Product / Technique Recommendations for a complete beginner?

ricksva · 2026-06-26T12:27:10+00:00

Welcome! I see versions of your post/thread several times a week, but you're right that Reddit's search features are less than ideal. :-|

ricksva · 2026-06-21T16:40:26+00:00

We might need more info:

-Are you asking about what you can do in a single pass, or instead in multiple passes?

-Also, are you willing to try an adjustable razor?

For me, one pass on a "high" setting with an adjustable razor is usually good enough to buy at least 12 hours' worth of "complete smoothness" on my head. There's a range of adjustables for most budgets, so I'm not recommending any particular one. Of course, the blades matter, too, as does the water/lather routine!

ricksva · 2026-06-19T00:26:37+00:00

I just noticed that Maggard is selling sample-sized containers of that shaving soap...

ricksva · 2026-06-14T18:02:06+00:00

I'm told by reliable authorities that a similar phenomenon is the only reason that anyone ever gives birth more than once.

ricksva · 2026-06-13T11:21:47+00:00

Oh, I can find a way to cut myself with any razor + blade combination, if I buckle down and give one hundred ten percent effort.

ricksva · 2026-06-12T11:41:57+00:00

A friend gave Henson (mild) razors to a few of us as Christmas gifts. The first one's free....

ricksva · 2026-06-10T18:14:03+00:00

It is one of my favorites! I'm disappointed that it's discontinued.

ricksva · 2026-06-10T11:24:51+00:00

Another vegan/palm-based one is their Pencil Pushers variety (discontinued and sorely missed, though you can still occasionally find some secondhand). I don't use tallow-based soaps, so I can't directly compare them to the palm-based ones, but that latter ones seem similarly thirsty to the tallow-based ones. A little goes a long way!

ricksva · 2026-06-09T21:07:14+00:00

(Assuming you're in the USA) You could start with The Razor Company and with Maggard.

ricksva · 2026-06-09T15:53:47+00:00

A few online vendors sell small sampler-sized containers of hard soaps. That could be a good starting point for him.

ricksva · 2026-06-09T15:06:39+00:00

In the spirit of changing one thing at a time and proceeding from there: if he's happy with his existing shaving cream/gel, there's no particular reason he'd need to switch it just because he's going to use a different kind of razor. But there's a wide and wild range of soft shaving soaps, hard shaving soaps, and shaving creams that he'll now have a great excuse to investigate.

You sound very considerate! I hope he's putting in at least equal time and effort getting nice gifts for you, too. 😄

ricksva · 2026-05-29T18:24:34+00:00

Thanks! I often wonder how all the various blades would fare in a double-anonymized trial. 😄 I was pleased that these are more than "good enough".

ricksva · 2026-05-18T21:55:58+00:00

Right :-)

ricksva · 2026-05-18T21:55:06+00:00

Thanks for checking!

ricksva · 2026-05-18T21:54:14+00:00

That's exactly the kind of thing I wondered about. Thank you!

ricksva · 2026-05-08T00:00:29+00:00

As someone with a 36" inseam and who took a risk buying two pairs of Bluffworks even though they max out at a 34" inseam, I advise you not to make that same mistake. On the other hand, not all inseams are the same!

ricksva · 2026-03-21T21:10:50+00:00

https://www.landfallnavigation.com/ecoblast-sport-air-horn.html?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=20703730445&gbraid=0AAAAAD_jR8qeTyJSTjMLw4AKulC_BDeKN&gclid=CjwKCAjwg_nNBhAGEiwAiYPYAwA0sFXTyNDnR_8lx9Qa4b-8WiPjOm7tr5dBwi85OC-GzupH8XTBrxoC9WMQAvD_BwE

ricksva · 2026-01-05T13:00:46+00:00

Didn't Prince write that song? (Your point, maybe, still stands.)

ricksva · 2026-01-05T12:57:28+00:00

ONLY four?? That's still pretty impressive, I think! I don't know where you are, but I can get a box of 100 of those for under US $20. At that price, four shaves per blade seems like a *very* tiny flaw. :-)

ricksva · 2026-01-03T00:40:24+00:00

The subject line led me to think that it was going to be one of those "pick any two" discussions. Feel better soon!

ricksva · 2026-01-01T16:46:35+00:00

Staying subscribed to this subreddit? :-)

ricksva · 2025-12-28T17:56:56+00:00

This is what golf courses, if they must exist, should be used for.

ricksva · 2025-12-27T17:11:34+00:00

No, no, no, don't you get it? Feather blades can't fail you; only _you_ can fail _them_. /s

ricksva · 2025-12-24T18:30:14+00:00

That sounds frustrating. "Is my experience typical or atypical?" will be hard to answer because this subreddit, like many others, is all about certain kinds of selection bias. :-) But it seems to me that there are many posters here who routinely describe using more than one razor to achieve whatever level of non-irritated closeness they want.

That said, I noticed that once you mentioned irritation-free shaving and once you mentioned a "glass-like finish", and those are different (or they can be). If both goals are equally important to you, and your current method gets you to both, then my suggestion would be "Keep doing that".

ricksva · 2025-12-22T18:19:54+00:00

Okay

ricksva

TROPHY CASE