New Gillette cartridge razor

[harper]

A few housekeeping comments before I get into the subject: First, I have not done any work for Gillette for a couple of decades so I have no particular axe to grind; Second, I am partial to cartridge razors, Gillette's products by and large; I do use a DE but it is not my preferred razor simply because I find cartridge razors easier to use and get better results in almost all cases I am not new at wet shaving and have shaved for close to 70 years which I think is likely long enough to qualify me as not a shaving novice; Third, I am not trying to convert anyone from DE razors to cartridge razors because the razor one uses is a choice and if shavers prefer one to another it really does not change the equation for me; Fourth, I know that some shavers have problems using cartridge razors ... skin and other difficulties; I don't so that is a benefit and, Fifth, I think Gillette charges to much for its cartridges but since I can buy them for about 25% less at Costco, I don't worry about the fact that DE shaving is less expensive. I spend a lot of money on Trumper shaving creams and good brushes so the cost of the cartridges is not a great indulgence. On the other hand, I don't spend much on booze or cars anymore so indulging myself by buying cartridges will not send me to the poor house.

Now, to the point: I think the new Power Flex Ball Fusion is the best razor I have ever used and I am getting the best shaves I have ever had ... bar none ... and I got excellent shaves using the previous Power Fusion. It cuts close and my skin is smooth when I am finished. There are two primary ways of determining how close a razor shaves: one is how fast your beard grows back in a given period of time (I shave daily so 24 hours is my measurement and two, given the necessary controls, measuring the length of whiskers cut under a microscope (or some other electronic method) with the longer the cut whisker the closer the blade(s) is cutting. Naturally, I have no way of measuring the length of the whiskers cut so I go on the subjective method of how much my beard grows out in a 24 hour period. I am confident it is less than with other razors.

I have read where some people question whether the power Fusion shaves closer than the non-power model and I think it does. Maybe that is subjective but if it is and I am happy with using one who cares! The extra cost of the batteries is so negligible than they don't alter the situation (and I dispose of all batteries properly). I don't know if the non-power Flex Ball will shave as well as the one with a battery but I could find out easily enough by not pushing the power button.

I posted this because I see more shavers on this forum admit to using cartridge razors than I suspected. Personally, I love them and think that the TRAC11 was as great a breakthrough in shaving ease as the original safety razor (not invented by the way by King C. Gillette but more successfully marketed than any other DE razor). My DE is a Future and I think it is as good a DE razor as ever invented ... so I have no hang ups with the razors and my blades of preference based on using a lot of different blades are Derbys ... only that I can get better shaves with almost all cartridge razors than with a DE.

OK, DE lovers, go at me.

[harper]

Oh, by the way, I read in somebody's post that there is somebody posting on another forum under the name AsHarper (something). It ain't me. I don't know what he or she says so I hope you don't get me confused with him. I am also not related to the Prime Minister of Canada or I.W. Harper whiskey.

[brothers]

Bob, it's true for me also, that my best shaves have been provided by cartridges. For some reason, ever since I first got my Trac II, up until just this year, I inevitably got some painful bumps within 24 hours of using the Trac II, and now, it never happens. That is a very good thing. I confess I've never found an opportunity to use a 5 blade cartridge. I've only recently used the three bladed carts, to which I have now become accustomed. My mind is always open, hopefully, to new things. It's probably inevitable that there is a 5 blade in my future.

[Squire]

I can understand cutting back on the car budget but booze? Man, that's grim.

[bernards66]

Ah Squire, Harper has his reasons I am quite sure. Regarding this new Gillette gizmo, obviously, I have nothing to say. By now everyone here knows my past history with multi-blade cartridge razors. Unfortunately, in a moment of absentmindedness I committed to David that I would try that Schick Hydro 3 thingy, and I will...but I didn't say when and for now that's as far as I'm willing to go. As it is, since I am unable to dismiss Harper as either a novice or a fool I must conclude that these complex cartridge productions do indeed work well for some gents and that it's not entirely control of the market and ceaseless advertising that sells these things, but they are definitely not for me and are not, I suspect, the ideal razor for a fair number of men who wind up using them because it seems like they have little choice beyond other multi-blade cartridges or multi-blade disposables.
Regards,
Gordon

[Rufus]

After several years of trying to master the DE razor I've returned to the cartridge. Currently I use a Sensor or a Mach3, both of which give me excellent, irritation-free shaves every time. The problem I had with all my DE's was getting a close, irritation-free shave consistently. I found that in order to achieve a shave with a DE That satisfied me I had to finish up with either my Sensor or my Mach3 otherwise it took me forever to finish my shave and invariably my skin was left red and irritated. Many people complain that a cartridge razor irritates their skin and leaves them with ingrown hairs and bumps, but this is exactly what a DE razor does to me. Funny that and it really brings home the meaning of YMWV. As for trying the post- Sensor/Mach3 cartridge razors, I'm not there yet as I'm completely satisfied with the two cartridge razors I am now using.

[Squire]

Oh they work all right, and work very well for most I suspect. By now they should being fully established because the current crop of college students have literally used nothing else. Of course that bunch also believes their ideas are new to the World and anything that happened before 1990 is really, really old history.

