cream or soap? and razor?

T

toastie

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9
well im filling my online basket to place an order tonight in the hope it will be here for the weekend and all i have so far is a brush and a blade sampler pack as im the most indecisive man alive i cant even decide on soap or cream? and which razor to get i'm an absolute beginner so whats the best for me to start with and its from connaughts so no 34c hd as its out of stock and up to £30 ish for the razor im just confused with all the differences open comb closed comb etc
 
toastie said:
well im filling my online basket to place an order tonight in the hope it will be here for the weekend and all i have so far is a brush and a blade sampler pack as im the most indecisive man alive i cant even decide on soap or cream? and which razor to get i'm an absolute beginner so whats the best for me to start with and its from connaughts so no 34c hd as its out of stock and up to £30 ish for the razor im just confused with all the differences open comb closed comb etc
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Can't go wrong with palmolive shaving stick. About 80p and performs really well. I started with it about 2 months ago and still use it. Can
't suggest a razor as it would have been the 34c
 
I'd get cream to start with, soap can be a bit tricky. Also look at mantics great videos on youtube before you get started.
http://www.youtube.com/user/mantic59
These people have a 34c in stock - i've used them before very quick delivery, they also good starter kits, badger brush cream and a 34c in a oner - might be something to consider

http://www.traditionalshaving.co.uk/mall/productpage.cfm/traditionalshaving/_MER-9034001/268151/HD-34c-Safety-Razor-Chrome
 
everybody recommends that one and it must be pretty good as no one seems to have it in stock! what about timor some of those look nice but dont see much about them? i also like the look of the muhle r101 but this has 2 different head options which confuses me even more
 
The Timors appear to be rebranded Weishi, which are cheap, well made and very very mild. Possibly too mild. I have a Weishi and don't like doing five or six passes.
Don't know a huge amount Muhle heads but they appear to share a lot in common with their sister/parent company: Edwin Jagger. I'd go for any Edwin Jagger. The DE89 models (current until very recently) can be had for about £20 delivered on Amazon. If you do really have your heart set on the 34c (it is a good choice) I just checked and they are in stock on Amazon. Use the link on here to help The Shaving Room.
 
toastie said:
well im filling my online basket to place an order tonight in the hope it will be here for the weekend and all i have so far is a brush and a blade sampler pack as im the most indecisive man alive i cant even decide on soap or cream? and which razor to get i'm an absolute beginner so whats the best for me to start with and its from connaughts so no 34c hd as its out of stock and up to £30 ish for the razor im just confused with all the differences open comb closed comb etc
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Hi there,

Right now is the time to try some items that are middle of the road. You don't want too mild or too aggressive of a razor, and you want a soap/cream that's not finicky about technique.

The current EJ models have been getting very good reviews, and are known to be about right on the amount of bite many people prefer. The 34c also gets excellent write ups, so that's another option (yeah, dat's an option!).

Maybe pick up a cream from one of the three Ts since they all lather easily, and also a soap from DR Harris(Paul has good prices on this fine product). You should be good to go for quite a while after that.

You gotta understand that whatever razor you choose is probably not gonna be the perfect fit. Right now you need to develop some kinda reference point, and using an aggressive razor or a blade like a Feather won't give you a true idea of what this 'hobby; is all about.

After a month or so you can try another razor and you'll be able to notice a difference between the two. That's how it works at first....lots of trial and error (mostly error).

Martin
 
There are lots of creams you can get on the high street, from Boots, Superdrug, ASDA, Body Shop, T K Maxx, Lalys Pharmacy plus other local chemists. And soaps from Crabtree & Evelyn, T K Maxx, Boots. And of course on line.

As for the razor, Edwin Jagger have excellent ones at a good price.
 
As a first timer with a DE I'd go with a Jagger like this - it's more forgiving than the Merkur 34C. I'd get one of those next if you don't want to stop at one. You'd be a rarity if you did!
http://www.theenglishshavingcompany.com/cgi-bin/psProdDet.cgi/DE87db5||@cTraditional%20safety%20&%20double%20edge%20razors@bEdwin%20Jagger|0|user||22|
 
The Jagger DE's are great first razors worth consideration if you cant get a Merkur.
You should make a point of trying both soaps and creams.
As already suggested, Palmolive cream is excellent, and cheap, as are the sticks. Treat yourself to some Tabac as well
Then of course there's Trumpers, Taylors etc etc:icon_razz::icon_razz:
Have fun!
regards, beejay
 
I would recommend a cream as it will be better to get a decent lather compared to some soaps (as already mentioned). Trumpers coconut was my first cream and lasted almost a year. It lathers well. Also Bluebeards revenge works well which has a bit more modern scent (for a mans man). I would urge you to stay away from soaps just for the moment. If you get one which doesn't lather easily, it could put you off wet shaving.

Connaughts also sell the MÜHLE R89 (Same head as the Edwin Jagger). It's a great razor. I just noticed connaughts don't sell trumpers, so have a look at Taylors shave cream.
 
Also have a look at D R Harris creams, they are brilliant.

I had my first go last night and was very pleased. I couldn't feel the blade going over my face it had so much cushion.
 
Soap wise I'd get cream, hard soaps are great but they're just that tiny bit more tricky to work with to start off. If you're ordering from Connaught I'd get a tube of Taylors or Harris as they're arguably the best of what he has in stock. Really easy to use, very pleasant, and not bad value.

Razor, I'd have said the 34C, but the Edwin Jaggers are absolutely fine too.
 
toastie said:
i also like the look of the muhle r101 but this has 2 different head options which confuses me even more
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The R101 (at least the new head) is a very aggressive razor aimed at experienced shavers who need it to deal with heavy growth - it's not one for beginners!

I'd recommend an EJ too - they work very similarly to the Merkur 34c, but are better finished.

Soap-wise, you could do a lot worse than getting a tube of Palmolive cream - you should be able to get one for less than £2 somewhere like Superdrug, and it really is very good. Real Shaving Company cream is also terrific, and you can get it from Home Bargains for £1.29. (For a beginner, I think a cream is probably easier to use than a stick - you can bowl-lather it to practice getting your lather right).

Alan
 
Stick with a closed comb to begin with, opens aren't for everyone. I found them mild but bitey and not user friendly.

Creams are a better starter. TOBS, Harris, Proraso all good. Proraso is great if you fancy the cooling of menthol.

You can pick up cream cheapies in the high st, but after hunnymonster sent a wad of stuff over to the antipodes, the consensus here was it sucks. We're spolied and we have sunshine and chicks in bikinis 9 months of the year, so clearly we know better.
 
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