Shaving Technologies

#1

I am considering purchasing an electric razor for my son, but I’ve never used one. Can anyone recommend a decent electric razor?

He has acne that gets worse when he gets stressed out. When he gets an outbreak, shaving irritates his skin. He uses a 3 blade razor. He has gotten some relief by changing the direction he shaves. I think an electric might be even better because they can’t get as close as a blade.

Any other suggestions that I haven’t thought of?

I know there is that bad smelling no blade lather shaving stuff that guys used in the military, but shaving only irritates his skin when he has an outbreak, so I think that might be overkill. I’ve never used the stuff myself, but I guess my memory of the smell makes me less enthusiastic about recommending it for him than the electric.

Gentlemen: your thoughts?

Sean Spicer is the best Press Secretary in history. PERIOD.
#2

A basic cheap Norelco isn’t a bad starter. I used to use one extensively, they are great for those mornings were one is running late and doesn’t have time to shave properly with a real razor. As long as the electric has sharp blades the irritation factor is non-existent in my experience.

When I was a younger man and acne was still a concern, I had a lot of success by using an alcohol based aftershave (I used Aqua Velva) with an electric. The electric shaver wouldn’t irritate and the alcohol would dry out and disinfect the skin. Once I started doing that I never had acne anywhere I shaved. I know it made a difference because I still had plenty of acne in places I didn’t shave. :D

#3

Get him facial cleanser to help with the acne too.

#4

My thoughts are that I’m disappointed that this was a thread about male shaving technologies rather than some titillating discussion about female shaving.

Where are your standards, Mr. Elhajj? You once gave us the penis thread… yet now you have sunk to this. For shame!

#5

Dude, I love hair so much I would never advocate the type of thread behavior you’re looking for. If you behave we may have a hairiest arm pit thread later on. I expect Because They Are Shaved to participate fully.

#6

Ah, that’s what I wanted to hear. Thanks Nick. I’ll pass on the tips about the aftershave, too.

Dirt, thanks. He is using some perscription stuff and some over the counter cleansers. His outbreaks seem to be stress related, if that makes sense. Once they come, there is not much he can do but tough it out.

#7

I’d almost expect an alcohol-based aftershave to worsen acne… I’ve had a lot less trouble since I switched to aftershave balm, like CK Contradiction (expensive!) or Nivea aftershave balm (cheap, and what I use now since it has less fragrance). I’m pretty sure both are alcohol-free and do a much better job at reducing skin irritation
I use a Braun Clean & Charge which has a hygenic rinse system (smells like alcohol) to clean the blades everyday. That’ll help reduce acne a lot
The downsides - it’s fairly expensive, and you have to replace the rinsing cartridges about every 2-3 months. A replacement pack of 2 costs about $19 CDN
edit: If a 3-blade irritates his skin, he’ll probably want to stay away from an electric razor with that built-in conditioner stuff. I had a lot of problems with that because it cuts very close, comparable to a regular razor.

#8

A quick summary for you:

  1. Food actually affects acne.
  2. Anything other than water or face cleaner will only make it worse.
  3. Don’t put him on Accutane unless you want him to consider suicide. Seriously, that stuff is awful.

I think an electric razor will only makes things worse; it always gave me a ton of ingrown hairs. Instead I’d recommend trying shaving with the three-blade, consciously making sure you never ever press down with it; there should only be the vaguest contact between the razor and your skin.

#9

Yeah, the only real way to go is to shave as slow as possible.

#10

I can’t stand electric razors, and I’ve gotten two nice ones as gifts. No gels, balms, aftershaves, etc. can make up for the irritation.

#11

I just switched to an electric razor, and it works like a dream. I get a much closer shave, and my skin is never irritated. But then again, I have really thick skin, (both literally and figuratively) plus a really tough beard. (again, literally and figuratively. Although I have no idea what that might mean figuratively, it sounds wonderfully tough and manly.) When using a manual razor, I had to switch razor blades every three days (no exaggeration) to get a decent shave, and it was getting prohibitively expensive to remain shaved.

