First DE head shave

[bald bandit]

Hey fellow sly, I went to the art of shaving store yesterday after getting a starter kit for christmas. I have been using the vibrating schick hydro for about a month and before that it was the non vibrating model. I am really loving the sly life coming from a uncomfortable receding hair line to comfortably bald.  Ok so I went to the store and got a full kit with a pure badger brush, I ended up getting the Merkur 23001 the long handle chrome and had my first shave today. Now I think the pre-shave, cream and aftershave worked ok I am sure I will get better with the lather but it will take time.

As far as the shave itself, I think I took my time and it wasn't bad but I don't feel like it got as close as the schick for a nice ATG head shave. I am going to keep at it, do you guys have any tips as far as the angle of the blade or how many passes or different types of blades I bought some Merkur Super blades but if there are some better ones for the head let me know

[greatnessinc]

I'm still new to DE shaving. I tried it on my head but I found it to take twice as long as shaving with my ATX and wasn't nearly as effective. I chalk this up to probably being too careful and just not being as confident in the DE as I thought I was. Perhaps I'll give it another whirl some day and see if I can get a good shave in a reasonable amount of time.

[warhawk]

Hi BB:  Welcome to the sly fraternity.  Glad that ya joined us and glad that you are entering the DE world of shaving.  I have been exclusively DE shaving both face and dome since April 2012 and I absolutely love it. 

You should try different blades by purchasing a blade sampler pack from Amazon.com, Westcoast Shaving, BullGooose Shaving, or RazorBladesandMore.  These are great vendors.

The Merkur DE razors are great performers.  I have the 37C, 37G, and the Progress.  All three provide great shaves.

Here is a link to Mantic59.  He is like the uncle of the wet shaving community.  He provides great advice and videos. 

http://sharpologist.com/

Hope this helps and keep us posted on your DE/SE journey,

WARHAWK

[bald bandit]

Ok so I checked out the websites and can't seem to find all the ones I see everyone on the site talking about as being the best so before I waste my money is this a good sampler pack
http://www.razorbladesandmore.com/content/advanced-de-blade-sampler-pack-60-blades

[greatnessinc]

There's not going to be one blade that everyone agrees is the best. Ultimately it comes down to personal preference. I can't speak to the quality of the blades in that pack but I do think that's a fair price.

[warhawk]

That is a fair price for that sampler.  I love the Astra SP and the Feather blades in that pack.  The Personna Reds are good.  Derby and Dorco are average.  With blades... and most all things, it is a YMMV (your mileage may vary).  What is good for one may not be good for another.  Keep us posted.

WARHAWK

[eric79]

I am a big astra fan I like there blades feathers are great blades just a little aggressive for starting out with. I not a big derby fan they dulled out to quick for me but you will have to find what works best for you.

Eric

[greatnessinc]

Curiosity got the better of me and I used my Futur to shave my head today. If I could just do it in half the time that'd be awesome.

[warhawk]

Curiosity got the better of me and I used my Futur to shave my head today. If I could just do it in half the time that'd be awesome.

That is awesome that you took the DE plunge on the dome.  Whatever you do... DO NOT RUSH A  DE SHAVE.  Enjoy your DE shaves my friend.  I know I am.

WARHAWK

[Lynchy_au]

G'day mate,

I tried a D/E to shave my head but wasn't comfortable with it.
I then tried a Gem 1912 S/E and love it.

I get a great shave, 2 passes, every time, it feels comfortable and get at least 5 head shaves from a blade.

When I was using a D/E for my face I found that the Astra SP's suited me best closely followed by the the Gillette 7 O'clock Yellows, but you will need to experiment to find what best suits you.

Cheers,
Lynchy Snr

[greatnessinc]

Curiosity got the better of me and I used my Futur to shave my head today. If I could just do it in half the time that'd be awesome.

That is awesome that you took the DE plunge on the dome.  Whatever you do... DO NOT RUSH A  DE SHAVE.  Enjoy your DE shaves my friend.  I know I am.

WARHAWK

Took me a little while to be comfortable with it. I had to learn how to wield it properly before I felt comfortable using it on the dome. The back where I can't see it still kind of scare me but I'm starting to get more comfortable with those areas.