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Just got into wet shaving

Q

Question

Member
Hey, was hoping to get some advice.

Im working through my blade sampler pack, and was wondering if i should try any other blades...maybe trade the remaining samples i have with some others? My pack had :

-Derby extra
-Wilkinson swords
-Astra platinum
-Lord super platinum
-Personna blues
-Feathers
-Gillette silver blue
-Crystal

Ive still got 3 or 4 of most of those except for the Wilkinsons, and i still need to try the feathers. So far though, the derbys and wilkinsons were terrible, most of the rest were the same, but the lord super platinums seemed to be the best, really smooth and sharp. Are there any others i should be trying?

Also ordered a cheap brush and arko stick to get started, arko stick is long overdue though...any suggestions in this area? I wanted a nice portable shaving soap and a stick seemed to the best option. How does cream/soap compare?
 
Hello and welcome Question. There are loads of other blades you can try. Personally I've never tried a sampler pack. Particularly when I was just starting to get my technique together and it really didn't matter which blade I cut myself with! When it comes to DE blades I've gone all vintage lately. Although there is not much consensus when it comes to blades I think it's safe to say that the Perma Sharp Supers are one of the best current production blades.

ARKO is good stuff although there are those that don't like the scent much. Ignore them I say. Plenty of other sticks. Speick, Tabac, La Toja to name a few.
 
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Hi Question. Welcome to the forum.

I wouldn't necessarily hurry to get into the feathers as a lot of people, me included, think they are too sharp for human use.
 
Yea, it seems like the standard advice was to get a sample pack to try out loads of different blades so thats what i did. Just realised there was only one crystal blade with the pack so i don't have anymore of those. Also found another pack of personna blues labeled "Personna Platinum" (what is with all the very similarly named razor blades anyway?). Feathers, personna platinum and lord super platinum seem to be 10 pack samples.

Was planning to try feathers last after trying out one from each sample...

Perma sharps are the russian ones right? Does anyone know where to get a small amount of that to try it out?

There appears to be a turkish version here : http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/100-PERM...t=US_Shaving_Hair_Removal&hash=item3cd7e1e017

And a russian version : http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/50-Perma...t=US_Shaving_Hair_Removal&hash=item258b78c5d6
 
If you do decide to go down the route of an Arko stick and find the scent not to your liking, I find using a bowl to stick it into and build the lather in reduced the aroma.
It does subside in aroma as well that way, being exposed to the air and can be an aroma that you can acquire it's subtle side over the top heavy notes.

BTW, ignore those that berate Arko, they're just unskilled operators of a product that develops a thick rich lather at the mere approach of a brush (if you're unable to build a lather initially with other products, this one almost certainly will aid in building your confidence at developing a lather)
 
Question said:
Yea, it seems like the standard advice was to get a sample pack to try out loads of different blades so thats what i did. Just realised there was only one crystal blade with the pack so i don't have anymore of those. Also found another pack of personna blues labeled "Personna Platinum" (what is with all the very similarly named razor blades anyway?). Feathers, personna platinum and lord super platinum seem to be 10 pack samples.

Was planning to try feathers last after trying out one from each sample...

Perma sharps are the russian ones right? Does anyone know where to get a small amount of that to try it out?

There appears to be a turkish version here : http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/100-PERM...t=US_Shaving_Hair_Removal&hash=item3cd7e1e017

And a russian version : http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/50-Perma...t=US_Shaving_Hair_Removal&hash=item258b78c5d6
Click to expand...

If you PM me your address I can send you a few.
 
borked said:
...Arko-an aroma that you can acquire it's subtle side over the top heavy notes.

BTW, ignore those that berate Arko, they're just unskilled operators of a product that develops a thick rich lather at the mere approach of a brush
Click to expand...

I may be unskilled but would rather not be an aficionado of urinal cakes.
 
Personna blues and reds are worth a go, as are Polsilver super iridiums. Perma Sharps from Turkey are very good, seems to be a consensus on those here. A blade I just leave in til I get bored and think I should change it, stays smooth and sharp forever.
 
