If your ATG encounters major tugging (like sandpaper as you say) then you may need more reduction in the previous passes. This same experience caused me to go to sharper blades and change blades more often (3 and out most of the time). Above the neck I follow the growth direction and go WTG, AGT, then XTG. On the neck I have trouble doing this since my neck whiskers are like piano wires. There I go North-South, South-North, then Right-Left all the way across. This works very well for me, and gives me a BBS above the neck and a high grade DFS (and comfortable) neck. This pursuit for excellence steers many toward more aggressive razors and sharper/smoother blades.
Sounds like you should have some decent supplies to get started with. Razor; Super Adjustable Blades; Gillette 7oclock, Astra, and persona Creams/Soaps; Cremo Cream, Van Der Hagen, Arko Brush; Haven't seen you mention any You may want to pick one set-up, and work on technique. Don't fiddle with the setting on the razor, stick with one brand of blade, and one soap/cream. NO PRESSURE on the razor. Let the weight of the razor do the work. Lots of good, helpful advice around the forum. Check out the Shave School Master Sticky.
Is it a typo, or do you go ATG, THEN, XTG?? It seems counter-intuitive to me to go against before going across... I have always shaved WTG, XTG then AGT.... Have I been doing it wrong??
Thanks for the advise Mrs. JoAnna. The brush I have is a VDH boar bristle... I am saving up to get a badger brush at the moment. I have my Black Beauty set on 4, and have not messed with it.... from what I have read on this forum, it is a good setting for a beginner... Does this seem accurate to you? As for the shave technique, I use very hot water, warm my brush, and my razor head, and Put a dab of Cremo in my mug and use the arko stick on my face... bowl lather the cremo, then face lather the Arko. This seems to work better for me than just using either by themselves
The black beauty is one of my favorites. Since you've ask the question. I like the Merkur Progress a tad more.
I go with the grain, against the grain then across the grain left to right then across the grain right to left. Here's why, for me wtg and atg cuts are smooth and easy, This takes off 90% of all my face and neck. The 10% thats left is made up of 2 wierd patches that grow on either side of a nasty scar that runs east to west across my wind pipe. The left to right and right to left across the grain passes gets the hair hiding in and around my scar. with and against misses thease patches. If I try an across the grain before my against the grain pass the thick scar patches are too dense and pulls and skips. Thats how my terrain is and why I make my passes in that order. Your face, neck etc. may dictate a complete different order.
Thank you for clarifying. There is no way I can go against the grain before going across the grain. My face would be all messed up! But I do understand your reasoning now! I have been looking at the Merkur Progress and the EJDE89.... I cant decide which one I want to go with
Yea, as much as everything is basically the same for everybody, there are allways going to be personel quarks that eventually dictate our technique.
If you want an adjustable? Progress. I also have (1st razor) the EJDE89. They're completely two different razors.
We must have similar faces. For me it depends on the blade. If it is a good, sharp-smooth blade, I indeed do better going as you described, and as I typo-ed above. With less than great blades, I do better going the traditional way (WTG, XTG, then ATG). My 3rd pass need to catch the weird patches as well, which I can do better going XTG in several spots, provided I got excellent reduction on the 1st 2 passes.
