Chris_W

What do all the guys on this forum use for a shaver when touring?

My regular electric shaver is way too heavy and bulky to take touring. I had to get something smaller for a recent trip, 5 weeks tandem touring in New Zealand, but the small one that I got was not strong enough. My facial hair is really thick and grows really fast, and the minimalist travel razor I took couldn't handle it very well - even if I shaved every second day then it was real slow going and there was still many of the longer hairs left afterwards.

After several inadequate shaves, I had to break down and buy a disposable razor and have a wet shave. That worked OK a few times until I went 5 days or so between shaves, then the disposable razor just got immediately clogged with hair and wouldn't work unless I cleaned it out after each stroke - that shave took forever to do. Electric razors work much better for me.

Just not shaving and growing a beard is not an option for me if I want my wife to stick around and to keep powering the rear half of the tandem. So let's not discuss that option.

What do other people use? I'd love to find a razor that is small and compact that has lots of power, but I don't know if such a thing exists.

Machka 

Scroll down ever-so-slightly to read the very recent Shaving on Tour thread:
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...on-a-Long-Tour

juggleaddict

I just use heavy grit sandpaper myself. . . only takes a small piece


...




(please god don't actually try this)

Chris_W

Thanks Machka, I missed that. However, it doesn't offer any solutions to me in terms of a high-power but compact electric razor. The $15 models mentioned in that thread are probably like the one that I tried and performed pretty poorly on my super-thick hair.

fietsbob

I forget what the Phillips battery powered shaver, cost, was, i bought it in NL
after someone at the Vondelpark Hostel rifled through my bag and took
the Norelco [same company, export to America name] one.

paxtonm

I've got a heavy beard as well. I don't care for electric shavers, for the noise, dependence on power outlets, and their inability to exfoliate as well as cut hair. After much trial and error, I now wet shave with an old style safety razor. It takes the single double-sided blades. As I shave, I can turn from one side to the other, so it gets rinsed half as often. The shave is incredibly smooth-- almost like a well honed straight razor wielded by a barber. Seriously, if you can get some warm water and a good lather on your face, it's a great shave, and a real pleasure. The shave is close enough that I can skip a day or two without looking too disreputable.

Good luck with the hunt.

Red Ketchup

To learn more about wet shaving and double edge razor take a look at badger & blade.
Marc

009jim

My Dad used to give me a haircut with a hand operated clipper. If you could get one of those? It was quite lightweight and gave a close cut.

fuzz2050

I have a pair that I use for beard trims, and they are pretty heavy. Mine are about a pound of chromed steel, beautiful, but heavy, and hard to get close with. You would end up with permanent 'day's growth.'

If you have really thick hair, a double edged safety razor with an open comb is a godsend. My Merkur HD 34c will go through anything. IF I'm traveling and want to shave, the threading on the handle is the same as my Gillette travel razor, so I'll leave the thick handle at home, take the tiny travel one, and still get a great shave.

becnal

Dovo Shavette. Problem solved.

https://www.classicshaving.com/catalo...940/286096.htm

xyzzy834

Papa Tom

I guess I'm missing something here. Are you married to the idea of an electric shaver? If so, Norelco makes a really small one for about $10-15 that operates on either AA or AAA batteries (I don't remember). They don't last long and the replacement blades are twice as much as the whole shaver costs.

Otherwise, I remember seeing a shaving tool for bald men that fit on the finger like a ring. It was really tiny and I thought about carrying one with me for my face when I was traveling for business. That idea never materialized, though, so I don't know how well this shaver would work for facial hair. Below/attached is a pic:



I'm not really sure why shaving tools would be such a big problem for a cyclist. The shaving CREAM is probably the heaviest component, and you can eliminate that by using ordinary facial soap or, better yet, shaving soap, which will foam up to a really nice lather. Then just grab the razor from your bathroom and throw it in a bag so you have something you know will work.

TheSergeant

I take a AA powered "mustache trimmer". I just keep a very short beard (#2 attachment) and clean up my neckline every few days. Doesn't weigh much and keeps me from looking like a bum 5 days into a trip.

https://www.amazon.com/Wahl-MUSTACHE-..._sim_sbs_hpc_9

Tourist in MSN

I get a skin rash from the various shaving creams I tried when I was a teenager, since then have always used the same bar soap I use in the shower.

I also clog up disposable razors if I do not shave for 5 or more days, usually use an older double edge razor for that reason. It is easy to loosen the knob, rinse it out and tighten knob, takes maybe 2 seconds. For a long tour, I carry the disposable for lightness and fear of losing the vintage double edge razor that would be costly to replace.

Also carry a flat rubber sink stopper, some sinks at campgrounds do not have sink stoppers.

I still have a few Bic single blade disposables I bought a few decades ago, 4.8 grams, less than a tenth of the weight of the Gillette double edge unit at 72 grams.

Chris_W

Thanks for the input everyone; I think I'm going to have to try out a double-edged safety razor.

I've pretty much only used electric shavers in the past, only occasionally using a disposable razor, which I was never that keen on. I didn't really know about all the different forms of manual razors, and it looks like the double-edge safety razor might be a bit more serious and more up to the task than the crappy disposables that I've tried.

Grishnak

Try Cella soap,just a small stick.And add an Alum block,prevents razor burn,underarm its stops you smelling,kills zits,cut yourself it stops bleeding.Aluminium double edge razors are very light and cheap.Use badger and blade to choose a blade that suits you.

Tourist in MSN

I bought some vintage Gillette double edge razors at a garage sale a couple decades ago. You can also find them on Ebay but you really do not know what you are getting until you receive them, I bought a couple on Ebay that looked good in photos but were worthless. There are new ones available too, but they are not cheap. Good luck finding one you like. I have a strong preference for the vintage Gillette ones with an adjustment knob from 1 to 9.

Try rubbing a few drops of shampoo on a wet beard before you buy any shaving cream, if that works for you then shaving cream is one thing you do not need to buy to put in your pannier. As I noted above, I just use bar soap instead of shaving cream.

gif4445

My shaving gear consists of a double edged disposable and gillete gel after-shave lotion. I use the gel pre-shave and it softens the whiskers up, while letting the razor glide. IDK what conditions your are shaving in. I assume camping, which won't be as convenient as my credit card camp. But the key is to tap the shaved whiskers out of the blade area every few strokes. In a sink situation, just tap it on the side of the sink. In the wild a rock will do. Whiskers come right out. After the shave I use a little more lotion to make my dry-disposed face good again. But I hate electrics......

zonatandem

A straight razor and a leather strop to sharpen it.
Don't need electricity. Light. My dad used one for many decades.

Booger1

They make wind up electric shavers,if you must shave.

squegeeboo

Have you considered the lightest weight solution of all:
Have beard, will travel.

Chris_W

squeegeeboo - Read the comment in my original post:

"Just not shaving and growing a beard is not an option for me if I want my wife to stick around and to keep powering the rear half of the tandem. So let's not discuss that option."

Cue

You should wax before you tour. The hair stays off much longer.

ksisler

Time to pony up the cash and have it lasered off for a permanent solution! Your stoker will likely appreciate your committment to the relationship.

Chris_W

I've researched the laser solution, but it sounds like it's not ideal. From what I read, it take a lot of sessions, therefore lots of money, particularly for someone with a thick beard and for who has facial hair that is not black (I'm a red-head), and is then not entirely successful - apparently, there's always going to be patches that persist, and so from then on the beard grows in a patchy manner, making almost daily shaving even more necessary than it was before because a patchy half-grown beard looks way worse than a consistent half-grown beard.

I therefore gave up on that idea as not being the perfect solution that I hoped it might be.