[LWJ]

Follow up. Shaun did push me over the edge. I have had a life of pathetic electric shaving. Never liked the results. Always had weird straggler hairs and ingrown remnants. Everytime I tried a blade shave I had rash.

Enter this thread. I bought a Mercur (sp?) long handle. Seems nice enough. I also bought a multi-pack of blades from Amazon; shave cream, brush, Alum bar, and aftershave. Two most important items for success? 1) I warm my beard up in the shower and rub my wife's hair conditioner in. This really does seem to help. 2) The right blade! Some are just worthless. Some are super sharp. Out of five blades, I hated two, loved one and had two that were pretty ok. That is a crazy range of variables but I can't stress this enough: blades matter.

I also looked online for tips and advice. Here is something I do about the rash. I just shave one time on my neck, with the grain. I shave two times on the cheeks. Once with the grain, once across. It works for me.

Another thing that made a difference is the alum bar. If I get too aggressive, it seems to make a difference with rash. To the point that the aftershave seems un-needed.

Another thing that is nice is a scuttle for keeping shave cream warm. My wife bought me one on Etsy. NICE. It has hot water in the bottom.

Summary: 1) I am hooked. It is a better experience, better shave. 2) It takes a lot longer. I do still use the electric occasionally. 3) My technique has impoved but is still poor to intermediate. I am looking to improve here. 4) No cuts yet. 5) I am pretty messy with water in the bathroom. 6) I like the way it feels & looks. My face doesn't have weird hairs / ingrown hairs! 7) It makes the chore pleasant.

Thanks for the heads up!
Larry