OT Electric Shavers - mens views needed

[sweetheart]

Hi,

I need to find out what sort of electric shaver might be good for my father. he is 88 years old and getting to cut himself a bit with a razor. he uses a Gillette Turbo at the moment. As he keeps cutting himself I wondered if an electric might be better? he used to use an electric shaver when I was a child - a Rolls make , that goes back a few years to the 1950's/60's I reckon. he liked it but didn't find a suitable replacement after and went on to wet shave.

I was looking at the TV ads for the Braun ( the one that says you can shave off a weekend beard) but there are several of them and I don't know which to get. Not knowing much about mens shaving I am a bit stuck Has anyone got one of those shavers who might be able to tell me which is best?

Thanks for any advice.

[Adrian C]

Bosch PMF-180 Multifunctional All Rounder with the delta sanding head....

[JW]

If he has always been a wet shave man, he will hate anything electric. I have tried the wet Phillishave, and it still comes nowhere near to a wet shave. I always feel dirty still, without a 'proper' shave.

By Gillette Turbo, do you mean the Mach 3 Turbo? If so, and you want to upgrade him, try the Fusion Power. I know it looks ridiculous with its 5 blades, but it really is absolutely the best wet shave I have ever used. And it is very difficult to cut yourself using it (apart from pimples/spots etc).

The blades are expensive, but they last a couple of weeks each. And I have found that you can use the cheaper 'non-power' blades on the power razor, if you have one or two non-powered shaves with them first.

[Man at B&Q]

Best thing I ever did was switch to electric.

No problems in switching my elderly father (80+) either.

MBQ

[JW]

It is my view. I am a man. OP said "men's views needed".

[JTM]

[snip] I had a Phillips rechargable which I liked until it stopped holding the charge. I still use it plugged in occasionally and it's fine that way.

I bought a 'titanium' (can't remember who makes 'em) But it tended to leave my face raw.

Now use a Braun and I can rinse it clean under the tap. On balance though, I think I prefer the ancient Philishave, and I often use a Gillette 'fusion' wet shaver which seems good and safe

My Braun needs new head/ cutters every 18 months (about

40-50 quid a time)

John

[Tim Lamb]

AOL.

I think trying to make your face as smooth a a babies bum is overrated.

No direct experience but I think you should avoid the foil/reciprocating cutter types if he is wanting to cut a 2 or 3 day growth.

I use a Phillips which also has a flip out cutter for sideboards etc.

regards

[Another John]

As a wet-shaver I agree, but SwH did actually ask for > Why? Best thing I ever did was switch to electric.

So -- MBQ: what type(s) do you and your Dad use?

Personally, I bought a little one from Aldi a couple of years ago to "tidy myself up" at the office when I had later-day meetings. I was amazed at how effective this shaver is, but of course I only ever use it very infrequently: it would fall apart if used daily I'm sure.

However its enormous virtue is that it's RECHARGEABLE; I suppose they all are, these days, but I'd say that this is a "Must-have", SwH.

Finally: if Bosch made shavers, I'd buy one of those, based upon my policy with hedgetrimmers and chainsaws.

J.

[JW]

Fair point. However, I saw the mention of the existing razor, and wondered if the solution might not necessarily be electric.

[John MacLeod]

Oh dear, sexist again -- as if women didn't use electric razors :-)

Seriously, though, no electric razor designed for use on the face is going to be much use with growth longer than a couple of millimetres.

That said, you want a rechargeable one -- much simpler in use.

And you'd be better IMHO with one that's not going to need frequent replacement of easily-damaged foils.

My personal opinion is that you could do a lot worse than looking at one of the Philips rotary-headed models. Without spending a lot of money something like this

might meet the bill nicely.

John

[Huge]

Best thing I ever did was grow a beard.

My father had a beard, too.

[Jules Richardson]

Electric shavers always seem to make my skin feel sore and irritated - I never get that with a wet shave. Something to do with the heat produced by rotating blades, I assume.

OTOH, I get annoyed at wet-shave blades where the silly little foam strip wears out and renders the head useless long before the actual cutting blade has gone dull; I keep toying with the idea of getting a cut-throat razor (which doesn't exactly help the OP much :-)

cheers

Jules

[Tim Streater]

I always cut my face shaving with a blade, so I went electric. Then I got bored with that and grew a beard in 1978. Sorted.

[SS]

Oh dear, sexist again -- as if women didn't use electric razors :-)

Seriously, though, no electric razor designed for use on the face is going to be much use with growth longer than a couple of millimetres.

That said, you want a rechargeable one -- much simpler in use.

And you'd be better IMHO with one that's not going to need frequent replacement of easily-damaged foils.

My personal opinion is that you could do a lot worse than looking at one of the Philips rotary-headed models. Without spending a lot of money something like this

might meet the bill nicely.

John

I also go with the philips rotary type, found them much better than the foil (braun type) I use a wet on hols but for ease and everyday use prefer electric.

[Bob Eager]

I have one of the Philips ones, and it works well. And I don't have to keep on replacing foils!

shavers.co.uk seems quite competitive too. Bookmarked for future reference...

[Dave]

If you want to get him an electric, it must have the ability to cut the longer whiskers that were missed the other electric shave left behind. Mine has a double foil and a whisker killer between then. I had a Phillips many years ago, but it didn't give a consistently good shave.

Dave

[Andy Champ]

Another vote here for the Philips rotary jobs. Apart from anything else they are a damn sight quieter than the oscillating ones.

I bought mine by looking for one with a decent charging circuit - some are charged by waiting for the motor to slow down (= needs charging) then plugging in until the batteries start to overheat.

Make sure it has a beard trimmer - but any decent one will - for sideboards.

Andy

[Dave Liquorice]

electric.

When I tried an electric it left a very short, but still noticeable to the fingers, stubble. I felt I hadn't had a shave. Wet with a twin blade razor doesn't do that.

My Dad started to use an electric once into his 80's but when he wanted a proper shave it would be a wet one. The move was like the OP's father starting to cut himself to much as the skin of the face loses it's firmness and tone.

[Man at B&Q]

He was a lifetime wet shaver, mostly safety razor and then disposables. He used an electric in hospital and asked for one when he moved into care. That was a fairly cheap Braun single foil. I then bought a similar one. He's no longer with us and I upgraded to a Braun Series 3 in the 1/2 price offer last Xmas when I needed new foil/ cutters, which cost nearly as much as the original cheap model.

No more razor burn or skin irritation. Best of all, no faffing about wet shaving every morning.

MBQ

[Man at B&Q]

More utter tosh about electric razors. It's funny, I don't have any problems at all when I occasionally grow a comedy beard to amuse the kids or a moustache for Movember.

MBQ