I love my mach 3, had it for about 4 years now. I got it when I was 17, and then a few months later after my 18th birthday they sent me one in the mail. My dad took that one, since I already had one. Apparantly, Gillette does this with as many 18 year old males as they can. Brilliant marketing strategy. The razor is cheap, and men would only buy one of them, so send them that for free, get them hooked, then they buy up the overpriced blades. They must have a coke dealer in charge of their marketing department.
Sign me up for the not shaving is possible side of the argument. Dad just gave me an electric razor for christmas. It’s nice, and it gives me a backup plan. When I do have to shave, I use my Gillette II. It gets the job done and doesn’t cut me to much.
bouv: I see. That IS a brilliant marketing strategy, but oddly enough both my mach 3 turbos got sent to me around christmas time, and my birthday is in may. I assumed it was what they did for 18 year olds around xmas.
i used to use the one-blade cheapy razors till they sent me a free mach3 around my 18th birthday. i dunno if 3 blades is better then 2, but they are certainly ALOT better then 1 cheapy blade (allthough it may well be the design as other people have said).
as for useing soap, i don’t mind useing it when i run out of shaving cream which is alot becase i have a very bad habit of forgetting to buy more. it works better then you might think.
and the blades are not that expensive, ~$20 for a 12-pack which lasts me 6 months or so is worth it to not slice your face off 
I was a Mach 3 user and have switched to Quattro. I found the Mach 3 gave a good shave, but each blade set only worked about 3 times before dulling, and when dull that razor was literally a real pain in the neck. The Quattro shaves as well but seems to keep its edge better. I also found the gaps between the blades to be less prone to clogging with the Quattro.
I like the Quattro. I always hated the Mach 3. Gave me razor burn all over. I’ve actually been using the Quattro (the same blade) for a couple months, and it keeps razor burn to a minimum. I use soap to shave when I have to, but prefer shaving cream. I also shave in the shower. I think it’s a lot cleaner that way. I just use my fingers to make sure I’m clean shavin’.
smsaks2000 has it right. Shaving soap, a mug and a bristle brush are the key combination you need.