Thanks, i will take a look at those too. Is there a difference between personna reds/blues and the perma sharps from turkey/russia?

Talked to the ebay seller of the arko stick since its been 3 weeks with no sign of it. He offered to send me a second one or give me a refund.

The arko was $4.90 including postage, which i think is an incredible deal, but i would prefer not waiting for another 2-3 weeks.

Are there any local or closer places that do sell shaving sticks/creams/etc of about that price, including postage? Took a look at mens biz, they have speick for $8 but i would have to buy $20 worth of stuff to get free shipping...
 
The russian ones are different, never tried them.

Arko is overpriced at $5.
Get some stuff from Mensbiz, and some blades and whatever else you fancy. They'll deliver it in 2 days or less.
 
I think it used to be $50 for free shipping. $20 is ready to spend there. Great service and excellent delivery times.
 
Arko at $5 is overpriced? Wow...whats the normal price then? Its the lowest price i can find on ebay, and ebay usually has the lowest priced stuff around...

Would get blades from mens biz but i havent decided on which blades i want to use for long term use yet. Still going through samples at the moment.

Some of the mens biz stuff feels expensive to me....i think the Astras are a good example. I saw some site selling 100 Astra platinum blades for like $10, Men's biz has them for $22, and there's a ebay listing for either 200 or 400 blades for about the same price. Of course you get it super quick since it's australian stock, but if you don't mind waiting two weeks, you would save quite a bit...
 
You'll find that you'll need to shop around. Stock up at sales and if you over buy you can always trade(sometimes).
 
Nothing much I can add but a welcome :)
 
Question said:
Arko at $5 is overpriced? Wow...whats the normal price then? Its the lowest price i can find on ebay, and ebay usually has the lowest priced stuff around.
Click to expand...
I think the Drubster feels the same as me: Arko! at any price is overpriced.
It does have its fanboys here but the foetid chemical lemony tang puts others off.
 
Mensbiz has various forum discounts, which is 15%. For me, that and the free shipping make them worth buying from. Not much point buying 200 blades yet if you don't know which you'll like.
 
Hi mate, welcome to the forum. Some stuff at MensBiz is expensive compared to other places, but that can be said about most stores in some regard. They have good prices on Speick and TOBS, both are very worth trying out. MensBiz have great service and the shipping is super quick, but if blades are what you seek, try bestshave.net. They're based in Turkey so shipping will take a week or two, but they have great prices on blades (inc. Perma-Sharp, Polsilver, Astra) and sell Arko cheap. They sell alum blocks too.

A word of advice though. If you're after smooth and sharp blades, have another go with both the Personna blue and the Gillette Silver Blue. They're both above average in both categories, and both more than capable of giving you a great shave. I dived into everything when I started too, but it wasn't until some months later that I realised I would have to go back and try everything again anyway; my technique had refined and changed, and thus, so too did the blade performance. Technique first, then rampant spending.
 
Mong. said:
A word of advice though. If you're after smooth and sharp blades, have another go with both the Personna blue and the Gillette Silver Blue. They're both above average in both categories, and both more than capable of giving you a great shave. I dived into everything when I started too, but it wasn't until some months later that I realised I would have to go back and try everything again anyway; my technique had refined and changed, and thus, so too did the blade performance. Technique first, then rampant spending.
Click to expand...

+1. That's why the samplers are best in the short term, and small buys of random blades. You might not like some at first, but a revisit can see things turn around.
 
URL="http://paste-and-cut.com.au/community/threads/just-got-into-wet-shaving.993/#post-18507"]Just got into wet shaving[/URL]

So some bloke with a smelly PUNK as his avatar and another bloke with GRUNGE band as his avatar are suddenly connoisseurs of fine fragrance.

You have to pick and choose a bit with the aussie suppliers. They have plenty of well priced lines though and deserve out support. $20 and free shipping is a steal IMO if you spend the $20 wisely.
 
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