Before I say much else I should probably acknowledge that this kind of conversation has the potential to get very wonky or technical. To the extent all the wonk and tech furthers the discussion and potentially leads to a better understanding (on my part as well as everyone else) I welcome such content. I will also acknowledge the true answer to my question posed in the title probably involves more than just wonk and tech...and I welcome what people have to say about the non-wonk/non-tech.
So, as the title asks. What makes an "aggressive" razor or blade aggressive? Obviously (to me), the word "aggressive" implies one of 2 conditions exist. 1) The razor and/or blade have more FEEL and that feel is probably not comfortable. 2) The Razor/blade some how manages to deliver a closer shave than a non-aggressive tool might; and this might occur with or without more irritation and/or injury. In MY case, I usually reserve the term aggressive for tools that yield more pain or injury regardless of the feel or result. If anyone wants to add to, embellish or flat out change my definition(s) feel free to do so.
We have all been there. Despite maintaining our usual (stellar) technique and awesome lather, we find a razor or blade (or razor and blade combo) that is just too aggressive for our taste. More often than not, we (The shaving community) will say the more "blade gap" or "blade exposure" a razor has the more aggressive it will shave. Some very fine artisan razors even give you the choice of different base plates meant to help you fine tune the level of aggressiveness by increasing/decreasing blade gap and/or exposure. And the legendary Gillette Fat Boy has 9 different settings, each resulting in more or less blade gap. If you have shaved with an adjustable razor you probably would say you DID feel a difference and maybe even got better/worse results or felt more/less pain depending on the setting. SO, it would seem blade gap and/or exposure is a major factor in a razor's aggressiveness.
Then we have those blades that have a reputation for being more aggressive than others. Feather comes to mind for me. I don't know how they do it but Feather yellow box blades rarely feel good for me, no matter what razor I put them in. I have had tried and true razors turn violent simply by loading a fresh Feather blade into it. To be fair (and completely honest) I did use a shark blade ONCE and was SO injured I almost gave up shaving all together. In the case of the Feather blades, the shaving community at large tells us they are the sharpest blades available (or something like that) and that their exceeding sharpness is why some shavers feel they are too aggressive. In the case of the Turkish Shark blades....they are just instruments of death and should be avoided at all costs.
Ok, so (in theory) we can assume any razor with more blade exposure/blade gap loaded with a super sharp blade will be more aggressive. But what about my straight razor or shavette style razor loaded with a fresh feather blade? Both being open blade tools have infinite blade exposure and no safety bar to measure blade gap against. And in the case of the Feather DX loaded with a Feather blade, blade sharpness is probably off the charts too. Yet, some of the best and most comfortable shaves I ever have are when using such tools. In fact, aside from an occasional slice caused by my own inattentiveness I rarely end up irritated or with a poor quality shave. *I have also found that in some cases the Feather DX type blades with micro-guards on the blade can be VERY comfortable.
Punchline:
Obviously, any time you drag a sharp blade across your skin irritation and injury are a possibility. There are no doubt a vast number of factors to consider or account for (like blade rigidity, grind etc.) but I have come to think the biggest factor in determining what razor or blade will or won't be "aggressive" is technique. I can't help but things like, pressure, angle of attack and angle of stroke play a bigger role than whether a DE razor has a particular blade gap or whether a Japanese Samaria hand honed the blade. MAYBE, different razor designs, blade gaps, types/grinds of blade, etc. are all ways to make technique more/less important...I really don't know.
I do know that, based on my own experience, a straight razor (or decent quality shavette) deliver the best comfort and closeness for me. If pressed to say why, I think it comes down to the blade being very ridged and my ability to immediately feel and correct for the optimal blade angle, pressure and stroke,
So what do YOU think? Are there razor set ups that you have found are more or less prone to shave well or be more or less irritating?
So, as the title asks. What makes an "aggressive" razor or blade aggressive? Obviously (to me), the word "aggressive" implies one of 2 conditions exist. 1) The razor and/or blade have more FEEL and that feel is probably not comfortable. 2) The Razor/blade some how manages to deliver a closer shave than a non-aggressive tool might; and this might occur with or without more irritation and/or injury. In MY case, I usually reserve the term aggressive for tools that yield more pain or injury regardless of the feel or result. If anyone wants to add to, embellish or flat out change my definition(s) feel free to do so.
We have all been there. Despite maintaining our usual (stellar) technique and awesome lather, we find a razor or blade (or razor and blade combo) that is just too aggressive for our taste. More often than not, we (The shaving community) will say the more "blade gap" or "blade exposure" a razor has the more aggressive it will shave. Some very fine artisan razors even give you the choice of different base plates meant to help you fine tune the level of aggressiveness by increasing/decreasing blade gap and/or exposure. And the legendary Gillette Fat Boy has 9 different settings, each resulting in more or less blade gap. If you have shaved with an adjustable razor you probably would say you DID feel a difference and maybe even got better/worse results or felt more/less pain depending on the setting. SO, it would seem blade gap and/or exposure is a major factor in a razor's aggressiveness.
Then we have those blades that have a reputation for being more aggressive than others. Feather comes to mind for me. I don't know how they do it but Feather yellow box blades rarely feel good for me, no matter what razor I put them in. I have had tried and true razors turn violent simply by loading a fresh Feather blade into it. To be fair (and completely honest) I did use a shark blade ONCE and was SO injured I almost gave up shaving all together. In the case of the Feather blades, the shaving community at large tells us they are the sharpest blades available (or something like that) and that their exceeding sharpness is why some shavers feel they are too aggressive. In the case of the Turkish Shark blades....they are just instruments of death and should be avoided at all costs.
Ok, so (in theory) we can assume any razor with more blade exposure/blade gap loaded with a super sharp blade will be more aggressive. But what about my straight razor or shavette style razor loaded with a fresh feather blade? Both being open blade tools have infinite blade exposure and no safety bar to measure blade gap against. And in the case of the Feather DX loaded with a Feather blade, blade sharpness is probably off the charts too. Yet, some of the best and most comfortable shaves I ever have are when using such tools. In fact, aside from an occasional slice caused by my own inattentiveness I rarely end up irritated or with a poor quality shave. *I have also found that in some cases the Feather DX type blades with micro-guards on the blade can be VERY comfortable.
Punchline:
Obviously, any time you drag a sharp blade across your skin irritation and injury are a possibility. There are no doubt a vast number of factors to consider or account for (like blade rigidity, grind etc.) but I have come to think the biggest factor in determining what razor or blade will or won't be "aggressive" is technique. I can't help but things like, pressure, angle of attack and angle of stroke play a bigger role than whether a DE razor has a particular blade gap or whether a Japanese Samaria hand honed the blade. MAYBE, different razor designs, blade gaps, types/grinds of blade, etc. are all ways to make technique more/less important...I really don't know.
I do know that, based on my own experience, a straight razor (or decent quality shavette) deliver the best comfort and closeness for me. If pressed to say why, I think it comes down to the blade being very ridged and my ability to immediately feel and correct for the optimal blade angle, pressure and stroke,
So what do YOU think? Are there razor set ups that you have found are more or less prone to shave well or be more or less irritating?
