Prone to cuts

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66
Location
Oxford
Hi all,

I have been DE shaving since the start of 2015 and would never go back to cartridge razors. Shaving went from a necessity to a hobby almost overnight!

I made the change because I have both sensitive skin and very coarse hair. Razor bumps and burn plagued my time using cartridge razors.

But even with all the improvements (ingrowing hairs & bumps are minimal now) I have still never mastered shaving under my bottom lip without several nicks appearing.

I can quite often get a WTG pass cleanly, but XTG or ATG will usually leave me looking Vampire-ish!

I am currently using:

Kent BK8 brush
EJ DE89L
TOBS Jermyn St Cream
Glyce pre shave soap
Astra Superior Platinum blades


Post shave
Osma Alum Bloc
Thayers Witch Hazel

I have only tried 3 DE blades (Feather, Derby, Astra) and I have stuck with Astra as it is the best of the 3. But I have ordered some different blades this week!

If anybody has experienced similar or has any suggestions it would be much appreciated!

Cheers

Daniel
 
I found Astras to be unusable in my DE89, very tuggy and wouldn't cut for me.

I can only compare them with the Feather and Derby blades that I've used previously. I think I may have 'settled' too soon initially.

What do you have best success with in your DE89?
 
I found Astras to be unusable in my DE89, very tuggy and wouldn't cut for me.

Good point - and reminds of another factor. If you haven't reduced enough hair with your WTG pass your XTG/ATG might be tugging resulting in a cut. Try adding a second WTG pass before XTG and see if that helps.

If so, increase your prep. Things to try:

1) Wash well with a glycerine soap to remove the protein coating on the hairs in combination with the following:
2) Hot flannel or towel
3) Soak with Proraso preshave and lift with a hot towel/ flannel
Or
Use lather as a presoak - lather, leave to soak, lift with hot towel, flannel or hot shower

Then proceed as normal.

Aim is to soften enough to remove more hair in the WTG pass. Personally I don't find glycerine enough on its own but as an agent to break down the proteins very good.
 
I can only compare them with the Feather and Derby blades that I've used previously. I think I may have 'settled' too soon initially.

What do you have best success with in your DE89?

I'm only into my 2nd month of DE and haven't tried a lot of blades, but my favourite all-rounder are the Personna Lab Blues, though I also bought 100 Polsilvers but definitely get more nicks with them.
 
Good point - and reminds of another factor. If you haven't reduced enough hair with your WTG pass your XTG/ATG might be tugging resulting in a cut. Try adding a second WTG pass before XTG and see if that helps.

If so, increase your prep. Things to try:

1) Wash well with a glycerine soap to remove the protein coating on the hairs in combination with the following:
2) Hot flannel or towel
3) Soak with Proraso preshave and lift with a hot towel/ flannel
Or
Use lather as a presoak - lather, leave to soak, lift with hot towel, flannel or hot shower

Then proceed as normal.

Aim is to soften enough to remove more hair in the WTG pass. Personally I don't find glycerine enough on its own but as an agent to break down the proteins very good.

Cheers mate! I try to shave after showering and use a glycerine soap pre shave anyhow. So I will do that and add the hot flannel step into the routine. See how that helps
 
I'm only into my 2nd month of DE and haven't tried a lot of blades, but my favourite all-rounder are the Personna Lab Blues, though I also bought 100 Polsilvers but definitely get more nicks with them.

I bought some Polsilvers, Personna platinums, Voskhod & Rapira swedish supersteels a couple days back. Hopefully with these + the recommendations above, I'll notice a nice improvement.

Also - where did you get the Lab Blues from mate?
 
I bought some Polsilvers, Personna platinums, Voskhod & Rapira swedish supersteels a couple days back. Hopefully with these + the recommendations above, I'll notice a nice improvement.

Also - where did you get the Lab Blues from mate?

I couldn't really find them in the UK/EU at a reasonable price so ordered from Amazon US. They were £12ish delivered to my door for 100.
 
Sound advice regarding blades and skin stretching. It's not beyond the realms of possibility that your hairs grow in a different direction there, so what you think is WTG may not really be. Face mapping with a bit of growth in place will answer definitively
+1 for this sound piece of advice. Makes a world of difference to many.
 
Thanks all!

I do stretch the skin and I have mapped out my hair growth. My neck hair seems like it almost grows in circles! haha

I have never tried two WTG passes before though. So that's definitely something I'll try! Would I then do XTG and ATG as normal? Or would 4 passes likely turn my face to a raspberry? :mad: :D
 
Thanks all!

I do stretch the skin and I have mapped out my hair growth. My neck hair seems like it almost grows in circles! haha

I have never tried two WTG passes before though. So that's definitely something I'll try! Would I then do XTG and ATG as normal? Or would 4 passes likely turn my face to a raspberry? :mad: :D
Just as an experiment to understand if it's hair length that is tripping you up.

I find good prep cuts down passes by 1 pass.

Your alternative is to try a more aggressive razor - e.g. a Fatip Piccolo, if only for the WTG pass.

If it isn't hair length it is probably angle. My rule of thumb is - solid bar : ride the cap, open comb : ride the guard. This probably isn't a universal rule though.

As ever - different things work for different people.

I guess the only constancies are:

Prep
Angle
Lightness of touch

What eventually works for you might be different for what works for me.
 
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