Do any of you find that when using a straight, you get better results with a slightly thinner lather? I dont know why, but i do
Lather question?
- Thread starter taffy
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Lather provides cushioning and lube and keeps your face wet. I don't see how a thinner lather would change that unless the stuff you are using is below par to begin with.
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- #3
This is why i am asking, all this could be in my mind, for some reason i find a thinner lather is easier to use when i pick up a straight, when using a de, i see no diferance, someone agree, or i will think i am losing it
i do think that perhaps its because i take longer using a straight as well, the cream sort of dries out, where if its a bit thinner/wetter, it takes a bit longer to dry out, so when i get to the left side of my face, i still have a wet lather instead of a dry lump on my face.
Yeah mine was dry yesterday and I got a lot of pulling and not happy times. With my DE though the lather yesterday was fine (I used my DE to finish up). I think what it is, is that a straight is less forgiving in terms of having unperfect lather. I'll be working on my lather this week while I have work and can't use my straight (time constraints). But I would say that the "thinner" lather is probably lather that is better made than what you normally use. This is all opinion without seeing your lather so don't take it the wrong way .
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Yeah mine was dry yesterday and I got a lot of pulling and not happy times. With my DE though the lather yesterday was fine (I used my DE to finish up). I think what it is, is that a straight is less forgiving in terms of having unperfect lather. I'll be working on my lather this week while I have work and can't use my straight (time constraints). But I would say that the "thinner" lather is probably lather that is better made than what you normally use. This is all opinion without seeing your lather so don't take it the wrong way
Thats it "pulling" with a thicker lather, not so with a thinner lather, i think my lather making is fine, i have had 8 odd years at doing it
though i am not perfect either 
Yes I find a thinner lather to be better as it leaves the face a bit wetter for overlapping strokes where there isn't lather anymore, and the thinner lather is more slippery. I don't need a cushiony lather, and too thick makes the low angle passes a bit harder. YMMV of course.
It seems to me that my razor will "stick" to my face if my lather is too thick.
I find this to be the case more so with heavier grind razors and also at lower angles.
I find this to be the case more so with heavier grind razors and also at lower angles.
I also have noticed wetter lather does better for my shave up to a point. I have an issue with a few soaps where I think it gets too thin, then dries up but in the creams/soaps that I'm pretty proficient at lathering it just feels a bit more comfortable and a bit better shave if it's thinner than the "snowman" effect.
Yep, thinner is better. At least that's what I've found.
Thicker lather seems to lead to nicks and cuts.
Thicker lather seems to lead to nicks and cuts.
I prefer the term wetter 
Good soaps soaps have the ability to hold more water before getting thin and runny.
When lathering I check how slick the lather is for every time I add water, just rub it between my thumb and index finger.
Start doing that when the lather is really thick and creamy and add water gradually, with the right soaps you can really feel the point when the lather becomes slicker.
Good soaps soaps have the ability to hold more water before getting thin and runny.
When lathering I check how slick the lather is for every time I add water, just rub it between my thumb and index finger.
Start doing that when the lather is really thick and creamy and add water gradually, with the right soaps you can really feel the point when the lather becomes slicker.
Not to start a riot, but this is why I love Mitchel's Wool Fat...my lather isn't very pretty with it but it is wet and very slick... I am pretty darn new so don't yell at me... just saying. I can get "pretty" lather from others, but the fat seems slicker and works much better (for me!) with a straight. For DE, I often switch to TOBS or Proraso and lather a more full lather...
I prefer the term wetter
Good soaps soaps have the ability to hold more water before getting thin and runny.
When lathering I check how slick the lather is for every time I add water, just rub it between my thumb and index finger.
Start doing that when the lather is really thick and creamy and add water gradually, with the right soaps you can really feel the point when the lather becomes slicker.
+1 Wetter it is for me too when using straights. If you are shaving with DEs the lather quality is not important but for straights you want nothing but the best. Some of my soaps do not provide me with the lather quality I need to get a good, comfortable and safe shave with a good post feeling. For those I need to experiment with superlather.
I find a slightly wetter lather is more slippery and better for straights. Since you aren't lubricating to allow a mass of metal in the form of a safety bar or teeth to slide across your skin all you need is a very thin micro layer of slippery goodness. I think a thick heavy lather is kind of pointless for any kind of shaving. All that matters is the lather between the metal and your skin and the little bit around the hair shaft and follicles. This requires a film measuring in tenths of mm, not 5 mm of whipped cream on your face, most of which never enters the shave and is discarded in the sink.
I made a brief foray into using a scuttle and elaborate lather prep and would make these gorgeous meringue lathers but concluded it was a pointless waste of time and effort, my shaves weren't any better at all.
I made a brief foray into using a scuttle and elaborate lather prep and would make these gorgeous meringue lathers but concluded it was a pointless waste of time and effort, my shaves weren't any better at all.
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Jeez, I wish you'd told me that last week!
Actually, I'm really liking the lather from my big scuttle - I can pump more water into the mix than I could with face lathering. It's made a significant difference to my daily shave.So to concur with the general theme - straight shave quality and lather quality go hand in hand. And there's a bit of experimentation involved to get it right...
Bingo...
Definitely Wetter lather for shaving straight. My first straight shaves I could not understand why the razor seems to "stick" to my face but after a couple of days I tried with more water and it worked out fine since. The lower angle and the less hollow the grind is, the easier it stick..
This.
The lather I use for straights is the same as what I use for DE. I'll have to try going "wetter" and see if my results improve.
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