First DE shave in two days

[ChinMusic]

I enter the world of the DE this week. My setup should arrive tomorrow and I'll give it a shot Tuesday morning.

Merkur 38C
Assorted blades (Gillette Silver Blue, Feather, Merkur)
Proraso Preshave
Simpsons CL2 brush
Proraso Shaving Soap and Dovo Shaving Cream
Sampsons Marisol Aftershave

I hope I don't nick myself up like some have reported........

 

[Draven451]

Good luck. Take your time and don't apply pressure and you will do fine.

 

[ironfist]

You will be fine, even if there is some blood it shouldn't be that bad

 

[CUSE69]

Welcome. Remember short, light strokes. Listen to the razor cutting to adjust your angle. Comfort should trump closeness as you develop your technique. You may want to go wtg, xtg only and leave atg for later. The keys are lightest possible pressure, short strokes, proper angle and take it slow.

 

[ChinMusic]

I've watched some youtube videos to get the idea of what to do.

I also watched some youtube videos on what I hope NOT to do........

I will def leave the ATG stuff for weeks down the road. I have fairly straight hair but my beard did have some wave to it as you can see in my avatar from last month.

 

[ChinMusic]

Had my last cartridge shave this morning. I used some of the techniques with regards to WTG/XTG/ATG I saw on youtube. I had never done more than one pass before, never knew. I gotta say that I got a pretty good shave this morning, maybe one of my best ever. It will be interesting if DE can be that much better.

 

[ChinMusic]

The package didn't arrive until Tuesday afternoon so this morning was the first DE shave.

Unlike what was reported by others, I didn't hack myself up. I had a couple little nicks but it was really minor. Things went pretty smoothly. I didn't press the issue to try for that baby's butt closeness. I just took it easy for day 1. I was surprised at the weight of the razor. That got my attention.

 

[Chinaman]

Great to hear, it only gets better and more pleasurable! Have fun with it.

 

[Aristeros]

It only gets better from here! Hang in there!

 

[aihpcfl]

You will do good. Be ready to learn from it, but don't over analyze.

 

[mswofford]

You will do good. Be ready to learn from it, but don't over analyze.

Good advice. I can only add the recommendation that you don't change your set-up (except replacing blades) for a while; get used to what you have and your technique will certainly improve. And welcome to B&B!

 

[ChinMusic]

Third shave today. I went ATG today and found out what razor burn is. Looks like I got a bit aggressive today. Sore and unsightly........

 

[Motonut]

I'd skip ATG for now. WTG, then perhaps diagonally XTG (chevron?) each way.

 

[aihpcfl]

Third shave today. I went ATG today and found out what razor burn is. Looks like I got a bit aggressive today. Sore and unsightly........

Chances are the burn was because of too much pressure.

For what it's worth, I have some area on which I avoid ATG. I can do it without causing razor burn, but it just plain hurts when I do it.

As I say, learn but try not to jump to conclusions. You may want to avoid ATG as suggested above until you nail angle and pressure. Then try ATG again with the lightest possible touch and see what happens.

 

[ChinMusic]

Didn't shave on Saturday or Sunday. I let the skin recover. All seemed to go well today. I concentrated on keeping light pressure and avoided ATG. Still on my first blade for my fourth shave. Kinda wondering when to swap it out. It's a Merkur blade which I know is panned by many on here.

 

[knotty]

Welcome to our World
Speaking as a new DE user (started last week), use small slow stokes, go with the grain (WTG) for a while. If that goes well, WTG the across the grain (XTG). Working up to against the grain(ATG). Listen to the blade. You can feel the razor as it cuts & adjust the blade angle as needed.
Read the tutorial here & you should do ok.
You will bleed! Some cold water & after shave usually fixes that.
Good luck & have fun. It is an experience.
Everyone here will help you exceed

 

[Jack Burton]

I've only been at it for 3 weeks but I already have a much better technique than when I started. You'll be a pro in no time. Keep it up!

 

[ChinMusic]

Changed blades for the first time this morning. Went from the Merkur to the Gillette Blue. No issues. It was actually the smoothest shave yet and zero nicks.

 

[Howie]

Changed blades for the first time this morning. Went from the Merkur to the Gillette Blue. No issues. It was actually the smoothest shave yet and zero nicks.

I can run a blade for 2 weeks (about 12 shaves) without any unpleasant effects. Maybe you could stretch your blade use out further?

 

[infotech]

I can run a blade for 2 weeks (about 12 shaves) without any unpleasant effects. Maybe you could stretch your blade use out further?

I have never extended any blade for two weeks.

When you are just learning it is best to keep the blade fresh. 2-3 shaves and then switch...