The Mongoose: ouch, ouch, ouch!

Well fellas, I'm very glad to report that this morning's shave with the Mongoose (still on the Feather Pro) was much, MUCH better than before. No irritation, only minor alum sting, one tiny weeper and then a small nick right below my nose which was entirely my fault.

What made the difference? This time I concentrated fully on a very, very light touch, especially in the areas that were problematic before: jawline, chin, neck, various angles and nooks. In these areas I let myself slow down, get a good angle and skin stretch, and approach each section carefully. Additionally, I gave myself permission to not chase BBS: I kept it to just one WTG pass on my neck, and two passes (WTG, XTG) on my face: none of the hybrid XTG-ATG cleverness I currently get away with with other razors.

A completely perfect shave? Well, no, but nice and close, and very smooth. And comfortable, all told. I predict it will keep getting better.

I can see why we reach for trickier tools like the Mongoose (or a straight razor for that matter): even though I could have achieved the same results with a familiar DE whipping around my face, it's truly gratifying to develop a new skill, to learn an instrument. I suspect my soon-to-arrive OneBlade will be a satisfying razor, but I doubt it will offer the gratification of a great shave with the Mongoose. Reason, I think, to hold on to both.

Thanks again for all the advice!

I'm glad it's working for you (for now, at least). I'm still dialing in on my Mongoose with Feather Pro Supers. With the Feather Pros, I had no problem, but I had patches left, no matter how hard I tried (kind of like when mowing lawns was my career many years ago). In the early days with my Ikon Shavecraft Tech, I had no patch problem but I was afraid, both of the shave and that I would never master the razor. I did, and that fact has given me confidence that the Mongoose can also be tamed. Good luck!

One somewhat amusing consequence of my satisfaction with today's shave: this afternoon I ordered a Feather Artist Club SS razor to experiment with, since, well, I already have these Pro and Pro Super blades. Seems like a fun challenge (and the main reason I gave up on straight razors was I didn't want to fiddle so much with stropping and honing).

I suffer from sensitive skin and thick growth, I was advised by fellow shavers to hold off from getting the Mongoose. Perhaps I'll look into it when my technique improves as well.

I suffer from sensitive skin and thick growth, I was advised by fellow shavers to hold off from getting the Mongoose. Perhaps I'll look into it when my technique improves as well.

I too have sensitive skin & coarse stubble. The SE razors including Mongoose are some of the best for me.

I suffer from sensitive skin and thick growth, I was advised by fellow shavers to hold off from getting the Mongoose. Perhaps I'll look into it when my technique improves as well.

at the very least, give an injector and/or an older SE razor a try to see how it goes for you.

I suffer from sensitive skin and thick growth, I was advised by fellow shavers to hold off from getting the Mongoose. Perhaps I'll look into it when my technique improves as well.

at the very least, give an injector and/or an older SE razor a try to see how it goes for you.

Thanks Andrewjs18, matter of fact I am considering my first vintage. I do hope my first one would be a NOS though, I feel I would enjoy it more.

Aurelian28 if you're interested in a brand new injector, Supply Provisions is shipping their Single Edge in a few months: http://www.getsupply.com. It looks promising.

Aurelian28 if you're interested in a brand new injector, Supply Provisions is shipping their Single Edge in a few months: http://www.getsupply.com. It looks promising.

Looks good, and price is pretty reasonable. Thanks man.

Another question as I continue to evaluate my Mongoose. Has anyone else noticed a bit of play between the two plates such that the base can shift forward or back relative to the cap? I find this a bit disconcerting, as it changes the blade exposure (with these things, even a small change can make a difference, especially with such sharp blades). Is this normal on this razor? If so, what do you Mongoose users do to seat the baseplate as intended?

Another question as I continue to evaluate my Mongoose. Has anyone else noticed a bit of play between the two plates such that the base can shift forward or back relative to the cap? I find this a bit disconcerting, as it changes the blade exposure (with these things, even a small change can make a difference, especially with such sharp blades). Is this normal on this razor? If so, what do you Mongoose users do to seat the baseplate as intended?

I checked mine and there is no play at all