Did you say AOS?

[Labarum]

Here's another take:

http://www.theartofshaving.com/static/img/images6/products//180/67003.jpg

http://tinyurl.com/yg2u85x

But for British Gentlemen

http://www.gentlemans-shop.com/

[DSJR]

:lol:

[Covenant]

Brian, for the vast majority of us blokes, shaving is a pain; something we have to do every morning but we dont enjoy. You seem to get great pleasure from it. Why?

[Beechwoods]

I'm back with a 'tache :)

[Labarum]

Brian, for the vast majority of us blokes, shaving is a pain; something we have to do every morning but we dont enjoy. You seem to get great pleasure from it. Why?

I picked up a comment on another forum. A young man told the story of how he was in the pub with his mates complained to them about how sore his face was because of shaving. An old man leaned over and said "Get yourself a proper razor, lad, like your granddad used." The young man explored and was converted.

I am old enough to have shaved with a safety razor (double edged/DE razor). I did some internet searching and decided to have ago. I was converted.

There is something very satisfying about building a rich lather on your face with a brush and cleanly shaving with a single sharp blade.

There are men out there who make as much fuss of shaving as of HiFi. I don't. Having remastered the techniques I can get as good a shave as quickly with a DE razor as with a multiblade - a bit more effort and I can achieve much better.

http://connaughtshaving.com/page100.html

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/

Before Christmas on the last link a number of us mentored a man in his mid 20s who came to us in desperation having suffered years of discomfort and even pain with skin blemishes. Multiblade razors can wreak havoc on some faces. Within six weeks of changing his shaving tools and techniques his skin was clear, for the first time in his adult life.

That I found satisfying.

[Labarum]

I'm back with a 'tache :)

Try one of these

http://www.gentlemans-shop.com/acatalog/merkur-beard-razor1.html#a46

[Beechwoods]

That might end up a hint for my birthday next month :) While I tend to go without shaving other than a couple of times a week when I've not got a 'tache or stubble beard going, I much prefer a clean look with the 'tache. There's no point having one if it's not clearly defined IMO. People these days, particularly ones in their mid-thirties like me, tend to be quite meek about showing off a distinctive style. I think well styled facial hair can define a look, and I like being slightly different. Especially having to wear smart stuff (office wear) all day.

[Labarum]

That might end up a hint for my birthday next month :)

It may be worth searching or asking questions on one of the shaving forums about moustache management. There is a wealth of experience there.

[DSJR]

Try "The Fedora Lounge."

Now, I'm all but bald now and look daft in ANY hat, but I love the style of a well cut suit, boot, shave-n-haircut. If I try to go casual I have always looked sloppy and age doesn't help..

I had a beard once, was told I was hiding behind it (true) and it went around half my life ago, the second half going much faster than the first.....

if you can spare the time for a proper shave, go for it I say... and if you can afford it, try to locate a real barber who can do this service for you as a treat - a wonderful experience :)

[Labarum]

if you can spare the time for a proper shave

http://www.gentlemans-shop.com/acatalog/barber_shop.html

[The Grand Wazoo]

Brian,
There was a little discussion here about OCD tendencies - if there's anything in my behaviour that could fall into that category, it's my attitude to anything with a cutting edge.
Blades should be razor sharp. And when I say razor sharp, I am fully aware that modern man does not really understand what sharp means & this, I firmly believe is because we don't generally shave with a proper blade any more.

I used to pay people to cut forestry weeds with a curve bladed hook (similar to what most Asterix fans think of as a sickle) & when you earn your daily wage from this job, you soon learn how to keep an edge on a blade! I spent a couple of summers as a student doing just this.

I also spent a while getting an education in science & one of the things we used to do was to prepare slides for viewing under microscopes. This requires the cutting of a translucent sliver of the material to be viewed with a device called a microtome.

http://www.daviddarling.info/images/microtome.jpg

A microtome uses what is essentially the business end of a cut-throat razor & we used to have to sharpen these. We were taught that the definition of 'razor sharp' is that the leading edge of the blade should be one molecule thick. The test for sharpness was to be able to split a blonde hair from a female human with one slow even downward stroke, while holding it lightly between finger & thumb.

So, I'm not too suprised your young friend had a sore face!

