Mild Blade and Aggressive Razor versus the opposite

cadfael_tex · Post by **cadfael_tex** » Wed Sep 01, 2010 4:52 pm

I basically started out with what I understood to be a mild razor and am slowly getting to more aggressive blades. But I began to wonder about what the difference is between a mild razor and aggressive blades versus using an aggressive razor with possibly milder blades? I know that in many ways it's probably a YMMV thing, but are the any general differences, pros, cons of one against the other.

TIA,
Tony

CMur12 · Post by **CMur12** » Wed Sep 01, 2010 5:11 pm

Hi Tony -

The gentle-to-aggressive continuum determines how close a razor will shave. An aggressive razor shaves closer, so a gentle razor causes less irritation. A gentle razor can still give a good shave, however.

The blade determines what you can cut through. The sharper blades will cut more easily through a coarse and/or heavy beard.

Example: If you have sensitive skin and a heavy or coarse beard, you may want to choose a gentle razor and a sharper blade. (Some also recommend a slant bar razor and sharp blade for this combination.) Beyond this, of course, personal preferences also enter into the equation.

- Murray

druphus · Post by **druphus** » Wed Sep 01, 2010 6:43 pm

Murray has given the perfect explanation!

notthesharpest · Post by **notthesharpest** » Wed Sep 01, 2010 7:56 pm

A too-mild razor loses some ease of use, more or less by hiding the blade so you can't find it; this causes some people to press on the razor in an effort to get the thing to shave.

A too-aggressive razor will scrape you all the time, and increase your chance of getting cut, without giving any better of a shave.

As long as your razor is in the reasonable middle ground between those undesirable extremes, you can succeed with any good quality blade, and what blade you happen to get used to is IMO a big factor in your success.

Mild razors take more practice, because they tend to miss some stubble if you don't hold them right. Aggressive razors are very easy to use; you almost can't miss, because that blade has a sight line to every whisker even if your angle is clumsy.

My own preference is for an extra-sharp blade and a medium-to-aggressive razor. That might not be yours.

For what it's worth, I don't see any benefit for anybody in using an aggressive razor with a mild blade. The opposite, a very sharp blade in a very tight razor, works great for some people.

My advice (if it's any use) is to get a great razor that you like and try different blades in it, and beyond that to not worry much.

bernards66 · Post by **bernards66** » Wed Sep 01, 2010 8:48 pm

Well, Murray and David pretty well covered it, and I agree with the latter in that a mild blade in an aggressive razor makes little sense to me, but no doubt there are those here who favour such a combination. FWIW, I use relatively mild razors ( mainly variants of the early Gillette Superspeed ) and sharp high end blades ( only vintage today....now that the 'Oslo Swedes' have joined the 'vintage' ranks...sigh ). For me, this is the best combination. Most of us here do multiple passes anyway, the so-called 'reduction method' and so, one does not need to get every last hint of whisker on the first pass anyway.
Regards,
Gordon

notthesharpest · Post by **notthesharpest** » Wed Sep 01, 2010 9:43 pm

bernards66 wrote:Well, Murray and David pretty well covered it, and I agree with the latter in that a mild blade in an aggressive razor makes little sense to me, but no doubt there are those here who favour such a combination. FWIW, I use relatively mild razors ( mainly variants of the early Gillette Superspeed ) and sharp high end blades ( only vintage today....now that the 'Oslo Swedes' have joined the 'vintage' ranks...sigh ). For me, this is the best combination. Most of us here do multiple passes anyway, the so-called 'reduction method' and so, one does not need to get every last hint of whisker on the first pass anyway.

In my experience, no razor & blade combination ever gets everything on the first pass - with the exception of the latest cartridges, which I'm guessing basically do several passes at once; sort of cheating.

I've used a wide-open Futur with a Feather blade and a thin slick lather. One pass still didn't give a spectacular shave, and the number of cuts and scrapes per shave was obviously higher than normal with that setup.

gil3591 · Post by **gil3591** » Wed Sep 01, 2010 10:51 pm

all sound advice. my ej de89L is about as mild as i care to go with a razor, otherwise i'm making quite a few passes to get the whiskers all cut. the result of using the ej is that i get a mild shave but the shave doesn't last as long either. my progress can do a mild shave or can be set higher to get a close shave that lasts 24 hrs. the more aggressive razor runs the risk of weepers. in both razors i use a sharp blade. either a feather or an iridium. i really don't see a reason to use a moderately sharp blade.

