This topic has been touched upon in other threads with a few posts here and there, but I'd like amalgamate experienced people's suggestions here. As a newbie, shaving the chin with a straight razor is terrible for me - when I'm done the chin, it looks like I hardly affected it, and it can take 5-10 minutes alone. My SR has been professionally honed a month ago, and I strobe it well before every use, so my technique must be lacking. I drag the razor along, and it feels "sticky" at every point. My lather is now wetter than normal (compared to a DE lather). If you guys have any tips and techniques you'd like to share, please do so. Particularly if you do ATG, or XTG. Also feel free to point to videos or other articles. Cheers, Will
Simply Put..A Straight Razor Shave Like any Skill like Playing a Musical Instrument or Marital Arts Takes Time..Mastering the Lines and Subtle Angles of Change in the Contours of the Face Can Take a Moment..Look for the Correct Method...If You are Sincere to the Correct Method then SR Shaving Skills will Fall into You're Hands...Abandon the Correct Method & the Art of SR Shaving will Abandon You.. Catch the Monkey Slowly...Trying to Grasp Water too Quickly in the Hand You will End Up with Nothing..Take it Slowly..The Learning is in the Practice..Once You Know the Correct Method & they are Subtle the BBS Result on the Chin Area will Take Care of itself.. As the Chinese Martial Arts Masters Say..There are NO Secrets..The Learning is in the Practice..All will be Revealed in Time.. Billy..
Short strokes. Use the heel of the razor more. Don’t try to get the whole area in one fell swoop. Divide it into smaller sections that can be stretched flat. Work on your lather. It will come to you after awhile Only advice I have
For the North to south passes: Directly under my nose I very light use the razor at almost 180% angle and just flick the offending whiskers away. I also move nose out of the way with my free hand. As I move down I can flatten the angle. For the chin try opening your mouth to get a flat plane for the whiskers that are normal on the edge of your chin. For South to north The same technique works for both chin and under your nose. Use two hands to hold the razor, at the tang and at the tip. Now move your head but do not move your hands. Sof far my nose is still attached to my face.
I agree with lots of stuff above! I'm new to straights too, so don't have loads of sage advice, but I had the same problem around my chin until a couple of weeks ago and I appear to have sorted it. First I could only go with the grain, and struggled to get it around my chin smoothly. Left a good bit of hair. Then I added an across the grain pass to the chin, which I hadn't done before, but better control of the razor by then meant it was reasonably smooth and more hair was removed. Still left some in places. Then I added an against the grain touch up under my chin, which seems to be removing the rest. But I couldn't have made either of the second two passes when I started out - I'd have cut my chin to bits! It really does feel like if you just take it slow, and work on technique, there is a point where some of it clicks. I still have an area on my neck i struggle with as hair growth is weird, but I'm only 30 shaves in or so!
Another tip is to use a shavette without a blade and try different grips. It was big help to me, it also allowed me to practice with my off hand.
The scooping is agood description under the nose. I divide my chin (figuratively, most of the time,lol) into three downward sectioned pieces. My chin is wide enough, i can stroke down from bottom lip over the point, then down my neck. The other strokes go from the corner of my mouth to go lightly over the points of chin. Sometimes i sorta pivot the heel to get those tough hairs just below my chin (gotta be light handed here). Coming s to n is easier. Especially if you get closer to the heel.
Buy a Mustache Razor, like the one I just used. This one was ordered through an Ebay seller from the Czech Republic.
All the advice given here is excellent! Other key thing is time. My chin and around my mouth was the most challenging part of SR shaves when I started. It took me close to 100 shaves before I felt proficient on my chin and upper lip. Keep at it!
Here's another option, a kamisori. Great for trimming and close areas. Affectionately known by their fans as 'terror sticks', you might want to mute the toe AND the heel.... but you can snipe single hairs with it if you're inclined. Cheers, Steve
Hi, I took a video of myself shaving. 2 passes with a SR and a 3rd one with a DE. If anyone can give me tips, please do. This video is about 16 min long, so there is no obligation to see everything. Ideally, I would love to do a 3 pass with a SR in about 5-7 min, if that's reasonably possible. Watch the video in full screen. (For some reason, this video plays better in firefox) https://photos.app.goo.gl/ypNE0ENAG0iPxk3g1 Thanks, Will
Well, I see you shave differently than I. I don't know why you are using such short strokes, on all areas. Usually, if the blade has the proper edge, a single downward, long stroke, on most areas should leave you feeling pretty smooth. Then one more pass, XTG, or ATG, should do. I use short strokes only for the chin, and under the nose. Then, after two passes, I'm usually BBS, except the chin, and a quick touchup there, with short strokes does the job. With me, multiple short strokes on the cheeks leaves me feeling a little raw. Probably because all the soap is gone, with the first stroke. Also, I don't stretch my skin, with my other hand. Puffing out my cheeks tightens the skin on my face. Puffing out the cheeks and raising my head tightens the skin on my neck. Granted, I have pretty tight skin to begin with, so it might not work for all.
Practice, it took me about 100 shaves to be proficient and consistent. In the beginning there were some angles I struggled with until I started using both hands. Some people can shave fine with one hand but I am not one of them. To train my off hand and to find my ideal way to hold the razor I practiced with a shavette without the blade. I am 4 pass shaver, it just works better for me to reduce my beards as much as possible before the 4th pass. How many straight razor shaves have you done?
I've probably done it maybe 15-20 times. I'll try doing 1 long stroke as opposed to many short strokes, but I imagine it won't cut as many hairs off. -I"ll see how that goes. Keep the tips and comments coming!
