Tried it once because somebody was touting the idea. Didn't care for it at all. The cold makes my skin a little rubbery and didn't allow for smooth glide. Plus the pores close up making the shave more difficult. Not for me.
I can remember back in my early years of wet shaving, some 30+ years ago, trying to shave before a shower. I still used hot water at the sink, but the tug and pull from my beard not being properly softened was more than I could stand. Now I'll only shave after a good hot shower, then hot water at the sink. I couldn't imagine what a cold water shave would be like. Bless our boys in uniform who had to endure the cold water shave in the field!
Been a cold water disciple for around 4 months now. It took about a week for my face and beard to acclimate but now I get great glide no irritation,etc... It's definately one of those ymmv things, but I personally will never do hot again. When I say cold I mean what comes out of the tap and the distilled water I make my lather with is kept room temperature, I don't see the need to use ice cubes or store stuff in the fridge.
I do. I wash my face with cold tap water a sponge and shaving soap. Make my lather with cold water, wet face (with cold water) face lather and shave. I do use a straight razor. Wipe lather off the razor with the sponge. I keep the faucet dribbling cold water and add it to the brush if needed. Now the best part. Shave is complete, wash the lather off my face with the sponge and cold water (lots of cold water). It's very soothing. Alum block, rinse again, pat dry, and apply Osage Rub or Superior Bay Rum. I agree with WW above alot less irritation.
I do I took his advice because it seemed like warm water was aiding in the irritation problem I was having. My neck was constantly being tore up, I partially think it was because my pores were too open (possible?) The cold water switch really helped the way my face feels while shaving. Shaving certain parts of my face used to hurt, regardless of what soap/cream I used, regardless of blade, regardless of pressure, etc. Now I can shave those areas no problem. Pretty much this. I shower regularly, which is generally a hot shower. But right before I get out of the shower, I splash my face with cool water or will spray the shower head directly on my face with cold water. Then I get out and go through the 'normal' shave routine...instead of using hot water, just use cold. Cold water to prep, cold water during the shave process (rinsing the razor, rinsing in between passes) and a final rinse with cold water after the last pass. My face seems to accept the cold water better for some reason
I'm testing a new beard confusion technique. start out with hot water then switch it to cold, alternate every pass. :whacky011
Tried it, found that it worked better than you'd think. Hot water is still my choice, but I now know that if it's necessary to shave with cold water, it will work well enough.
Same here. I use cold a lot when I'm camping, however I just prefer hot. It just feels better to me. Alan
Just a side note about pores: When exposed to hot water, only a small ring at the very top expands and contracts. It's not like you get big gaping holes when you splash with hot water. More importantly, your pores have nothing to do with shaving. Pores are where oil and sweat are emitted. Hairs grow from follicles. The purpose hot water serves in shaving is to soften hair, not to open pores.
There 'a lot of difference for my beard. In many say that it is better, at least not known to me the difference .. I even heard that putting the blade in cold water for a while 'before use, improves performance. I'll try 'too soon ..
I use a cold h2o splash and rub soap into my beard as my shave prep. I do soak my brush in warm water though. Since I switched to a cool water prep I have had zero irritation. I also never shower before a shave. For me a hot shower followed by hot h2o prep leads to tons of irritation. Here's a page from the book SHAVING MADE EASY, i think it still applies today, of coarse YMMV ****** "soap is used, not to soften the beard, but to produce exactly the opposite effect—namely, to make the hair stiff and brittle, so that they will present a firm and resisting surface to the razor. A hair, as is well known, is a tube composed of a hard fibrous substance, growing from a bulb or root, which secretes an oily matter. This oil works its way up through the hair, and by permeating all parts, renders the hair soft and pliable. Now in this natural oily condition, it is very difficult to cut the hair with a razor, and it becomes even more difficult if the beard be made still softer by the application of hot water. Many do this, and it is no wonder they find shaving difficult "
Point taken. I guess I was speaking more non scientific when I mentioned pores closing. What I should say is the cold causes my skin to tighten and harden up which in turn creates a tugging sensation during the shave. I don't like that. Also cold water or cold air gives me really itchy skin which is no fun at all. When I tried it the razor skipped and jumped and did not glide well. That better explains my experience. One thing I've gleaned from the shave forums is that all different methods and techniques either work or don't work depending on the shaver. If cold water is your thing I say more power to ya.
+1. We have city water and during the summer it doesn't get very cold out of the tap. I keep a half liter bottle of water in the fridge. After a rinse with the tap water as cold (read luke warm) as it will get, I splash on the ice water from the fridge.
I've only cold-water shaved for about a week when we were without power after Hurricane Ike. I did not care for it at all. I wound up using alot of mentholated creams and A/S to survive the irritation.
