I hate marketing propaganda, and thrive on personal recommendations.

I'm thinking about buying an electric shaver. I want a good shaver, and a good value possible. In the past, I've bought cheap ones which ended up sucking horribly. I don't mind paying a lot more if I know that its going to be a good value over a long time period.


Do you own an electric shaver? Which one? Do you like it? How long have you had it? Have you tried others?

Thanks for your help with my purchasing decision!

really depends on what youre shaving and how sensitive your skin is. youre white so you dont have to worry about pfb (which is a *****) you can use norelco shavers with three rotataing pivoting heads or the screen type with a spinning blade wheel. obviously the amount you spend will usually determine the quality and how much you like it. do a little research on consumerreports.com im sure youll find one you like. i own a (Andis) trimmer which is more like a pair of clippers than a shaver which cuts really close for me but you might like a shaver better if your facial hair isnt too thick.

nope, i sure dont !

I've owned a couple of the Norelcos, and while they generally did a decent enough job, they had a tendency to pinch on occasion, which was no fun at all.

Also, you have to empty them out and clean the blades and such.

I wouldn't get another one.

Nothing shaves like a blade.

I Veet!!!

Seems to work on the mustache also!!!

When it comes to stuff like this, I got to have my faith in the blade ...

I have a Norelco that I use when my head needs to be shaved but I'm not gonna be going out anywhere.

It does a decent job. I only run into problems with it when I have gotten lazy and went too long between shaves. Then it kinda sucks.

I use a blade when I am going out because the shave is MUCH closer.

Doing the cleaning after every shave with an electric is also a pain. Especially when you are in a hurry.

I did this a few months ago, and I wasn't satisfied. I want more information, and hopefully personal recommendations.

Lex wrote:


You wouldn't get another electric shaver? Or, if you were to get an electric shaver, you wouldn't get norelco? (I'm guess the first, but I want to be sure).

You don't happen to remember which norelcos you owned, and which one was your favorite?



Lilliot and KK,

If you've tried electric and found them wanting, can you tell me which brand of electric you tried? I don't remember which one's I tried...they were awful, but they were also cheap. I'm guessing some of the more expensive ones are crap, too, and would like to be steered clear.

You mean, you use an electric shaver (intended for faces) on your skull? Sweet! I currently use a mach3 on my skull, and I just assumed I'd have to keep doing that since I figured an electric shaver wouldn't be able to handle it. I'd love to be able to shave my head with it, too.



Damn, every time, really? Or is that only because you are doing your whole head?

I wouldn't get another electric. More trouble than they were worth.

This was years ago, so I don't remember the specific models.

I have a couple of em that I dont use

I tried to go cheap and that was what I got.

if you get an electric razor, go ahead and spend the money to get a really good one

one thing, don't get the foil type head. get the rotary heads. I used the foil type's in the military and they tend to get little holes and nicks in the foil and then grab and tear the skin






the rotary heads shave closer (I think)

I have had several. I had an old Norelco that worked pretty well but eventually wore out.

I got a Remington that never shaved very close and I threw it away.

I got a Braun which had great advertising but didn't shave any better than the Remington.

I got a "top of the line" Norelco with a charge indicator to tell you how much juice is left that works pretty well, is easy to clean, and has a built in trimmer. It does not shave as well as a blade but none of the electric ones can really do that anyway.

I have a very coarse beard and I have heard that electrics work better on finer hair. It also takes awhile for your skin to adapt to being rubbed in that manner every day so you well get better results after a week or two. Using "William's Electric Shave" or a similar product will give you a better shave.

I grew a beard. I am much happier now.

Thank you Lex, Quiet, and Metal.

I have no plans to abandon the mach3, I'd probably use both (blade and electric).

I just saw a used Norelco arcitec 1050 for a good price, and almost bought it, but the reviews on amazon say that this model has more style than substance. Has anyone used the arcitec line?

My gut says I should buy an older model - one that has been proven to work well, and one which doesn't cost more simply for 'being the latest'.

I had a great experience with my Norelco. It simply worked fabulously well for many many many years. Eventually it also gave up the ghost and I still have it. I'm certain that it can be easily repaired and one of these days I will resurrect it. The biggest problem was that if I let my beard grow for a couple of days it was too long for the triple head design to manage. But this was not too big a deal because one could use the trimmer to bring the length back down to where the shaving heads worked well. I cleaned it after every few uses and it was just fantastic.

When the Norelco died, I decided to try a cheap Norelco knock-off - a Remington with similar design to the Norelco. I bought the least expensive one I could find on sale. It works but not as well as the Norelco did. The motor is slower and it seems generally weaker to me but it works and I have been using it. Occasionally I also like to use a blade. I use a single blade molded safety razor. I feel like the single blade versions work better. I like to shave dry with no soap and water which is great when the blades are sharp. I don't have a very heavy beard though.

My Dad uses the Remington microscreen and likes it very much but I preferred the rotary Norelco. Consumer reports rates them and I know they rated the microscreen highly. CR did not find much difference in performance between the expensive and the inexpensive models in general which is one reason I opted for the leas expensive rotary I could find.

Good Luck! See if you have a friend who likes their model and try it first before you buy!

Yep. I use it on my head every couple of days. If ya go much longer than that, though, you are better to use a blade.



They recommend that you clean it every time. I actually only tear mine apart and give it a thorough cleaning once a week or so.

But, that depends on how long I go between shaves.

That's what I do.

Yes. It collects dust everyday.

No one owns an electric shaver. Shavers cut facial hairs. Electric so called razors/shavers do not cut hairs. They pull, and break, them. Shave one part of your face with a manual razor, and part with an electric razor. Examine hairs cut by each razor under a high powered microscope. You will see the differences between cut, and broken, hairs. I prefer the feel of a cut rather than the feel of a pull. To each his own, though.