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FWIW: my first 3 months

DrBob

DrBob

Member
Hi All,

Firstly a very big thank you for the collected wisdom that resides in these pages. It has been a tremendous help to me in my journey.

Secondly, you guys are unbelievably generous.

Now to my comments.

The TL;DR version: it's great, I don't bleed, and I'm sticking with it.

The longer version:
I started with a DB89 and a selection of blades, a Badger and a Synthetic brush, and an assortment of other bits.

I went through a bunch of blades, right up to a Feather. My favourite at the moment is the Personna Blue (med prep), with the Feather a close second.

I have learned a few things: 1) don't twitch any part of the face when the razor is on it, 2) LIGHT pressure, 3) I need to get better at lather.

I rarely cut myself now, even with a Feather. I don't think I can say I have had a truly BBS shave, but consistently get DFS. Maybe it's my expectation: I figure if I cannot feel ANY hair in any direction after the shave then it would be a BBS shave. I always seem to have trouble with about 2 sq cm under the right jaw near the chin.

I think I have SSAD - Shaving Soap Acquisition Disorder - as I currently have 12 I rotate through. And a box of samples..... I really can't pick a favourite, but I really enjoy Occam's Lime and The Blades Grim "Smoulder". I'm trying the Body Shop's Macca which I also rather like. I can make reasonable lather with both the badger and the synthetic brushes.

But, I have now lashed out having discovered Massdrop and an Ikon Open Comb Deluxe with a Bulldog handle is on its way and hopefully a Feather AS-D2.

So... the journey goes on.
 
Thanks for sharing @DrBob ! It's great to hear about what you've learnt over the past 3 months. [emoji4] Keep on going!

In my experience you'll one day hit your stride (it'll "click") and then almost every shave will become BBS or close. That takes experience developed over time.

The Personna Med Prep blades are the same as the normal Personna Lab Blue/Supers. The LB/Supers are a fraction of the price though.

Your lather will improve with practise and technique. Since different soaps will require different amounts of water, so experiment with adding different amounts of water little by little. Brushes behave differently also.

You're bound to keep exploring options and combos -which is fun. But it sometimes pays out if you stick with a combo for a couple of weeks or so. Once things "click" then mixing it up is smoother.

Many happy shaves ahead! [emoji106]
 
filobiblic said:
Thanks for sharing @DrBob ! It's great to hear about what you've learnt over the past 3 months. [emoji4] Keep on going!

...

The Personna Med Prep blades are the same as the normal Personna Lab Blue/Supers. The LB/Supers are a fraction of the price though.
...

[emoji106]
Click to expand...

Thanks for the encouragement and advice.

One thing about the Personnas, I think I have the lab blu/supers. I also have some personna chrome which are in white wrappers, not blue, but I don't like them as much, they seem to pull more in thicker areas.
 
DrBob said:
Thanks for the encouragement and advice.

One thing about the Personnas, I think I have the lab blu/supers. I also have some personna chrome which are in white wrappers, not blue, but I don't like them as much, they seem to pull more in thicker areas.
Click to expand...
I'm going to nominate @lifesapeach as the Personna expert. [emoji38]
When it comes to Personna blades there are quite a few!
The newer "Lab Blues" are now in white wrappers. They should still say "Super" on them.

Here are the 4 different types of "Personna" blades:

1. Personna Med preps
> marked: for hospital use
Personna Stainless Steel ("Med Preps")

2. Personna Super Lab Blues
> may be blue or white wrappers; marked with "super"
Personna Stainless Steel ("Labs")

3. Barber Supply Personnas
> have only arrows on them
Made in USA
Personna Platinum Chrome ("Walmarts", "drugstore private labels")
Personna Platinum Chrome ("Barbers")

4. Israeli Personnas (or Red Personnas)
Red wrappers and distinctly different from the others.

Not sure what your blades match up to...
 
Now look what you have done......

OK, here is a photo of the three that I have:

20rnQyLl94HhWrpdX3ERGlaTP2L7bimQQypbT7qC0F6OXswSTqQoeUsVZxeRq3CoLd_jpB6AJg=w1920-h1080-rw-no


The top one is my favourite, the middle one is what I bought from Shaver Shop I think, and the third one is an "antique" IIRC, that I won in a competition here earlier in the year - but I could be wrong.
 
Thanks for sharing your journey with us @DrBob and I hope you enjoy it!

Unfortunately I can't see the picture...
 
DrBob said:
Now look what you have done......

OK, here is a photo of the three that I have:

20rnQyLl94HhWrpdX3ERGlaTP2L7bimQQypbT7qC0F6OXswSTqQoeUsVZxeRq3CoLd_jpB6AJg=w1920-h1080-rw-no


The top one is my favourite, the middle one is what I bought from Shaver Shop I think, and the third one is an "antique" IIRC, that I won in a competition here earlier in the year - but I could be wrong.
Click to expand...
Middle blade appears to be a Personna Red. The bottom blade is certainly vintage, and an excellent Blade IMO.
 
DrBob said:
Damn..... um..... it's also here and here.
Click to expand...
DrBob said:
Hmmm..... I thought the Red's had some red on the packaging. This comes from a white plastic box.
Click to expand...
Weird. But @Nightguard appears to be correct in that they are NOT the usual Personna Blues/Supers. They are the Personna Red's (or Israeli Personnas) or a variant on the Barber Supply Personnas. The Lab Blues are the same at the Med Preps but have "Personna Super" on them. I'm sure that the "Platinum Chrome" is the Personna Red's labelling.
 
filobiblic said:
Weird. But @Nightguard appears to be correct in that they are NOT the usual Personna Blues/Supers. They are the Personna Red's (or Israeli Personnas) or a variant on the Barber Supply Personnas. The Lab Blues are the same at the Med Preps but have "Personna Super" on them. I'm sure that the "Platinum Chrome" is the Personna Red's labelling.
Click to expand...

Thanks. I think I'm, um..... well, yes..... thanks
 
DrBob said:
Thanks. I think I'm, um..... well, yes..... thanks
Click to expand...
Haha! It's a bit confusing isn't it?

Darn labelling system... The bottom line is that they aren't the usual Personna Lab Blue/Supers (which ARE the same as Med Preps -but cheaper...).
 
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