Hoo-ray for technology.

#12

Wow, hurm. So the vote seems split with some for electric and some against. Maybe I’m better off with the status quo. I am going to pass on those tips, Jason. Thanks!

#13

I have an electric shaver which does not shave close to the skin. It’s more like a hair clipper from a barber in that it doesn’t shave tightly to the skin, just close enough that I can go a day or two without having to do it again and without looking shaggy. When I need “close as a blade” shaving I first do the above, then use a regular 3-blade Tracer.

Perhaps something like that will help, where he can get “most” of the shaving done with an off-the-skin electric. The hairs left will be shorter and if properly prepared softer and a good swipe with a blade can handle that in one pass. Maybe less irritation.

Before and after, I soften the skin and hairs with warm but not hot water. Finally I finish with a moisterizing lotion (not aftershave) like aloe vera or Aveeno. This helps my sensitive skin by keeping it moist and warm throughout the process, touching it as little as possible with electric or manual razors, and finishing with some light lotion.

#14

second what shift said. i never totally shave.

just have your kid grow a goatee and use a pair of clippers for the rest of his face. it will give him a good, rugged appearance that women just swoon for.

if he really wants to be clean shaven, you could consider permanent hair removal. there is this laser removal system that is supposed to work pretty well on people with fair skin and dark hair. barring that, there is always electrolysis, though that takes a lot of time and money.

isn’t mccullough supposed to start these weird XYZ technology threads?

#15

I wouldn’t get him any sort of electric razor, it will just irritate his skin more. Get him:
-a good shower mirror (one that won’t fog up when he shaves in the shower)
-some sort of face scrub to use before he shaves
-some non-comedogenic shaving oil to put on under the shave cream
-some Neutregena shave lotion (hell, if you’ve got health insurance, go to the dermotologist and get a perscription for some shaving lotion)

I had bad acne when I was a teenager, and a heavy beard from puberty on, and these were the thing I had to learn to do to keep from getting ingrown hairs. Also, I hated the Mach3 when I used it (the weird floating head just caused more ingrown hairs). I’d use a Schick 3 or 4 blade razor instead.

I also used Retin-A, not Accutane (I had a dark-complected friend use that stuff, damm near turned him white and really dried out his skin).

#16

The woman you married to hide your latent homosexuality is a weightlifter? Sorry, that was a reach (it’s tough and manly for her!).

I thought I had sensitive skin, sensitive like my shining soul, you know? But I use a Norelco rotary 'lectric razor (the one in the 70 dollar range, mid-range+cordless price I guess). It’s a close-shaver, and in less than I week, I was fine. Except when my allergies are acting up, my skin gets more sensitive and my neck will redden. At those times though, I think angels anointing my face with heavenly nectar wouldn’t help, so fuck it. I dunno for kids, I’d guess electric unless his face starts peeling off in sloughed layers. Just my opinion!

#17

Just out of curiosity, Tim, what direction does your son shave? I had a lot of problems shaving against my facial hair, as opposed to with it if I have a fair bit of hair grown. If its a couple days’ of growth, I can get away with shaving on a slight angle to ensure I don’t miss any hair with the razor.

Yeah I’ve spent way too much time thinking about this in detail.

I highly suggest either watching Queer Eye for the Straight Guy or hire your own fashionable gay guy to get the skinny on the best way to shave.

#18

He has recently found that changing direction helped a little. He used to shave up, but now he shaves down. Seems like everyone has a different experiance. We might try the electric shaver just to see how it goes.

#19

Definitely avoid using alcohol-based aftershaves. They dry out the skin and cause additional irritation.

I use mint Kiss My Face shaving lotion and a Mach 3, and it’s a good combo. But everyone’s face is totally different.

#20

If you don’t go the electric route, for kicks, try going across the chin (unless you mean down, as in, down the cheek). I found that when my skin was irritated, it didn’t hurt nearly as much, but took a few more runs across.