I'm often to be found muttering about the state of our kitchen knives, obsessively honing the edge to get it 'just so'. My domestic test is to be able to repeatedly slice a ripe tomato to 'see-through thickness' with no downward pressure on the knife (or a quick test is to be able to shave a patch from my forearm!!)

Obsessive? Me? Naaah!
Compulsive..........oh no!!

[Covenant]

I would like to but a knife sharpener-dont see them in the shops. Where could I buy one?

[Clive]

I would like to but a knife sharpener-dont see them in the shops. Where could I buy one?
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Master-Class-Acero-Sharpening-Steel/dp/B000FUAG72/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&s=kitchen&qid=1264117501&sr=1-11

[Marco]

I used to pay people to cut forestry weeds with a curve bladed hook (similar to what most Asterix fans think of as a sickle) & when you earn your daily wage from this job, you soon learn how to keep an edge on a blade!

I'm often to be found muttering about the state of our kitchen knives, obsessively honing the edge to get it 'just so'. My domestic test is to be able to repeatedly slice a tomato to 'see-through thickness' with no downward pressure on the knife (or a quick test is to be able to shave a patch from my forearm!!)


Chris,

Coming from Glasgow, we know how to keep an edge on a blade, too - but for very different reasons!! :eyebrows:

Think of offering a 'permo-smile' to a persistent enemy ;)

Marco.

[The Grand Wazoo]

Steels like Clive has linked to are ok if you don't try & be flash & sharpen a blade quickly. The main thing is to get the angle right & you're very rarely able to manage that consistently on both sides of the blade.

If you practice a bit first on an old knife, these ones below are fantastic, but be careful because they remove metal quickly & you can ruin a blade fast. I use one for a rough & ready sharpen when I'm in a hurry, just to top up the edge.

http://img354.imageshack.us/img354/3767/ultimategear17374533628medium4.jpg

Also the handle is short so you can cut yourself easily when you're honing the back side of the blade.

For getting a really good edge on a badly abused blade you can use one of these kits

http://www.sportsmanguncentre.co.uk/i/uploads/full/11692052889308.jpg

You mount the knife in a jig & you can select the angle you require and work through several grades of abrasion, starting with a coarse stone & ending with a fine diamond - this is precision grinding for the obsessive!

http://urbanoia.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/lansky-angle-super-300x225.jpg

For the average person with their sanity intact, this would do.

http://www.cookware-online.co.uk/images/product/main/450_knife_sharpener.jpg

http://www.cookware-online.co.uk/shop/cooks-knives/knife-sharpeners-and-accessories/chef-s-choice-manual-knife-s-310255.html

[Labarum]

modern man does not really understand what sharp means & this, I firmly believe is because we don't generally shave with a proper blade any more.

I used to pay people to cut forestry weeds with a curve bladed hook (similar to what most Asterix fans think of as a sickle) & when you earn your daily wage from this job, you soon learn how to keep an edge on a blade!

I had never thought of your second point above but I am sure there is something in it.

Your first point above is more problematical. Cheap disposable razors aside, the blades in a modern cartridge razor are generally very sharp, but the problem comes with the tug and chop principle of the multi-blade. The first blade pulls the hair slightly out of the folical and the second chops it off. The hair then sinks back below the surface of the skin, making for a closer shave.(They say.) If more than two blades are used the effect is supposed to be multiplied. The result is an increased frequency of ingrowing hairs, which become infected. This is a bigger problem the more curly your hair is, and clearly is the biggest problem for blacks. Having said that those with straight hair are not immune from the problem.

Modern shave gels also introduce problems of their own. Some would say you are not wet shaving at all - you are applying a high tech oily lubricant to your skin which actually repels water. A traditional soap based lather holds the water in the beard - the water is the lubricant and an agent that softens the hairs prior to cutting.

The best modern multiblades have an articulated head that holds the blade at the right cutting angle, whereas the user of a traditional razor (safety or cut-throat) has to use skill to maintain the right cutting angle. So for this reason, and because there are skills to be learned in generating and laying the lather, traditional wet shaving is harder to learn. It is not so difficult, however, to learn to use a safety razor and the pay-off can be great. I have never felt the need, or felt brave enough, to try a straight razor (a cut-throat); but those that do claim a greater reward for their efforts, which include blade honing.

