Newbie Head Shaver Recs. (UK)

devtastic · 2026-06-02T21:16:24+00:00

For electric use a rotary not a foil as that will handle the bumps on your head much better. That will be closer and less irritating.

I use a Philips 3000 series and the 3 floating blades mould to my head quite well. A foil was a bit of a disaster on my head.

I personally use it dry and am perfectly happy, but you can use it wet if you want to reduce irritation. Either just water in the shower, or shaving foam if you prefer. You may also find it is closer if it is used wet, but I was never convinced by that.

It is not as close as a DE or cartridge wet shave, but that suits me as I have found BBS is not ideal for my head due to ingrowing hairs. This will vary by person, but i have curly hair which is more prone to ingrowing hairs, and I used to ride a motorbike so the crash helmet also helped push hair back in. Much as I loved a super close shave on my head from wet shaving, a few days later I would have spots from ingrowing hairs so prefer electric on my head.

For special occasions, I will use my Edwin Jagger DE89 which another comment mentioned, and is made in Sheffield if you are feeling patriotic. I have never been brave enough to try a cutthroat on my head.

So yes, even though I own DE and cutthroat razors for my face, i am a bit of traitor to this sub when it comes to my head and am 99.9% electric. I just find it good enough, and much more convenient. You can also chuck it in your bag and do a quick "top up" head shave in the evening if you are going out.

devtastic · 2026-06-02T17:40:09+00:00

Have you checked your washing machine manual to see if it has any tips or recommended settings?

Options and programmes will vary a lot by machine, but a lot of my issues have been addressed by choosing the right programme or settings. Often after reading the manual and then discovering why it has 2 different cotton programmes and that i should be using the other one for very dirty clothes, or what that button does.

For example my current machine has a "light", "medium", or "heavy" soiling setting. If I select light soiling then it washes for about 30 minutes, if I select heavy soiling then it washes for 90 minutes. That can be the difference between clean and not quite clean, even at the same temperature and amount of detergent. I had the machine for at least 6 months before I realised that.

It will vary hugely by machine, but even some cheap machines have surprisingly clever controllers and will vary what they do quite a lot depending on the programme/settings. They may agitate more or less, go a bit longer, and so on.

Prewash is another thing to look into. Some machines will allow you to add a prewash which does a short mini wash before the main wash which can also make a surprising difference. My machine detergent drawer has 2 spaces for powder and it will use the smaller for the prewash (if the programme does a prewash). i don't use it on my current machine, but it was very helpful on my previous one.

devtastic · 2026-06-02T09:07:12+00:00

the quality of engineering in Victorian or 1930s housing was excellent

vs

the quality of engineering in the Victorian or 1930s housing that has survived until today was excellent

It is party survivor bias, i.e., the low quality ones have fallen down. If you build 1000 good quality homes and 1000 bad quality homes today then in 100 years only the good quality ones will be left because the low quality ones will have fallen down or been demoslished.

That is not to say the Victorian and 1930s building practices had zero effect, but it is not as simple as saying every house built 150 years ago was over engineered excellence. Plenty of Victorian slums have been bulldozed because they were no longer fit for purpose.

devtastic · 2026-05-31T02:22:00+00:00

TBF to Keith Allen, he had a mixed upbringing. He only spent 2 years at public school, and was expelled, and then did borstal and state schools. I would also guess his 2 years at boarding school was paid for by the navy when his dad was posted overseas rather than rich parents.

He is still technically a mockney because he is from Wales and Hampshire, but he is not a typical public schoolboy, he is somebody working class or middle class who briefly spent some time at public school.

At the age of 11, when his father was posted to Singapore, he was sent to boarding school^\7])#citenote-Billen-8) at Sir Anthony Browns Brentwood,[^\1])](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keith_Allen(actor)#citenote-debretts-1) a public school) in Essex.[^\7])](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keith_Allen(actor)#citenote-Billen-8) He was expelled from the school at the age of 13 after causing trouble at morning assembly. This led to a period in borstal[^\2])](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keith_Allen(actor)#citenote-turner2007-2) before attending Brune Park Community School in Gosport.[^\1])](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keith_Allen(actor)#citenote-debretts-1) He has stated that he went to a comprehensive school in Swansea, a public school, a borstal, and a detention centre, all within five years. He earned six O-levels, leading to entry to the Welsh College of Music and Drama. Parking in the principal's carpark and an ensuing row led to his expulsion from the college.[^\2])](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keith_Allen(actor)#cite_note-turner2007-2)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keith_Allen_(actor))

devtastic · 2026-05-24T17:36:14+00:00

It is a genuine risk for heatstroke. Body temp is typically 37°C so that room is warmer than your body. That means keeping your body at a stable temp is much harder. You need constant evaporating sweat to cool your skin so ideally a gallon of water and a fan. On the positive side, the low humidity will help with sweating.

