Newbie with short story and questions

Hi all. For Christmas my wife bought me a Merkur 23C starter kit with stand, brush, bowl, soap and razor.

I got super excited because I'm a sucker for stuff like this.

I had no idea what I was doing but jumped right in. I only chopped up my face a little bit the first time. After that I was hooked. It wasn't the closest shave but I was having fun.
By the second and third day I was feeling pretty good about using the razor and getting a little more aggressive. On the fourth day, I felt like I was starting to get razor burn and realized that the kit only came with one blade.

I went online to look new blades and got information overload with all the options and reviews.

I ended up buying some Bics, some Personas, Gillette platinums and seven o'clocks. I want to buy some feathers to try but heard that you can cut your head off if you don't know what your doing because they're so sharp.

I started trying all of these and really liked them. I felt like they were better-sharper blades and I was getting a closer shave.

While I was online looking for blades, I did a quick search for safety razors too. Again I was blown away by the options. I remember watching my grandpa using a Gillette and how he dropped the used blades in a slot at the back of his medicine cabinet, so I looked up old Gillette safety razors.

That led me to a fatboy and then to EBay because I had to get one. I ended up paying way too much on a pristine 1961.

The day it showed up I couldn't stop playing with it. I tossed a new persona blade in it and set the dial to 5. I lathered up and went to town. Holy crap!!! I cut myself probably 6 or 7 times that shave-my nose, my ear, my lip, chin and neck. I almost threw it in the trash. My daughter walked in as I was trying to stop the blood letting and she freaked out. Then the whole family came in and everybody got to laugh at me. I ran to Walgreens and bought a steptic stick so I didn't have to walk around all day with toilet paper on my face.

After that I decided to YouTube how to shave with a fatboy! I turned the blade down to three and slowed down next time.

Three days later I was running late to an appointment and got in a hurry again. This time it was my my upper lip that I destroyed. I literally cut off almost half of my upper lip and deep this time!!! It took two hours to stop bleeding and I had to apologize during my meetings the whole day.

Things have been good with the Fatboy as long as I remember to give myself time and enjoy the experience. I pretty much do a daily two pass routine and a three pass every once in a while.

Fast forward a month and I started started looking for different soaps and aftershaves. I bought a ton and have pretty much settled on Proraso and Razzorock for now. Any advice on other soaps and aftershave-I'm open to. I'd love to find a good unscented aftershave.

Along the way I also picked up a Merkur Futura because I thought it look cool online and I like how it was adjustable. When it showed up I took it out and my first thought was that the head was big and bulky. I decided to stick with the Fatboy until we went on a weekend trip and I didn't want to bring the Fatboy.

I was a bit hesitant with the Futura and felt like I couldn't get as close to me nose when cutting in. I started at a little less than half on the dial, then went to half. I ended up cutting myself more than I wanted so it went back in the box when I got home.

For now I'm sticking w the Fatboy, but I also ordered a HD rocket and a super adjustable because they seemed cool. They should arrive this week so I'm looking forward to trying them out.

I'd love to fine some high end razors to try too but not sure what I should be looking at.

Any recommendations or advice is welcome for this newbie.




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There's an old adage " Its your face, not a race." If you're having fun slow down and enjoy it all the more. I would also observe your kit IS HIGH END compared to that plastic disposable crap we've all fled from. Wet shaving's revival has seen an explosion in marvelous new products and worldwide classics made available in a few short years. Time was your Merkur Futur was the Wolfman of the day. What you overpayed for today will seem a steal in a few years if the collecting trend continues. The important thing is you can shave with it and receive value daily. there are some incredible new products out there. Some people feel they MUST have X gear to 'run with the big dawgs.' I have no such inclination to keep up with guys who are in essense digital ephemera until fleshed out in association and friendship ( or open hostility.) In my arrogant opinion Mantic's youtube tutorials are the gold standard. His Sharpologist website is a must stop. No question is to dumb. I thought two band brushes refered to the grooves in the handle.

There's an old adage " Its your face, not a race." If you're having fun slow down and enjoy it all the more. I would also observe your kit IS HIGH END compared to that plastic disposable crap we've all fled from. Wet shaving's revival has seen an explosion in marvelous new products and worldwide classics made available in a few short years. Time was your Merkur Futur was the Wolfman of the day. What you overpayed for today will seem a steal in a few years if the collecting trend continues. The important thing is you can shave with it and receive value daily. there are some incredible new products out there. Some people feel they MUST have X gear to 'run with the big dawgs.' I have no such inclination to keep up with guys who are in essense digital ephemera until fleshed out in association and friendship ( or open hostility.) In my arrogant opinion Mantic's youtube tutorials are the gold standard. His Sharpologist website is a must stop. No question is to dumb. I thought two band brushes refered to the grooves in the handle.

Thanks for the reply and advise Kav. I'm not so much hung up on the latest and greatest. More than anything for me is how good it works on my face and the quality of the product.

