TL;DR - What are the pluses and minuses of old style, double edged safety razors vs. standard twin blades?

I'm about out of my stash of Gillette razors so the time has come to switch. I've looked at Harrys, $ shave, Merkur, Schick, et.al. trying to find my next brand.

I'm considering going to the old style, double edged safety razor, but am curious what are the pluses and minuses of those vs. standard twin blades. I'm going with one of those two because I don't like the ones with 3, 4, or 5 blades.

(My dad has my great-grandfather's straight razor, but I don't have time each morning to slow down and use it everyday.)

Get a Merkur long handle safety razor for less than $30 on Amazon:
Razor

Then add a box of 100 ct. blades for about $12:
Blades

And you won't have to worry about purchasing any razors for maybe the next 10 yrs or so...

I get about 3 shaves out of each of my Feather blades, so a package of 100 blades for $10 will last me 2 years.

I've shaved with a DE setup for about 9 years now.

Pros:

• Overall, a more enjoyable shaving experience with the DE setup. I have several different shaving creams that I use, which is enjoyable, and there's something calming about shaving with a DE.
• Blades are stupid cheap. You can get 100 or so on Amazon for like $7.60. A single blade can last me about 5 shaves. If your hair is thinner or thicker, you'll get more or less out of a blade.
• Closer shave. Hands down the DE gets you smoother. If you use the higher end, sharper blades like Feathers, you'll get an even closer shave. I recommend starting with a more forgiving blade in the beginning (like the Astras mentioned above) so you don't cut yourself as much.
• Less waste. Stainless steel blades are recyclable. Cartridges or single use razors are going into a landfill.

Cons:

• Once you factor in several different shaving creams, its not cheaper anymore. If anything, its a hobby in of itself.
• There is a learning curve to the DE route. You can't apply pressure to your face like you do with a safety razor, and if you do, you'll cut yourself.
• Some people say that it takes longer to shave, but once you have it down, its about the same amount of time for me, so this isn't really a con, or maybe just a really small con.

My setup:

• DE Safety Razor - $35
• Blades (linked above) - $8 to $20 per 100
• Stand - $14
• Brush - $15
• Creams - Sky is the limit

Give the Personna blades I linked a try. They aren't as sharp out of the box as other blades I have used, but don't dull nearly as quickly either. I actually don't like the super, super sharp blades as much - feel to slick across my face at first and quickly drop to painful once that edge is gone. The Personna blades have a little more tug out of the box, but the edge holds up much longer.

For day-to-day use, I use a Merkur HD, feather blades, and plain old orange can Barbasol (the sensitive skin kind). I learned the safety razor with Derby Blades -- which are more forgiving but still very capable -- and then switched after a few years to Feather.

Pro is that my sensitive skin and thick facial hair are easy to cut without burning up my face the way that a multi-blade razor would.

Con is that it took a lot of learning curve to really learn my face and neck and even now, I have to give it a second pass on days when I want a really tight shave.

Multiple creams is not necessary. Just need a shaving soap or cream. You can use regular foam or gel, but they don't work as good. You're multiblade razors have that strip of moisturizer there for a reason.

I prefer Proraso shave cream, but got a free tub of Taylor of Old Bond Street recently and have been using that. It works just as good. Only other thing I use is a aftershave.

rather be fishing said:

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Multiple creams is not necessary. Just need a shaving soap or cream. You can use regular foam or gel, but they don't work as good. You're multiblade razors have that strip of moisturizer there for a reason.

I prefer Proraso shave cream, but got a free tub of Taylor of Old Bond Street recently and have been using that. It works just as good. Only other thing I use is a aftershave.

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It's not necessary, but its kind of like when you've been eating hamburger helper and then you have a nice dry aged ribeye. Once you've had the ribeye, you don't really want to go back.

If you're not changing blades every shave, you're doing it wrong. The whole bit, to me, is that I can use a badger brush, shaving soap (I've had the same bar for more than 5 years now), and a brand new blade every time and get a fantastic shave for less money than I'd bend over to pick up if I dropped it. I only shave 1-2 times a week, but even if I shaved every day I'd change blades on every shave.

Waste not, want not.

Snow Monkey Ambassador said:

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If you're not changing blades every shave, you're doing it wrong. The whole bit, to me, is that I can use a badger brush, shaving soap (I've had the same bar for more than 5 years now), and a brand new blade every time and get a fantastic shave for less money than I'd bend over to pick up if I dropped it. I only shave 1-2 times a week, but even if I shaved every day I'd change blades on every shave.

