Comment by eckesicle | Hacker News Reader

Comment by eckesicle | Hacker News Reader

My dad never taught me how to shave, and for the longest time I just used these disposable Gillette style blades, and got terrible results. Missed spots, cuts and skin infections.

At some point I decided to do some research and settled on double edge disposable blades.

I've never been happier, and feel much better about my skin too. These are the products I use:

* A wooden synthetic shaving brush (I felt bad about the beavers)

* Taylor of Old Bond St shaving cream. It lasts forever.

* A ceramic lathering bowl

* Floris after shave. Also lasts forever

* Jagen David B40 (make sure to get a butterfly version, they're much more convenient)

* Derby blades (I bought a bulk of 500 blades for like £30 quid, and I'm only halfway through using them after many years).

Now I probably spend less than £40 per year replacing shaving cream and after shave, having had to spend that amount monthly on disposable blades, and that terrible canned cream, and I hardly ever get any cuts anymore. And my shave is much closer.

Besides these products look great in the bathroom.

Mine "taught me" by handing over a cheap electric shaver and basically saying "you can't go wrong"... I think you can change the blades but he never did, so neither do I, just wait for the entire thing to break or get lost. So all the debate around what's cheapest or most manly has always somewhat confused me.

I come from a long line of electricians.

How well they work really depends on your beard hair. I get a pretty coarse, thick beard and quickly discovered electric shavers were a no-go for me.

I have thick and coarse beard hair, and when it gets a little bit long it starts to curl in on itself.

I still use electric. But the trick is to buy a beard trimmer. Trim beard with that, gets you to pretty short stubble, then you use electric shaver to go clean shaven if you want. I actually have found stubble to short beard to be ideal spot for me.

I fall into roughly the same setup. I use Feather blades from Japan (which are a “premium” option) and a 100 pack lasted me 8 years for about $40. Even for nice stuff it is so cheap per shave.

I ended up coming across the idea to try this on Art of Manliness about a decade ago and probably never would have thought to try it otherwise. https://www.artofmanliness.com/style/shaving/how-to-shave-wi...

Was also never taught to shave and have similar setup. I really wish I would have discovered styptic pencils sooner - would have saved me the embarrassment of going to work with pieces of tissue paper all over my face lol.

> Styptic pencils

The brush my father gave me aged 16 had an alum block built into the handle. I don't see brushes like that any more. I bought an alum block 2" x 1" from a barbershop for about £10; it never seems to get any smaller. In the east you can buy lumps of alum in souks and bazaars for almost nothing.

As well as being a styptic, alum doubles as an antiperspirant.

Also Gillette Blue II (now even cheaper clones) + same kind of brush + cream. The rest I don't feel the need for it.

And an electric shaver for the days I'm too lazy. With both methods, it's fast and convenient.

I can't understand why anybody would waste so much money and then complain.

I made the mistake of doing something like that, but you can totally use foam in a can which lasts a long time and is much more convinient and, for me, better and use that in a combination with a safety razor.

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31294458

> I felt bad about the beavers

Beaver fur is for hats; good shaving brushes are badger (I'm sure that's what you meant).

You're right of course!

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