I now have quite a lot of tough white hairs and was finding it increasingly difficult to shave with expensive cartridge razors. After a short apprenticeship with a standard safety razor I graduated to a slant head razor - this twists the blade in the head so the cut is a slice rather than a chop.

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?ltr=M&t=39837

http://connaughtshaving.com/merkur39c.html

I use what is reckoned to be the sharpest blade on the planet - a Japanese made Feather http://connaughtshaving.com/feather.html Feather make all sorts of blads for medical use - razor blades are a sideline, but they do know how to get an edge on steel!

The choice of blade is very personal - what works for one might be awful for another.

All of this might seem a great unnecessary fuss, and yes, a lot of research went into the problem of getting a decent and comfortable shave with increasing tough white hairs. The pay off was worth it. The shaving time each day is the same for a batter shave, and a little longer for a much better shave.

For those who can't be fussed with changing to a safety razor I would say (provided they have no problems with ingrowing hairs) it may be sufficient to change to a traditional lather. Buy a brush and use a traditional cream - the Palmolive cream in the green tube is cheap and relatively easy to find.

I do recommend men look at these websites and view the training videos on uTube.

http://connaughtshaving.com/page100.html

The premium products can be very pleasantly scented and are not as expensive as they look because they are so concentrated, but I do not think them necessarily better than to good high street products, when you can find them.

Prices here are keen

http://connaughtshaving.com/

I have no commercial interest.

(Yes, written in the small hours. After few hours sleep my broken hip gives me some discomfort so a sit in a chair and a cup-a-tea works well before I settle for the rest of the night.)

[Labarum]

I would like to but a knife sharpener-dont see them in the shops. Where could I buy one?

John Lewis

[Covenant]

Your comments about shaving gel rings true Brian. I bought a can to try last year. After a week or so my face was covered with red blotches and sore. Trouble was it was another week before I figured what the problem was. I'm back to ordinary shaving foam but must confess I use a shaving balm afterwards.

[Labarum]

Your comments about shaving gel rings true Brian . . . I'm back to ordinary shaving foam but must confess I use a shaving balm afterwards.

Do buy a brush, Jerry and try a traditional cream or soap.

Shaving balms should always be used, and alcohol based after-shaves avoided like the plague.

[Rare Bird]

shaving is a pain; something we have to do every morning

:lol: once a week more like, razor head are too expensive.

[Barry]

Brian,
There was a little discussion here about OCD tendencies - if there's anything in my behaviour that could fall into that category, it's my attitude to anything with a cutting edge.
Blades should be razor sharp. And when I say razor sharp, I am fully aware that modern man does not really understand what sharp means & this, I firmly believe is because we don't generally shave with a proper blade any more.

I used to pay people to cut forestry weeds with a curve bladed hook (similar to what most Asterix fans think of as a sickle) & when you earn your daily wage from this job, you soon learn how to keep an edge on a blade! I spent a couple of summers as a student doing just this.

I also spent a while getting an education in science & one of the things we used to do was to prepare slides for viewing under microscopes. This requires the cutting of a translucent sliver of the material to be viewed with a device called a microtome.

http://www.daviddarling.info/images/microtome.jpg

A microtome uses what is essentially the business end of a cut-throat razor & we used to have to sharpen these. We were taught that the definition of 'razor sharp' is that the leading edge of the blade should be one molecule thick. The test for sharpness was to be able to split a blonde hair from a female human with one slow even downward stroke, while holding it lightly between finger & thumb.

So, I'm not too suprised your young friend had a sore face!

I'm often to be found muttering about the state of our kitchen knives, obsessively honing the edge to get it 'just so'. My domestic test is to be able to repeatedly slice a ripe tomato to 'see-through thickness' with no downward pressure on the knife (or a quick test is to be able to shave a patch from my forearm!!)

Obsessive? Me? Naaah!
Compulsive..........oh no!!

I thought that the test of a sharp blade was to be able to cut wet tissue paper without tearing.

Agree with you on the desirability of maintaining sharp kitchen knives. I just don't know how people get on with blunt knives. Perhaps they live on ready meals.

Regards