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This. I can get at most 2 shaves out of a blade, and I have a beard, so I am only shaving cheeks and neck. I admittedly have thick facial hair, but sometimes even on the second use of a blade I am starting to get some pull. Blades are cheap enough that I don't feel bad changing it out every shave, and I shave 2-3 times per week. I use Proraso pre-shave, and then I rotate through different Taylor of Old Bond Street creams. My favorites are Sandalwood, Cedarwood, and Jermyn Street. Finish with a Proraso aftershave balm. Even with 3-4 different tubs of shaving cream, it is way less expensive because they last a long time. And as someone else said, the experience is significantly better. From a timing perspective, it might take SLIGHTLY longer, but really it is the clean up that takes a little longer than anything. Would recommend watching some YouTube videos to get you started. I watched a lot of geofatboy on YouTube and still buy most of my supplies from his online store www.shavenation.com.

Went to DE maybe four or five years ago because of a thread on TexAgs. Bought a Merkur razor and a variety pack of blades from Amazon. Settled on Astra blades. Get two or three shaves per blade. Haven't tried Feather's in a while because the Astras work great. Started using an oil from a company out of Cuero called "Shave Secret" instead of lathering up with soap. It's worth looking into.

Will never go back to the expensive cartridges. Disposing all the used blades in a large Advil bottle for safety and also I'm gonna TIG weld them together someday ;-)

Depends.

Do you want to go over your face 5 times with a single blade or twice with a cartridge ?

For me the safety razor is a fun novelty but not a better shave by any stretch. Kinda like shooting a black powder vs. a Model 70.

Personna blades and Haslinger soap. $9 soap and it has lasted me almost a year and probably has another year left.
https://www.westcoastshaving.com/collections/shaving-soaps/products/haslinger-schafmilch-shaving-soap-with-sheep-milk-and-lanolin

I've been using a DE razor for about 4 years now and will never go back to cartridges. I've spent more money on DE Razors than necessary and have some pretty cool ones; my favorite being a 1934 Pre War Gillette Tech that was sent off to a company called Delta Echo Razors for an update and re-coating; I will be passing it down to my kid one day. Very easy to shave with.

For a starting setup I would recommend a lot of RazoRock products. They are very affordable and are way better than anything you will find on amazon. The people who run the Italian barber website linked below produce the RazoRock line. Cant recommend them enough.

Razor - Don't own this one personally but I've owned / used other razors from Razorock and they are all great.

For soap I recommend either of these two: Santa Maria or mudder ****er is some of the best performing soap on the market (especially for the price, middle of the page on the right side.) and provides a glorious shave. Santa Maria will last you a long time and is also a very good performer. I originally started with Taylor of old Bond Street stuff when first starting and its like driving a honda civic vs. an Audi when compared to the above products.

Brush - This is a synthetic brush and is one of the best on the market. I bought a badger brush as well but have not used it since getting the plissoft synthetic.

Aftershave- Definitely get some aftershave. The stuff linked is highly regarded and is cheap.

For blades you will want to find what works best for your skin. I like Feathers personally. Astras and Gillette Silver Blues are nice as well. I would avoid Derby blades; they are cheap but are not very sharp. I've linked a variety pack which should help finding what works best.

Hope this helps. I've spent quite a bit of money on this stuff and my recommendations above are what I would recommend based on a bunch of trial and error.

http://www.tryablade.com/

I'm a head shaver. Any of you shave your head with one of these? I always buy the flexible head razors because they conform to the various curves of the head. But I hate paying for them, and frankly all the plastic is so wasteful. Would love another option. Thoughts?

I can't get a close shave with a safety razor nor can I get it to shave very well under my nose.

I don't like Gillette, but it is the best razor for me.

cohibasymas said:

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I'm a head shaver. Any of you shave your head with one of these? I always buy the flexible head razors because they conform to the various curves of the head. But I hate paying for them, and frankly all the plastic is so wasteful. Would love another option. Thoughts?

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head shaver checking in. I started using a safety razor and feather blades on my face 10 years ago or more, but now I have a beard and shave my head.

I've never shaved my head another way so I have nothing to compare it to, but I do get an incredibly close shave from it.

There is definitely a learning curve, there will be blood, but its more when you are being lazy or not paying attention.

For my head I can get 1-3 shaves out of a razor before I start to feel pulling and then will immediately change the blade. 3 is pushing it, but it also depends how many days I go between shaves

Whatever handle you like + amazon blades to fit it

Just bought 3 different options from Italian Barber and am excited to give them a shot. Thanks for the rec. Been a TOBS guy for 7 years for the most part so looking forward to expanding my horizons.

Follow up: got my Razorock stuff in the other day. I ordered the Santa Maria soap, and the Dead Sea soap/aftershave bundle as well as the Nomad soap/aftershave bundle. So far I have used the Dead Sea soap and aftershave twice and it is my new favorite. The scent is outstanding, and it performs perfectly. Looking forward to trying the Santa Maria this weekend. Wish they made an aftershave with that scent as well, but very impressed so far.