I'm drawn to the old school stuff because I'm nostalgic and dig how things were made back in the day. It's hard to find that today.

I'll check out Mantic's videos and look forward to learning more here!


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I agree with KAV , all good advice but most of all, slooow down. Enjoy the ride. If you find yourself pressed for time in the morning try shaving at bedtime. You can take your time and your wife might like it. If you feel you must shave quickly in the morning, find yourself a razor that won't bite so readily. A couple of my favorites are the ikon 102 slant which is efficient but almost impossible to cut yourself with and the Rockwell 6s which is a sweet razor that comes with 3 double sided base plates giving you a total of 6 "settings" from mild to aggressive. I've taken it up to 4 and used it with a Feather blade this morning and had a truly wonderful shave. The Feather blade is sharp but works really well for me in specific razors, the Feather AS-D2 which it was made for , the ikon 102 and the Rockwell. I'm sure there's more razors that have an affinity for the Feather blade which I haven't tried yet.

I'm glad you're enjoying your shaving journey and I wish you well. There is lots of interesting gear, heck you haven't even mentioned brushes yet, oh the brushes....
Mark

Wow the futur is one of the most aggressive razors you can use. SLOW DOWN. You will enjoy it a lot more. Maybe you should try a razor that is a little less aggressive to start out, though some would disagree and say you learned your lesson lol. Nothing wrong with the soaps you mentioned though. I'd give the rocket a try and remember NO PRESSURE IS YOUR FRIEND. Let us know how it goes.

I own the razors that you own. I had the same problem with the Futur when I started out. It was difficult to navigate around my face because the head was so heavy and it was difficult to predict where the blade was in relation to my face. I would first find a non-adjustable razor. Something mild and with a narrow head. The Merkur HD or (my personal favorite) anything in the Edwin Jagger line. Use that razor for a few months until you become very good at it. Find a blade that you really like. Then, go over and experiment with the adjustables. That way, your technique will have matured and you can then play with different settings without getting into too much trouble.

I'm mainly going to echo the previous 3 members advice: 1. Slow down 2. No pressure(let the weight of the razor do the work.)

One pieceof advice I received fairly early on was: Find a razor, blade(brand), and soap that works for you, and stick to that set-up for at least one month straight. You can switch out individual blades during that time as they wear out, of course, but try to stick to a consistent set-up until you have developed your technique some. There will be plenty of time to try all of the wonderful things available in the traditional wet shaving world.

I'm with KAV on the Mantic59 videos. They are really good, down to Earth videos. They helped me out a lot when I made the leap into traditional wet shaving.

And, finally, enjoy your shaves!

Unfortunately, you have contracted acute RAD. Left untreated, it will become chronic. There is no cure, other than willpower and common sense.

I'm mainly going to echo the previous 3 members advice:  1. Slow down  2. No pressure(let the weight of the razor do the work.)  

One pieceof advice I received fairly early on was: Find a razor, blade(brand), and soap that works for you, and stick to that set-up for at least one month straight.  You can switch out individual blades during that time as they wear out, of course, but try to stick to a consistent set-up until you have developed your technique some.  There will be plenty of time to try all of the wonderful things available in the traditional wet shaving world.

I'm with KAV on the Mantic59 videos.  They are really good, down to Earth videos.  They helped me out a lot when I made the leap into traditional wet shaving.

And, finally, enjoy your shaves!

Do this for sure.

Addressing your other questions, Feathers do have a fearsome reputation. I tried one with a Merkur HD. I didn't cut my throat, but upon applying an alcohol aftershave achieved more operatic high Cs than Pavarotti's famous eight. The shave was so close I effectively removed the upper dermal layer of my face. It seems half of users get along with them and half do not. I've heard claim it is a very flexible blade in spite of people taking measurements finding it sharing an industry wide thickness. If a particular razor fails to firmly support it the flexing under use is the culprit. One agreed on fact is Feathers have an extremely short life with at best 2 good shaves. KAIs are another legendary japanese blade that seem more user friendly but still expensive. Russian blades generally have a good reputation and Ihave personally never had a truly bad one. POLSILVERS/SUPER IRIDIUMS are by consensus the most popular. Their distribution keeps changing with loss of western market availability only to return, often repackaged. Buy a sampler pack from a dealer and have fun. Finding those magic combinations is an alchemical discipline only you can exercise. Its a rite of passage to try a feather; something like youths being held down for scarification by the village shaman.
There are several non scented soaps of recent production. Many people find essential oils culprit in facial burning or find fatique in so many scents taking precedence over performance. You should also sample a classic TALLOW based soap vs the many VEGETABLE based soaps. There are lovely ones in both. Mitchell's Wool Fat is another classic. Many people find it difficult to lather. I was either lucky or to stupid to know this fact. It was the second soap I ever used and remains my favorite.
Lastly, and most important; that gift set from your wife? You DO have it front and center in your collection?