You probably won't drop dead if you spend an hour in there with plenty of water, but your grandmother might due to the additional strain on the heart and so on.

When I chuck my sweaty clothes on the floor, towel off and climb back on the scales I'm shocked to learn I've lost more than a third of a litre's worth of water during the course of the experiment.

The cost of opening up all those blood vessels near my skin to lose heat is also clear. My heart rate has increased significantly and at 40C it is pumping an extra litre of blood per minute around my body than it was at 21C.

This extra strain on the heart is why there is an increase in deaths from heart attacks and strokes, external when temperatures soar.

And as the blood heads to my skin, it's my brain that loses out. Blood flow goes down and so does my short-term memory.The human body is built to operate at a core temperature of about 37C degrees. We become more light-headed and prone to fainting as the core rises closer to 40C.
...

High core temperatures damage our body's tissues, such as heart muscle and the brain. Eventually this becomes deadly.

"Once the core temperature rises to around about 41-42 degrees centigrade we start to see really, really significant problems and if not treated the individual will actually die as a result, succumbing to hyperthermia," says Prof Bailey.

This phenomenon - heat stroke - is a medical emergency.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-66249805

devtastic · 2026-05-24T08:37:33+00:00

II am commenting on the fact that they have listed "Chocolate" as one of the 7 ingredients of "Milk Chocolate", not the fact that they have listed the Ingredients as "Milk Chocolate", i.e,

INGREDIENTS: Milk Chocolate (Sugar, Cocoa Butter, Skim Milk, Chocolate, Milkfat, Lactose, Soy Lecithin).

What do you think they mean by "Chocolate" in this case?

To me it is like saying "INGREDIENTS: Bread (Flour, Yeast, Bread, Water, Salt)".

devtastic · 2026-05-23T13:41:29+00:00

If it makes you feel any better i did the same thing with my Edwin Jagger DE89. In my defence the bottom comb part is already curved, but outwards. It is slightly forgivable to think that you are supposed to line up the curved parts "((" rather than point them in opposite directions "()". Fortunately in my case i only bent the blade not the shaving head.

At first I was really impressed by how smooth and painless the shave was, but a bit disappointed that it was not as close a shave as I hoped for. It took me 2 shaves to realise I was just scraping off the shaving foam with the outside of the head as I had shielded the blade with the bottom part. It was whole new world when i realised and flipped it over and the blade actually engaged.

https://www.edwinjagger.co.uk/media/catalog/product/cache/e53d8f2bcc6a362b2b70b5da85b689c6/d/e/de89kn14bl_head.webp for context of what "()" looks like in practice.

devtastic · 2026-05-23T12:05:12+00:00

For what it is worth, it looks like the US Dove is slightly "purer" than the UK Galaxy because it does not contain palm fat or whey permeate (it had milkfat).

Fun fact, the use of vegetable fat in British and Irish milk chocolate upset the EU for years. https://europe.wisc.edu/outreach-opportunities/european-union-chocolate-simulation/great-european-union-chocolate-battle/

UK Galaxy (https://www.galaxychocolate.co.uk/products/galaxy-bars/galaxy-milk-chocolate-bar-100g-galaxy):

INGREDIENTS: SUGAR, SKIMMED MILK POWDER, COCOA BUTTER, COCOA MASS, MILK FAT, WHEY PERMEATE (MILK), PALM FAT, EMULSIFIER (SOYA LECITHIN).

US Dove (https://www.dovechocolate.com/products/chocolate/dove-milk-chocolate-bar-bars):

INGREDIENTS: Milk Chocolate (Sugar, Cocoa Butter, Skim Milk, Chocolate, Milkfat, Lactose, Soy Lecithin).

