Convert Me. . .

dave79 said:
So I binned the Sensor Excel, really disappointed with it after a handful of shaves, never had so many cuts and nicks (like, around 10 a time) and I've used carts for years. Was very careful & applied barely any pressure too, even though I felt I needed to as the handle was so damn light!

So after a few with the faithful old WS Protector, I've decided to stick with the DE (WS Classic) for a month and see how it goes. Just had a good go using no pressure & taking my time. There seemed to be noticeably less irritation immediately afterwards but I felt a rather intense burning sensation a couple of mins later right before putting the ASB on (Real Shaving Co).

Is that normal? I really was very gentle with the razor so it wasn't like I was hacking at my face! I was trying to take off just the cream and not push down at all (in the same way that a golfer with a ball in the bunker DOESN'T hit the ball, but takes the sand an inch behind it). I splashed plenty of cold water on my face right after shaving, but how do you stop that burning? It seemed to die down a bit after the ASB went on but not go totally for a little while. Does Witch Hazel help with that or is it a different thing altogether?

At least I'm sticking with one razor now which should help. If it goes well I'll consider upgrading to a heavier and sexier handle, as long as I don't fall too far into the rabbit hole!
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Burning like that sounds to me more like your skin not getting-on with a component of one of your shaving products rather than razor burn due to faulty technique.
 
chrisbell said:
Burning like that sounds to me more like your skin not getting-on with a component of one of your shaving products rather than razor burn due to faulty technique.
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Surely that would make it the blade then (Astra SP) as I've been using the same cream for a while now. I thought the SP was a relatively mild blade though?
 
Welcome :)

With a title like "Convert me!" my reply will be "no".

I get a great shave with (twin blade) cartridges and with a DE razor. I think the preparation and your technique are way more important than the razor you use.

Most of all, it's your shave, so do it the way you like, and not the way you're told :)
 
I think I agree that the prep is important and for me it is the lathering and enjoyment of trying out different creams, the feel of the brush. For me, the razor is a tool, and not so important as long as it gives me a smooth comfortable shave. However, I can see why some guys have a collection of razors some of which are a work of art.
 
So I am getting used to DE shaving now and fully intend to keep at it. Trying to learn all I can about prep & post shave & am managing to manoeuvre the razor with no pressure and getting generally no more than one nick per shave, sometimes none. Beard mapping showed up somewhat bizarre results, for example the stubble on one side of my face (sideburns area down) grows downwards & on the other side grows out sideways. Definitely less redness after ditching carts and not chopping and changing stuff. That said, I am wondering if a softer brush will help my sensitive skin even more (using a pure badger travel brush for now, which is my starter brush, and lathering in a bowl).

What brushes should I be looking at then? I understand that badger brushes get softer as you progress from Pure to Best to Super to Silvertip, and of course the prices rise too. Do you think a Synthetic would be a good way to go for now? I suspect so, and at this early stage it seems silly to throw big money at a high end badger. Just looking at prices, I am ruling out silvertip. So should I go for a best, super or synthetic and which do you recommend? If I go for synth, Razorock Plissoft seem popular, or Muhle, or Omega for a cheap tryout.

Once again thanks for your help.
 
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Well I'm keeping at the DE shaving. Slowly improving the technique; trying to get the angles right and to not apply any pressure. Irritation definitely down on what it once was & prep improving. Now the BUT: What is still a bit of a struggle for me is the area to each side of under the chin. This is where the majority of the redness and still some bumps are, even since stopping with carts. The worst thing is though that I always seem to miss stubble in these areas even after a 2 pass shave where I really take my time and try to pay close attention to angles etc. Going WTG and then XTG. I am very wary about going ATG here as this has had poor results in the past on the very few times I used a cart to go ATG.


I appreciate that technique will play a part as I'm still somewhat new to it, but like I said, I really try and take my time in these areas and be gentle but still end up missing hairs. Still, do you think a hardware change could help? Am still using a WS Classic DE which I understand is VERY mild, and though this maybe a good thing to start off learning with, do you think I'd get a closer yet still comfortable shave by upgrading the razor itself, to something like an EJ DE89? Though I may get a blade sample pack at some point, I'm wary about changing blades (using Astra SP now) and adding another variable.


Thanks again for your help, ye wise and experienced men !
 
Although it sounds counter intuitive the weight of a properly made razor will actually help you control it and apply less pressure. Don't forget an XTG pass can be made in one of two directions so if one direction isn't effective try the other or perhaps introduce both XTG strokes on your difficult areas only. Having said that don't fret about the odd stray hair atm, it might irritate you but it really isn't worth chasing it and causing irritation.