bernards66 · Post by **bernards66** » Wed Sep 01, 2010 10:56 pm

David, Yes, ( chuckle )...I'll bet it was. Of course. I just wanted to remind the OP not to be concerned about that. The closest I got with a one pass shave was with a Slant but it still was not in the same league with what I get doing three passes with my regular razors. But most of the guys who show up new on this forum have no concept of good basic technique; more than one lather and pass, skin stretching, short strokes, and all that stuff that most gents 60 years ago knew.
Regards,
Gordon

JarmoP · Post by **JarmoP** » Thu Sep 02, 2010 5:50 pm

I'm doing currently the way to shave away from my my stash of the blades that are not in my usual rotation. Swedes, wilkinsons, dorcos, lords, nacet and astras, merkurs too ugh

Some of them are really good ones, though I don't have them on hundreds like Derbs and red pack personnas. Have 80+ Feathers too, but them are the borderline too sharp blades for me.

I can shave with any of them but will be using only mostly my HDs and Progress. With Gillettes I have to worry more about the razor burn on not so familiar blades to not get razor burn.

Gordon, my skin is sensitive, and I think not ever wanting to own a Slant.
I know your preference to Gillette razors and sharp blades. Maybe you should try a Merkur regular fixed head or Muhle/EJ to wean you off to not liking Gilletes too much

Jarmo

cadfael_tex · Post by **cadfael_tex** » Thu Sep 02, 2010 5:59 pm

Just checking back in. Haven't got RAD and my bank account hopes it stays that way. Gonna stick with my plan of slowly increasing the aggressiveness of blade in my only razor - Merkur 33c. I started out with Deby's and now am trying Red Personnas (which I liked better). I have some Astra's and just ordered a small sample of Iridium and Feathers.

CMur12 · Post by **CMur12** » Thu Sep 02, 2010 8:49 pm

Tony, I frankly consider the Merkur a fairly aggressive razor - more aggressive than I want to this day.

I started with a Merkur and found it too aggressive. I switched to milder razors, a Weishi then a Tech, and I used the Tech almost exclusively for three years. I used the Tech for some time with very mild blades (Dorco ST300), before moving on to sharper blades that cut more easily through my coarse beard. Just recently, I have migrated to an Edwin Jagger DE87 razor, which is closer-shaving/more aggressive than the Tech, but less so than a Merkur with a fixed head.

- Murray

cadfael_tex · Post by **cadfael_tex** » Fri Sep 03, 2010 6:52 am

I can't find the chart but I had found it on one of the other shave sites that listed the non-HD classic as a milder Merkur. It seems about right for me but then again I don't have any others for frame of reference.

Racso_MS · Post by **Racso_MS** » Fri Sep 03, 2010 7:16 pm

M-E-R-K-U-R

CMur12 · Post by **CMur12** » Fri Sep 03, 2010 7:21 pm

Tony, all the Merkurs with fixed heads have the same head. Any difference in the shaving experience between them is due to differences in balance and overall weight with the various handles.

- Murray

notthesharpest · Post by **notthesharpest** » Fri Sep 03, 2010 9:30 pm

cadfael_tex wrote:I can't find the chart but I had found it on one of the other shave sites that listed the non-HD classic as a milder Merkur. It seems about right for me but then again I don't have any others for frame of reference.

If it shaves you well and comfortably, then you're set. That's the bottom line.

The Vision and the Futur are some of the most aggressive DE razors in existence - hence the company's non-adjustables get a much milder rating by comparison.

With the obvious exception of the slant head, ALL of Merkur's non-adjustable razors are EXACTLY THE SAME except for the handles. Rating (for example) the Classic and the Classic HD differently, is nothing more IMO than a sloppy mistake - unless it's sloppy quality control letting out razors of supposedly the exact same design that really do shave differently...

bernards66 · Post by **bernards66** » Fri Sep 03, 2010 10:34 pm

Tony, Just to reinforce; all the Merkur fixed blade razor heads are the same with the exception of the Slant Bar model. Any perceived differences are either; a) psychological, b) due to different weight and balance of the handles, or c) sloppy quality control.
Regards,
Gordon

cadfael_tex · Post by **cadfael_tex** » Sat Sep 04, 2010 12:23 pm

I was doubting anyone honestly. I was just going with what I had picked up on another shave site. This is what I made my decision from...

http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/index.ph ... essiveness

It does make very much sense that all the 3 piece Merkurs share the same head design. Now I just have to fight of the RAD to try something new.

notthesharpest · Post by **notthesharpest** » Sat Sep 04, 2010 1:17 pm

I don't doubt the honesty of reviewers on there, either. They called it as they saw it, I'm sure. But the difference would be due to:

- chance

- handle size & weight (which can't change the aggressiveness of a razor, but can change the way you hold it - and that change of grip might have other minor effects on the shave)

- factory quality control