[gsgo]

It has always been about the results for me, a smooth, comfortable and lasting shave with a reasonable amount of effort. Having tried just about all of the current tools available my first choice for quite sometime has been the Mach III Turbo followed closely by the Fusion Pro Glide. With Costco I am able to buy my Mach III cartridges at just a snide over $2.00 each which I find more than reasonable. I have yet to pull the triger on the Feather system from Phil but this may be something I try in the near future. I have never bought into the bashing of any particular method or tool used including brushes, soaps, creams and aftershaves but I do buy into things that work for me.

[brothers]

This morning's 2 1/2 day's beard was removed by the Noxzema/Kai disposable Twin blade cartridge razor, and the shave was as good as any. No nicks, no cuts, no stubble. Three days ago the excellent shave was courtesy of the Boker King Cutter SR. Neither was chosen from peer pressure or fear of reprisal nor hope for a nod or a smile of approval. They are selected because they do indeed work quire well. The DE and SE razors will soon follow for the same reason.
.

[Brutus]

OK, DE lovers, go at me.

It's not the DE lovers that I'd worry about (after all, these thingies aren't called "safety razors" for nothing), it's the guys with properly honed straights.... (stropping for this particular purpose is probably not required).

But luckily, we are all friends and gentlemen around here who know how to agree to disagree.



B

[harper]

Brutus.

Definitely.

My father, who was in WW1 (yes 1) told me how for years a lot of men thought only "sissies" used safety razors and real men used straights ... also drank their whiskey (he preferred Old Fitzgerald, a sour mash) straight down the hatch without a chaser. He didn't drink much (a drink or two maybe three times a year) but when he did that was how he drank it.

On the other hand, he was prescient enough to use safety razors and didn't hold with using straights ... Luddites he called those who used them ... although it was not until about 1943 that he had his first suit made with a fly zipper rather than buttons. He was a man of certain convictions: he would not have a radio in the car because he thought the sound would make it too difficult to hear police and fire engine sirens. I am glad he liked DE shaving because I learned from him and I'm not sure I would have ever mastered a straight.

cheers

Bob

[95%]

I must admit I have great respect for a man who shaves with a straight razor, just as I respect a man who can ride a motorcycle and repair his own car. If reincarnation is true, I hope one day to be reborn as a man's man who can do these things. But in this life I'll take the easy, lazy way of technology.

Shaving doesn't get easier than now, with the latest Gillette ProGlide razor. Why would I want to shave instead with an old-fashioned safety razor, an overly complicated relic made of screws, springs, and doors that dates from the era of Scott Joplin and hand-cranked automobiles? I'm not that much into nostalgia. The system worked for me in the 1960's, but I moved on when a better one was devised.

Just one man's opinion.

[bernards66]

Porter, As you know from reading my posts in the past, and those of some other members as well, I don't use DE razors because of nostalgia ( not that I'm opposed to 'nostalgia' you understand, I can get into it ) but rather I continue to use them because they work better for me, period. I've tried many of the multi-blade cartridges and I never got a better shave from them, instead I got razor bumps and irritation...but never a closer shave. That's the main reason I continue to shave with a DE. However, I do also find 'modern' multi-blades to feel cheap, like a tinker toy ( and they look like one too ), but if they really worked better for me I would probably use them anyway....but they don't.
Regards,
Gordon

[harper]

Aahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh Gordon, it's all in technique; just like learning how to get a great shave using a DE.
cheers

Bob

[Squire]

Can't resist poking the Bear can you Bob.

[harper]

Squire, I couldn't let the opportunity pass. I am weak that way.

cheers

Bob

[EL Alamein]

I say use whatever works best for you, there are many roads to Rome.

As for the ball thingy, as an observer, I just don't see it. It uses the same blades as before, correct? So any improvement in closeness of shave is seemingly due to the ball gizmo, right?

I perceive that all these innovations in mechanical operation are to handicap technique. And that can be a tremendous luxury for a lot of folks. If you like it and don't mind the price go for it.

Chris

[95%]

The new razor accepts any Fusion cartridge. The pivot ball gizmo is really just an unobtrusive tweak. I'm not even aware of it as I shave, but it must help, since my shaves have never been better.

It's a bad rap on us old-time cartridge shavers that we depend upon the cartridge to compensate for poor technique. It would be more accurate to say that we like them because they are less prone to accidents, while they work at least as well. As Harper half-jokingly suggested in his riposte to Gordon, the problems some people have with them are precisely because of poor technique. They require a feather-light touch and a slow deliberate stroke, for starters.

[EL Alamein]

Porter, let me clarify how I meant it - in my mind I've come to think of it as having a chauffeur. One may still have excellent driving skills but most of the time you prefer to be just driven there.

For myself, I definitely appreciate it from that point of view. Not my cup of tea,but every now and then I like to take a sip.

Chris

[95%]

Chris - Forgive me, but I'm not sure I get the logic of the metaphor. Shaving with a cartridge isn't the same as being shaved by a barber; that would seem to be a more apt comparison with your chauffeur.

I'd say that if a guy really wants to do it the hard way, he should shave with a piece of obsidian. Forget the car and the chauffeur, just walk.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Phy-jhEo8s