If your skin is irritated you're still over-shaving that area and NEVER shave skin that isn't lathered, you're not scraping paint and efficiency is the key so aim to remove lather with a minimum of strokes and fuss. Make sure you pay extra attention with your brush particularly on those difficult areas so you hydrate and lift the hair adequately. Get some witch hazel preferably Thayers, the best post shave available by far imo, I still think Mantic59 produced the best video tutorials I've seen so study those with care.

https://sharpologist.com/shaving-videos
 
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Hi Dave, glad to hear there has been some improvement, though I do get how frustrating the neck area continues to be. All I can suggest for the neck is to stretch the skin as taut as you can with your fingers and just use one light pass over the area even if that does leave some stubble or stray hairs. I agree with your thoughts about not changing blades around, the Astras are nice blades and I doubt they are a contributing factor in your challenges. The EJ 89 is a very good and kindly razor which I'd consider a good investment in anyone's shaving armoury. Whether it is your solution or not I'm not sure. Best of luck with your shaves, we've all been through difficulties of one sort or another with them !

JohnnyO. o/
 
antdad said:
Although it sounds counter intuitive the weight of a properly made razor will actually help you control it and apply less pressure. Don't forget an XTG pass can be made in one of two directions so if one direction isn't effective try the other or perhaps introduce both XTG strokes on your difficult areas only. Having said that don't fret about the odd stray hair atm, it might irritate you but it really isn't worth chasing it and causing irritation.

If your skin is irritated you're still over-shaving that area and NEVER shave skin that isn't lathered, you're not scraping paint and efficiency is the key so aim to remove lather with a minimum of strokes and fuss. Make sure you pay extra attention with your brush particularly on those difficult areas so you hydrate and lift the hair adequately. Get some witch hazel preferably Thayers, the best post shave available by far imo, I still think Mantic59 produced the best video tutorials I've seen so study those with care.

https://sharpologist.com/shaving-videos
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Thanks for your advice. I watched the Mantic vids right through and they were very helpful, especially the lathering one. The tip about squeezing remaining lather up from the base to tips of the brush was fantastic. Got loads of really rich lather because of this. Still adjusting to synthetic brush and been feeling that I wasn't getting as much lather in the bowl as I should despite getting a healthy dollop of cream at the start, so this tip has really helped me. Also his tip about once you have used the brush to get the lather on your face & lift the hairs, then brushing it from side to side to even it out. Today's shave was by the far the best lather I've ever had so far! Today I also tried his method of shaving out sideways under the nose which worked great for me, and also tried the technique of making the first pass straight down (even if this is not necessarily WTG), followed by 2 XTG passes, one in each direction. With the irritation I get, there is no way I am going ATG afterwards though!

Regarding stray hairs, I am still trying to undo bad habits I'd got into, such as the massive temptation to get every single one, whether by extra lather pickups or plucking them out with tweezers. I need to discipline myself to leave the stray hairs and walk away! Twice in the space of a few days, I stupidly spent ages in front of the magnified mirror trying to remove ingrowers. I am getting virtually none since stopping using carts which is the good thing, and these weren't even that bad really, I just HAD to get them out, but ended up making a right mess. Each time a messy area like this eventually heals, I seem to get another, its so frustrating. I never imagined I'd do this, but I've even caught myself chatting to guys I know and being insanely jealous of their well shaven, seemingly irritation free faces!

On the razor's weight helping to control pressure, I will probably end up before long ordering something like an EJ DE89. I have been trying to resist and give myself a good month of using the current WS Classic DE razor so as to not change too much just yet. But I am not sure how much longer I can hold out and may be writing to Santa soon once I have chosen from the multitude of handles available! What do the combs on razor heads actually do anyway? All I really know is that a closed comb is better for a beginner than an open one. But the Classic DE head is flat, so different again.

You talk of 'removing lather with minimum strokes and fuss', I guess the EJ DE89 will be better at this than my current one? Is that a good upgrade do you think, ie efficient without being too aggressive? Perhaps mine is TOO mild thus me feeling I need more passes & pickups (& pluck-ups!) ?

Re: Witch Hazel, I do see this mentioned a lot, I guess with sensitive skin I need it as Toner, not Astringent. Where is it best to get Thayers from?

Thanks
 
JohnnyO said:
Hi Dave, glad to hear there has been some improvement, though I do get how frustrating the neck area continues to be. All I can suggest for the neck is to stretch the skin as taut as you can with your fingers and just use one light pass over the area even if that does leave some stubble or stray hairs. I agree with your thoughts about not changing blades around, the Astras are nice blades and I doubt they are a contributing factor in your challenges. The EJ 89 is a very good and kindly razor which I'd consider a good investment in anyone's shaving armoury. Whether it is your solution or not I'm not sure. Best of luck with your shaves, we've all been through difficulties of one sort or another with them !

JohnnyO. o/
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Thanks. I would really love for my neck to heal up more. Perhaps I'll try 'one light pass' on the neck area for a while. Also will try stretching the skin there more. I'm starting to make a few notes post shave, about what was good / bad about the shave, what products I used and what I need to remember to do/not do next time. Maybe I'll write out a prompt card to put next to the mirror each time to stop me making mistakes again! Gratefully just received a sample of BBA PSB from Chris (Far Cry Toff) so this will be used after next shave.
 
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