I hate shaving, but have decided after years of experimentation with beards and designer stubble that I look best clean shaven. That unfortunately means shaving every day.

Toying with the idea of an electric razor, but having never used one I’m reluctant to spend up big and then risk not getting on with it. Can you try before you buy?

One other question – do the electric razors create much mess? I will be shaving at the office each morning after going to the gym and biking in – I can’t wet shave there and don’t want to make a mess.

Thanks.

I’ve never seen a try before you buy offer, perhaps you could borrow a mate’s ?
But Boots & other places seem to have semi-permanent 50% sales on Phillips & other brands. Keep an eye out for offers. Rotary shavers seem to work better than reciprocating. I’ve used a base-model 3 headed Phillips for years , which works fine. It’s not such a smooth finish as a wet blade shave but the stubble isn’t as abrasive the next morning either, which is better for pillow cases and partners. My current one cost about £45, I think, 3-4 years ago. It’s probably not worth buying the top models especially if you can’t find a sale.

As for mess, no. Empty the head after shaving, there’ll be a little pile of dust which can be flushed down a sink.

Have a look here: Razor!

Years ago I had a reciprocating battery razor which was awful, later had a rotary rechargeable phillishave which is what I still use on the occasions I clean shave 12 years later.
Not as close as a wet shave but clean and convenient.
The problem with trying them out is that if you are a wet shaver it takes your skin about three weeks to fully recover so you really need to give it a month to judge properly.

Its going to sound **** but…

I hated shaving with multi bladed thing.

Thick beard hair just made it feel aweful.

A double edge razor doesnt snag and i found much preferable.

When I do shave that is.

I think it’s very much face/stubble dependant.

I bought one years ago – it was an expensive Philips wonder shaver reduced from £150 to £75, I think.
I was working in Germany at the time and they were very strict on being clean shaven. It was an early start each day and I assumed electric would be quicker and less irritating than wet shaving.

For me, it was rubbish. It irritated the buggery out of the skin on my neck & missed certain patches of hair completely that meant having to go round & round & up & down & left & right over the same area which caused more irritation. And it took longer to get a clean-ish shave all over, compared to wet shaving.
I figured it would take several weeks to adjust so persevered but it didn’t really get much better.

This razor had a ‘try it and send back if you don’t like it’ guarantee but I decided to keep trying it for too long & went past the deadline for returning it.

FWIW – my Dad has always used Braun electric razors and gets a really smooth shave with them. On the odd occasion I have borrowed them, I found them to perform better than the Philips one that I bought (but obviously I didn’t know that until I had tried the Philips).

don’t buy a cheap one expecting it to be good.
like you a dislike shaving and begrudge spending the time on it. unfortunately a beard adds years i can ill afford. figured i’d saved a good few quid over the years by not shaving, and the last electric i’d had my dad bought me for about 20 quid when i was 16, so i could afford to splash out. glad i did. braun series 7. it even puts up with me leaving it for a few days between shaves.

I’ve always used the rechargeable Braun reciprocating – rather than rotary – sort and they will usually last ten years or more before they wear out. I buy a new foil and cutter every six to nine months. I have a light beard and shaving takes about five minutes. Wet shaving is a faff, it’s messy and leaves the cleanly-cut hairs very sharp. My routine is to wash well to get the skin really clean, wait five minutes to get really dry then shave.

I use them as they’re easy on my skin – I prefer a wet shave but I always get inflamed skin doing this over time. As others have said, the compatibility with your face / neck is something that manifests with continued use, so it’s not like you can try it once and know if it’s right. Just have to get one and see.