Help please - Micro stubble left under chin after shaving

When I first started DE shaving I went for the smooth as a polshed pebble approach and it was agony, now I go for that is a fairly good shave approach.
I don't have a hot irritated face any more after shaving. I have hard wirey hair on my beard. Bugger.
 
I'm a bit late to the discussion, I've found with my henson mild, I switch the blades and get better results with a variety (dont get me wrong I love Astras and sharks in my EJ89, I need something a little stronger in my Henson, (although not feathers, too sharp for me......) keep looking at different blades.

I also found that a 'good enough' shave was what occurred under the chin, so I 'rested the area and sometimes went back either the next day or evening (depending on when I first shaved). plenty of hydration and moisturiser/balm also worked wonders for me.

Just my opinion, but I am not sure if adding another variable, will fully assist,

Final thought, would soaking that area more work?

Good luck, let us know how you get on.

Regards

Mark
 
Have you tried stretching the skin against the direction of the grain. This erects the hairs and allows you to cut the hair shorter. Once the traction is gone it should be pretty smooth. Works for me with straight razors. If I do that, there is no need to buff. Hope this helps.
 
I have something similar on the upper left jawline, the growth 'pattern' is all over the place, just random as F and no pattern describes it best.
I find if I really want BBS, I need to J-hook on both the WTG & ATG passes in that area.
That and stretching, as mentioned by @SammieM seems to do the job for me.
 
Zorro said:
Have been DE shaving regularly for about 5 years now and I get good results using relatively mild razors – have got a Merkur 20c and an EJ89 as my regular rotation, with Astra SP blades, which give a close, smooth overall shave. I always go WTG downwards, then XTG in from the ears and then ATG upwards.

The area I have problems with is anything under the chin. The razors I use seem to be shaving the under chin and neck-line OK, but always leave some hard micro-stubble in places there, even after repeat passes.

I have tried sharper blades (Feather) and also a more aggressive razor (Parker 96 Daytona) without any real success. Have tried careful skin stretching too, without any success. I can tell from the razor feedback that the stubble there is really wiry.

The question, for my learned friends, is whether to try a more aggressive razor or an adjustable ? or am I doing something wrong ?

I am confident that my technique is practiced enough to generally leave my skin nick free and feeling good, so wouldn’t recoil at the suggestion of a more aggressive razor like a slant, but just would like some seasoned advice from those that have used a lot of razor types.
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As others have said getting BBS with a DE razor is a challenge - by the time I get there after 5 passes, I usually look like I have been shaved by Edward Scissorhands.

I shave every other day, with 3 passes (2 with, 1 against hair growth), with an occasional 4th (with elaborate gurning to stretch skin) under the chin/neck, shaving upwards against the direction of stubble. My beard is particularly coarse (if you enjoy film noir, I have stubble that you could strike a match off).

I have used aggressive and not so aggressive razors, still usually end up with a bit of something under the chin. "C'est la vie", just get on with the rest of your day (or evening) is my - admittedly not very helpful - advice.
 
Zorro said:
Have been DE shaving regularly for about 5 years now and I get good results using relatively mild razors – have got a Merkur 20c and an EJ89 as my regular rotation, with Astra SP blades, which give a close, smooth overall shave. I always go WTG downwards, then XTG in from the ears and then ATG upwards.

The area I have problems with is anything under the chin. The razors I use seem to be shaving the under chin and neck-line OK, but always leave some hard micro-stubble in places there, even after repeat passes.

I have tried sharper blades (Feather) and also a more aggressive razor (Parker 96 Daytona) without any real success. Have tried careful skin stretching too, without any success. I can tell from the razor feedback that the stubble there is really wiry.

The question, for my learned friends, is whether to try a more aggressive razor or an adjustable ? or am I doing something wrong ?

I am confident that my technique is practiced enough to generally leave my skin nick free and feeling good, so wouldn’t recoil at the suggestion of a more aggressive razor like a slant, but just would like some seasoned advice from those that have used a lot of razor types.
Click to expand...
I had a similar issue, further complicated by a scar on the right side of my chin. I found that small J-hooks helped, and using some of the blade lather to relubricate for an extra touch-up between passes. I got the idea from one of Mantic's videos – possibly the one where he does a ten minute, three pass shave.

For whatever reason, it seems less of an issue (for me) with SE razors – AC-style, or the Supply.

Personally, I wouldn't recommend a slant for this purpose. I had the ATT X1 and returned it because while I found it a delightful razor on a regular pass, it was awkward to use for hooking or buffing. YMMV, of course. I bet they're are some slant devotees who would beg to differ.
 
Update: After a lot of thought about this problem area, and my shaving generally, i purchased a very fine Merkur Progress 510 long handle from Connaught and have been enjoying (carefully) its potential.

After nearly 2 weeks ownership and about a dozen shaves i am happy that a setting of about 2 (with an Astra SP blade) equates roughly to the shave i get from my EJ89 and if i turn the Progress up to 3, then i get a much closer shave, but it can be a little "nippy" at that setting if i am careless, so max concentration is required. Setting 3 seems to make better work of the original problem area under the chin and around the neckline first pass, so am very pleased about that.

