Shaving Technologies

Is it ok to ask about electric shavers in here? I’ve never used one before but I’m thinking of picking one up (a cheap one) for my shaving bag for when I travel because it’s a bit of a pain to carry around soaps and DE shavers and get all lathered up when I’m traveling. I’m basically looking for something to keep the beard away while I’m on holiday, not to have baby smooth skin for going into a board meeting. I’d like something that’s super easy to clean and doesn’t require a lot of maintenance either. Essentially, I’m looking for the AK-47 of electric razors. Anyone have any suggestions? Or just things in general that I should look for in an electric razor since I’ve never used one before?

My experience with an electric razor is that the quality of the shave will never equal a regular razor and even more so if you have been using a lot of the hints here for old style shaving. I mention this because even though you state it is for holiday the question in my mind - will you be comfortable with your whiskers being “rougher” when using the electric shaver.

My beard always felt a bit itchy even immediately after a shave due to having more whiskers being present when I was done - even using the various products to help an electric shave. It never felt as smooth as using a “regular razor” and for me I just was not comfortable - harder to sleep - harder on my wife if my face got near hers ;)

When I travel I usually use the hotel hair conditioner with a more modern razor to keep my carry shaving items low. An electric razor meant a larger item in my luggage along with another plug to keep track of and probably a lot more expensive to lose if you forget to pack it when returning home.

When I am home I use shaving soap etc. I have been thinking of carrying them in the future when traveling.

Arko and/or Tabac are pretty easy to lug around/use outside of home :)

Never had any luck with electrics, so little to offer there :(

Electric razors make my neck glow pink. :( I had to learn to go with a “rough” shave. If you can do that, it’s a good plan.

I just get the soap you can use in a little sealable container for my travel bag. I also have a little mini travel brush and I put a new blade before I go on trips.

Yeah same for me. An electric would terribly irritate my neck. Then the bumps would form. Ingrown hairs. I’d rather grow a beard than use an electric razor.

I’m all-electric. They’ve gotten a lot better than they used to be, particularly the priciest Norelco razors that have concentric rings of blades and heads with a lot of tilt to them (i.e. model 1250x or better with “3D” contour-following). You can rinse them off with water now.

The skin irritation thing is something that goes away with regular use.

They don’t require any preparation such as soap. Just turn it on and go.

Getting a close shave generally requires multiple passes. I gather that’s not true of soap-and-razor. On the other hand, it’s not a lot of trouble to do so, since there’s no prep, it’s just a matter of going over the skin another time.

While those concentric rings do a good job on facial hair, they still have problems with neck hair. They’re better than they were, but you’re never going to get a really close shave on the neck with one. It really depends on whether having an absolutely smooth neck matters to you.

Getting a close shave with a double edged razor still takes multiple passes. If you are using a very sharp blade like Feathers, then you don’t want to rush since you’ll cut the crap out of yourself. BUT it is very gentle to the face when done. Many fewer ingrown hairs, etc.
Diego

I think multiple passes with a regular razor is based on how thick the beard is for an individual and especially if One has not shaved for a couple of days. I tend to do two passes if I have a special event.

This may sound silly but I can see changing a shaving method for a period of time to just give your face a break or to get out of the same old routine.

Use clippers every day and always have a sexy 5 o’clock shadow.

My wife hates the stubble look. I hear “he needs to shave” about scruffy movie characters pretty often.

Ok, this is off topic but does anyone know of a solution to clip your toenails without bending? My knees are bad and I cannot bend them like I was able to do when younger. I have to get my wife or kids to help and I hate asking anyone.

My mom goes to a shop to get her toes done for this very reason. Somehow paying someone feels better than asking someone. Lol

Not the look for you Gus. Unless you’re looking to annoy your wife!

Well I picked up a Panasonic ES-ST27 the other day. It might be a Japanese only model but I think the previous version (ST25) is out in Canada. It’s a wet/dry model. I’m gonna give it a shot tonight. It will be my first time to ever use an electric shaver so I hope I don’t tear my face off.

No, I’ve got the Total Perspective Vortex for that.

I wish I knew; I’m a pretty big guy and super not-flexible/bad back, so reaching my foots even at my fairly modest age is very difficult, and I’m deathly afraid of ingrown toenails after a good friend of mine managed to get two massively and disgustingly infected when we were in HS together; I have flashbacks to the gruesome sight everytime I clip mine and pray I’ve done a good job despite not really being able to see what I’ve done properly.

Well after two goes with my Panasonic electric shaver I’m relatively satisfied. The outcome of the first attempt was pretty awful in terms of how clean a shave I got. I think that was mainly because I’m a noob. The second try was much better but if I bought the shaver to save time then I’ve wasted my money as it took at least as long to get a good shave. It could just be my lack of experience though perhaps it will get faster. Fortunately though I’m not experiencing any razor burn or anything like that.
One problem is that I’m finding it fairly hard to do my upper lip especially under the nose.

A mustache will solve that.

Agreed with Gus. I’ve used razor for years, but we recently bought a Norelco (not the fanciest, but it is countour-following/usable in water/shower/etc.) since my son is now at beginning shaving age, and I’ve pretty well switched over to it as well. The big catch with electric is that you need to switch over completely for a few weeks before your skin adapts. Constant back and forth between electric and razor, and you’ll never be happy with the electric.

For those complaining that it isn’t as close - I agree to an extent, but you are also likely comparing immediately post-shave. More important is to compare an hour or two after shaving. When you shave with a razor, you cause the skin to swell slightly which hides the stubble and makes your skin feel smoother than it really is. Once the swelling goes back down, the stubble reappears. There is still a difference, but it isn’t as drastic as I once thought. Or I’m just getting old and caring less. The convenience, especially with being able to clean them in water nowadays, outweighs slight stubble.

All right, I’ve read the last few pages of this thread and I’m none the wiser. What’s a cheap option for being mostly clean shaven without using a blade and without ripping up my girlish baby-smooth face skin with a crappy electric razor? In other words, if I want to be reasonably clean shaven – it doesn’t have to be super-close – isn’t there a $50 electric razor that will get the job done? It looks like those of you using electric razors are dropping 100+ dollars into them, but that’s because you want a close shave, right? What if I just want to be relatively clean shaven? Can someone recommend me a serviceable electric razor? Because I’m guessing some of these are real duds.

-Tom