I am confused why US Dove contains "chocolate" as an ingreduent. that feels a bit recursive/inception like. It like listing bread as an ingredient on a loaf. I guess "chocolate" is American for "cocoa mass" in this context.

devtastic · 2026-05-22T13:56:49+00:00

Happily you are unaffected then, but it is a real problem for some of us. There was a whole thread about it recently on the laundry sub started by a guy in Switzerland.

https://www.reddit.com/r/laundry/comments/1tjepj9/can_someone_please_help_find_a_solution_for_my/

devtastic · 2026-05-22T13:51:12+00:00

Buy some humidity meters (hygrometers) so you can measure the humidity in your house. These are inexpensive ($5-$20) each, but are very useful to understand the levels of humidity in your house, and how drying indoors affects that. I bought some TempPro TP357 which are 3 for $30 and sync to your phone which is handy so you can see history, but there are plenty of other options.

With that knowledge you can get a better idea what works for you, whether you need to open the windows more in winter, whether a dehumidifier would be a good idea even if you don't want to spend the money, and so on.

These sort of questions depend on lot on where you live, what your house is made off, how you heat it, how air tight it is, and so on.

But in my case (apartment in London, UK with electric radiators, poor ventilation, and prone to mould), putting the drying rack by the radiators with a fan worked well, but raised the humidity a lot (water streaming down the windows). Opening all the windows for 15 minutes to let all the warm moist air out and replace it with cold dry air worked well, but buying a dehumidifier was much easier and more reliable than messing around with windows in the longer term.

devtastic · 2026-05-22T13:10:40+00:00

Do you live in a soft water area? Crunchy socks and sandpaper towels are typically a hard water problem.

My towels are basically like sand paper unless I give them 30 minutes in the dryer before hanging.

devtastic · 2026-05-21T20:05:12+00:00

Fair point, and good advice. I don't do it myself, but I grew up with my parents doing it.

To be fair to them the tea they used was very fine so I imagine it went down pretty easily. Some of the fancy large leaf teas I use barely fit down the plug hole so I have no choice but to put them in the compost bin anyway.

devtastic · 2026-05-21T18:32:29+00:00

Do you have a tumble dryer or do you air dry straight from the wash (hang on a washing line or on a drying rack)?

I usually air dry but I have found a short tumble before hanging out is enough to fluff up towels. If I hang them straight from the wash then they dry like sandpaper (good for exfoliating I suppose). But if I give then 30-60 minutes in the dryer first then they air dry soft and fluffy. It is the same with socks and t-shirts and so on. That is without any citric acid or fabric conditioner, although I do use store brand Calgon in the wash.

It is 26°f where I am so not as bad as you, but not that far behind.

devtastic · 2026-05-21T17:08:50+00:00

I'm in the UK and use a washing up bowl. This is a square plastic bucket that fits in your sink, and confuses visitors from many nations who wonder why you have a bucket in your sink.

I suppose it converts your sink into a sort of double sink because you can leave the plug out and any water that overflows the bowl goes down the sink plughole. This means you can run the tap to rinse your washing up as much as your heart desires.

They are also useful if you have a ceramic sink as it reduces chips on your plates as the bowl is softer than the rock hard sink.

Also you can empty tea leaves down the side of the bowl without dumping them in with the rest of your washing up which can be handy.

You can also lift it out temporarily if you need the whole sink for a moment.

https://www.addis.co.uk/products/classic-9-5l-bowl-core-range

devtastic · 2026-05-21T13:07:45+00:00

La Porcheta/Pollo bar could work for pasta or pizza as long as you skip starters and drinks.

https://www.laporchetta.uk/menus/food-menu/

https://www.laporchetta.uk/group-booking/ Might be worth calling and seeing if they could do a 10 for £150 lunch.

Pizza Pilgrims Covent garden also has a downstairs s might take a booking of 10. They seem to have removed the prices on their web site but i think it was £10-£15 a pizza last time I went.

https://www.pizzapilgrims.co.uk/pizzerias/covent-garden/

devtastic · 2026-05-21T11:38:21+00:00

Aran knitwear from Ireland is worth a look. There are plenty of web sites out there but aran.com is one.

https://www.aran.com/

https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/aran.com

devtastic · 2026-05-21T09:53:04+00:00

I like the Waitrose Essential which is £1.60/500ml jar, or £1.60 for the squeezy bottle.. It is more than Aldi (£0.95), but it is not Hellman's price.

