Help with under nose and chin

[Butch Waxx]

Need a little input from all you straight razor vets…..I am getting my cheek areas down pretty good and the neck area is slowly coming together, but the areas under my nose and chin are a challenge with some tugging, dragging, and skipping. I AM ALL EARS guys????
I am using a 5/8” Boker King Cutter.

 

[Butch Waxx]

Need a little input from all you straight razor vets…..I am getting my cheek areas down pretty good and the neck area is slowly coming together, but the areas under my nose and chin are a challenge with some tugging, dragging, and skipping. I AM ALL EARS guys????
I am using a 5/8” Boker King Cutter.

Still keeping that Muhle Rocca handy to clean up those areas.

 

[DrStrange]

Need a little input from all you straight razor vets…..I am getting my cheek areas down pretty good and the neck area is slowly coming together, but the areas under my nose and chin are a challenge with some tugging, dragging, and skipping. I AM ALL EARS guys????
I am using a 5/8” Boker King Cutter.

I consider those two places to be The Test for a sharp smooth edge.

Skin stretching and a sharp smooth blade
is pretty much most of it.

 

[Herrenberg]

I have never yet had to challenge the maxim that any tugging at all means your blade is not sharp enough.

 

[Kyle89]

Not a straight razor vet by any means but here's my 2 cents-

The razor shouldn't tug if the edge is good and your lather is properly hydrated, even in those trouble spots.

 

[Ravenonrock]

May not be sharp enough, but those are challenging areas for new SR shavers. Figuring out what works for you in these areas takes time, trial and error. I’m pulling faces to get the proper angles, looks reficulous I’m sure, but effective.

 

[Butch Waxx]

I have never yet had to challenge the maxim that any tugging at all means your blade is not sharp enough.

Thanks, I will go to my honing stone and strop with it to see how things work.

 

[Butch Waxx]

May not be sharp enough, but those are challenging areas for new SR shavers. Figuring out what works for you in these areas takes time, trial and error. I’m pulling faces to get the proper angles, looks reficulous I’m sure, but effective.

Thanks Ravenrock… This was my first shave with the razor and was advertised as “shave ready”. I will get out my new honing stone and strop to see If I can get better results!

 

[Snurgblat]

Pulling skin, more than a few passes. After normal up, down, I'll gently go side to side in little strokes. My blades are probably not sharpest since I finish on an 8k, but it works.

 

[rbscebu]

For upper lip, I only do two passed with a SR; WTG (N-S) and then an ATG (S-N). For the WTG pass, I just do the best that I can. This probably leaves a few whiskers untouched.

It is my ATG upper lip pass (fool's pass) that cleans everything up under my nose. The fool's pass requires an almost exceptional edge and precision control of movement, pressure and shave angle. Not for the faint of heart.

As for the chin, what you do there is very dependent on the shape of your chin. With a well developed skin stretching technique, I start with a WTG (N-S) pass followed by two XTG passes (E-W & W-E). In this area I also often do an ATG (S-N) pass. It's all down to skin stretching.

 

[Titleist]

I rarely engage in a fools pass under the nose. For me, it's just not worth the risk. For the chin, I use the N-S pass and then conduct the E-W/W-E passes with maximum cheek skin stretches with backhand strokes. ATG on the chin is also an unnecessary pass for me personally. Nicks under the nose and on the chin ruin an otherwise perfectly delightful shave experience.

I don't worry about BBS shaves anymore with my straights. DFS is just ducky for my liking.

 

[Kaldane]

Pretty much what everyone else said.

But if you're all ears, try continuing a XTG stroke on the cheeks for a bit too long. That'll sort that out.

 

[Biltong & Boerewors]

For under the nose I go in with the blade angle at 90 degrees. As soon as you touch LIGHTLY, rotate the blade downwards, levering the spine against your nose, making a scraping movement. For the XTG pass I go in with the point from the ear side, lightly buffing. Buffing is short repetitive strokes.

For the chin WTG I find it difficult to follow the curve accurately, so again I use buffing strokes treating the area as if it is a series of flat plains, rather than to try to follow the curve. XTG I just keep going stretching from the corner of the mouth side to the middle , and repeat from the other side.

 

[Butch Waxx]

For under the nose I go in with the blade angle at 90 degrees. As soon as you touch LIGHTLY, rotate the blade downwards, levering the spine against your nose, making a scraping movement. For the XTG pass I go in with the point from the ear side, lightly buffing. Buffing is short repetitive strokes.

For the chin WTG I find it difficult to follow the curve accurately, so again I use buffing strokes treating the area as if it is a series of flat plains, rather than to try to follow the curve. XTG I just keep going stretching from the corner of the mouth side to the middle , and repeat from the other side.

Perfect plan of attack!!

 

[Frank Shaves]

I first shave under the right side of my nose holding the razor with my right hand without trying to get super close to the bottom of my nose. Then I transfer the razor to my left hand and come down at about 45 degrees and go around and under my nose using a backhand motion. This idea came from the Chimensch video:

Just go slow the first few times and before long it will become natural and comfortable.

Vice versa for the left side.

 

[Frank Shaves]

I have one patch in the front just under my chin line that requires me to stretch the skin by placing my thumb above the chin line. Took me a long time to figure out how to stretch this portion of skin.

When learning to use a DE, I struggled to shave just under my bottom lip. After about a year, things just began to click, and I gained the control to momentarily rest the edge of the blade on the bottom of my lip before starting my stroke. I repeat, just momentarily. After almost 1.5 years, I have learned to do the same using a straight. Just happened. Not something that I needed to "practice".

 

[RumpleBearskin]

4 years and I have yet to do a fool's pass.

Under my nose it's WTG (N->S) with "scooping" strokes like @Biltong & Boerewors described. Then two XTG passes coming in from my ears. Practice and experimentation will get you where you want to be.

Can't help you on the chin since I've sported a goatee for the last two years and can't remember how I shaved my chin before it got furry. I do remember that skin stretching was the key. Funny faces. Pushing skin. Pulling skin. Lots of contortions to create as large and flat of a surface as I could.