all kinds of things). I still wonder sometimes if his grandfather was just messing with us so we'd put ash on our faces or if the ash actually helped. I've told the story only to a few close friends and one of them (a Doctor) claims the hair grew because of the stimulation if anything. I'm interested to see if anyone else tried something like this so man up and comment back!
 
I don't think I could ever do a straight shave. I am nearsighted, shave without my glasses on and it is tough enough. Not sure if the glasses would get in the way but don't think I have steady enough hands using a cut throat razor.

I can't say as I have heard about the ash thing. I had worn a goatee for many years. My whisker growth is thin on the side where the mustache and goatee connect but was noticeable. Kind of started to disappear when the grey set in. The whiskers have turned grey for the most part so I have been shaving the chin. I had those skunk stripes on each side going for a while and it also made me look more aged so it had to go.
 
Back
Top