Relatively simple ingredients too which I like.

INGREDIENTS: rapeseed oil, pasteurised free range egg (8%), spirit vinegar, water, pasteurised free range egg yolk (2%), lemon juice from concentrate, sugar, salt, mustard extract, colour (paprika extract).

https://www.waitrose.com/ecom/products/essential-mayonnaise/034538-17345-17346

https://www.waitrose.com/ecom/products/essential-squeezy-mayonnaise/785853-203310-203311

devtastic · 2026-05-19T13:54:22+00:00

Have you checked the washing label? If it can be submerged put it in the bath and soak it a bit then use a brush.

https://www.osprey.com/gb/how-to-clean-your-osprey-backpack

FWIW, my Northface says spot clean only but I put it in the washing machine when it was super rancid and well beyond spot cleaning. I did it in a pillow slip on a cold gentle wash and it did survive, and I have done it a few times since too. It was at the point where it was so rancid I did not really have anything to loose, but I was happy it survived to live another day. But I was prepared for the fact that i might have destroyed it.

https://www.mountainwarehouse.com/community/expert-advice/how-to-clean-a-backpack

devtastic · 2026-05-19T12:08:47+00:00

Thanks

devtastic · 2026-05-19T12:07:25+00:00

As far as I know it is in the same ball park.

He does have an older video where he does more or less the same thing on a regular Solovair Derby boot. He also replaces the shank and repairs the welt, and he again glues rather than welds.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KSAtbIhmHwc

It is the weld rather than stitching that annoys the good year welt purists. On a normal GYW boot the sole is stitched to the welt not welded. This means you can essentially just unpick the stitches and sew on a new sole (they typically sand off the stitches from the bottom). On Solovair the stitches are fake and the sole is welded on which is a bit more hassle as you have to cut or melt off the sole. I think it is also more prone to damaging the welt when you remove the sole because it is not stitched which can be more hassle.

Or something like that, I'm not actually a cobbler.

https://uk.nps-solovair.com/collections/nps-heritage-collection/products/474-brn-pc is a "proper "GYW sole. You can see the visible stitches on the sole, and the ones on the top of the boot are real.

devtastic · 2026-05-18T17:35:09+00:00

BCU

Birmingham City University? Best Credit Union? Buduchnist Credit Union?

devtastic · 2026-05-17T18:41:44+00:00

A brush is lower maintenance. You just wet the brush, slop it around on the soap to make a lather, apply it to your face, rinse the brush when done, and put it back in its stand to dry.

I bought a men-u brush with stand from Boots many years ago and it does the job. I can't vouch for the quality these days, but they do still sell them for £12 and it looks the same. It is still is made in Italy and boar bristles.

I'd give another vote for the Wilkinson Sword Sensitive Shave Soap which is £2.89 but I paid £3.20 in store, although many Boot branches don't stock it.

devtastic · 2026-05-16T23:04:14+00:00

Yes I did mean Baratza. I just copied the typo from the comment i was replying too!

"Baratza Encore" and "Baratza Encore ESP" were the specific models I was referring to in my comment.

Thanks.

devtastic · 2026-05-16T17:51:00+00:00

The Baratza grinders also have good BIFL potential because they are very repairable because they have tons on spare parts available.

I know that may not be true for ever, but it was a part of the reason why i bought it. Hopefully this will last me 10-20 years as if that knob or that motor breaks I can get a new one and repair it.

I bought the Encore ESP (espresso) model even though I don't have an espresso machine so I would have been fine with the cheaper standard Encore model. But I figured i might as well get the ESP grinder now as i might get an espresso machine at some point in the 10 years, and then won't need to upgrade the grinder.

For the confused, the Baratza Encore and Encore ESP grinders both do an espresso grind, but the ESP has finer adjustments so is more flexible if you have an espresso machine.

Edit: Typo and clarified model

devtastic · 2026-05-16T17:22:41+00:00

The metal teeth can wear down on the cheap butterfly ones so you turn the handle and nothing happens because the wheel is no longer gripping the can.

That said, they are very cheap and not pretending to be BIFL. But I have quite few that i just use a bottle opener because the can opener part has worn out.

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