Am still getting to grips with the Progress as it is a heaver razor and the shaving angle is a little different, but am generally very pleased with it and think it will serve me well. A pleasant discovery is that if i turn it right down to the zero ("+") then it gives a very light shave almost comparable to a cartridge razor and ideal for those afternoon / early evening touch ups (the old 5 o'clock shadow).

This is important for me, as 12 hours after DE shaving i have quite tough sandpaper-like micro stubble around the neck, which is rough enough to bobble up the material on shirt and fleece collars - something i have had an issue with my whole adult life, requiring some sort of afternoon / early evening quick shave usually with a cartridge or even electric shaver.

I have noticed there is quite some play in the blade and the head when its fully unwound for blade changing and the process of tightening it up can cause the blade and head to skew slightly and can give either a slight slant, or more blade out of one side of the head than the other.

After a bit of playing, i think the answer seems to be to centre the blade and head, then carefully clamp the head down against the spring using thumb on top cap and two fingers under bottom plate - this allows the tightening screw to be tightened easily and ensures the blade and top cap are always aligned as intended.
 
I don't want to sound like an A hole, but are you sure your putting the top cap on the right way?
There is a mark on one side, that I didn't notice when I first got my progress and it allows you to wind the blade right down to the + icon but the cap on the other way only reaches 1.
I have never had an issue with alignment since.
 
mfurie2540 said:
I don't want to sound like an A hole, but are you sure your putting the top cap on the right way?
There is a mark on one side, that I didn't notice when I first got my progress and it allows you to wind the blade right down to the + icon but the cap on the other way only reaches 1.
I have never had an issue with alignment since.
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Yes the top cap mark is correctly sided with the base plate triangle and it does zero exactly at + without a blade, and a fraction after + when a blade is fitted.

The alignment is generally good, but i noticed that when tightening the blade after fitting that the top cap (and blade) can skew very slightly as they are being clamped together - i found that if you pre-tension the top cap down against the springs, as described, then you can be certain it all stays perfectly evenly lined up.
 
Zorro said:
Update: After a lot of thought about this problem area, and my shaving generally, i purchased a very fine Merkur Progress 510 long handle from Connaught and have been enjoying (carefully) its potential.

After nearly 2 weeks ownership and about a dozen shaves i am happy that a setting of about 2 (with an Astra SP blade) equates roughly to the shave i get from my EJ89 and if i turn the Progress up to 3, then i get a much closer shave, but it can be a little "nippy" at that setting if i am careless, so max concentration is required. Setting 3 seems to make better work of the original problem area under the chin and around the neckline first pass, so am very pleased about that.

Am still getting to grips with the Progress as it is a heaver razor and the shaving angle is a little different, but am generally very pleased with it and think it will serve me well. A pleasant discovery is that if i turn it right down to the zero ("+") then it gives a very light shave almost comparable to a cartridge razor and ideal for those afternoon / early evening touch ups (the old 5 o'clock shadow).

This is important for me, as 12 hours after DE shaving i have quite tough sandpaper-like micro stubble around the neck, which is rough enough to bobble up the material on shirt and fleece collars - something i have had an issue with my whole adult life, requiring some sort of afternoon / early evening quick shave usually with a cartridge or even electric shaver.

I have noticed there is quite some play in the blade and the head when its fully unwound for blade changing and the process of tightening it up can cause the blade and head to skew slightly and can give either a slight slant, or more blade out of one side of the head than the other.

After a bit of playing, i think the answer seems to be to centre the blade and head, then carefully clamp the head down against the spring using thumb on top cap and two fingers under bottom plate - this allows the tightening screw to be tightened easily and ensures the blade and top cap are always aligned as intended.
Click to expand...

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Mike Smart said:
I Think the bottom line is a BBS is not achievable for many a person.

Have you ever tried mapping your face with cotton wool ?
Just a thought it might help
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I have tried face mapping in the past and have a fairly good idea of what passes to make in which directions for different pasts of my face - generally 3 passes and a few localised buffs does the job. The intention behind this post was just to see if this is a common problem really.
 
I can rarely achieve true BBS under the chin. Can get close, but if I try too hard it just results in irritation or blood loss, especially with the straights! On the other hand nobody really looks under my chin that closely, nor tries to tickle me under there, not since I was old enough to have stubble there anyway! And 'micro stubble' is the word. Too short to worry about and doesn't pill my shirts.
 
IMO BBS should only be judged when running your fingers over your face WTG, if it feels smooth when you do this then the shave is close enough. If you're feeling micro stubble when rubbing ATG then you're overthinking it/trying too hard... You're a grown man, your face isn't supposed to feel like it did when you were 8 :D
 
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Yes i do realise that - my OP was just a question to see if i was doing something wrong, which could be easily remedied.

Apropos the fabled BBS, i do get them often enough, but am happy enought with DFS or anything else really.

I am trying not to overthink , it's just fun trying to perfect prep and technique and to learn what works and what doesn't really.
 
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