My 800th SR Shave - a Six-Pass Shave

[rbscebu]

This morning was my 800th SR shave. I felt good and had the time to see if I could shave until I could see no more cut whiskers in my lather.

I normally now do not shave ATG except for a fool's pass. If Ido a full ATG pass, I have nothing to shave 24 hours later. My normal shaving progression is WTG, XTG+fool's pass and then a final XTG only in the opposite direction.

This morning I wanted to see how many XTG passes it would brake before I could see no cut whiskers in my lather. I use a wet sponge to wipe my blade while shaving so that I can see the cut whiskers.

Using my "Saturday" Titan 1918 ACRO T.H-70 and Proraso green cream face lathered, I performed my normal three-pass shave; WTG, XTG+fool's pass and XTG in opposite direction. Cut whiskers where observed in the lather with all passes. I then did another XTG pass in the same direction as the first. Some cut whiskers were still visible in the lather. A fifth XTG pass was then made in the other direction. This occasionally produced a cut whisker in the lather.

My final (sixth) pass was XTG in the same direction as the first. No cut whiskers were found!

After these six passes, I had no skin damage and my aftershave splash of Wahl Bay Rum mixed with Dickenson witch hazel showed me that I had no skin irritation.

What a shave and I loved every minute of it.

 

[Herrenberg]

Wow. I will have to do this one day, when I am feeling particularly inspired, or when I just can't stand to stop shaving.

 

[Titleist]

Congratulations. I never thought to count the shaves and two passes are good enough for me. To be honest, I have no idea what I would be shaving off past 3 passes. Maybe your beard grows faster than mine?

 

[rbscebu]

Congratulations. I never thought to count the shaves and two passes are good enough for me. To be honest, I have no idea what I would be shaving off past 3 passes. Maybe your beard grows faster than mine?

I also thought that maybe there would be nothing more to shave after my normal three passes. Try it. You might be surprised like I was.

I am still happy with my normal three-pass shave. That gives me what I want, a DFS+ result. I have no intention of doing more passes in my normal shaving routine.

I did this little experiment just to see what happens.

As for counting, that was easy. I know the date I started SR shaving and shave daily. There were a few days that I had to miss with those days being made up when I shaved twice in a day.

 

[Steve56]

Congrats!

 

[camoloc]

This morning was my 800th SR shave. I felt good and had the time to see if I could shave until I could see no more cut whiskers in my lather.

I normally now do not shave ATG except for a fool's pass. If Ido a full ATG pass, I have nothing to shave 24 hours later. My normal shaving progression is WTG, XTG+fool's pass and then a final XTG only in the opposite direction.

This morning I wanted to see how many XTG passes it would brake before I could see no cut whiskers in my lather. I use a wet sponge to wipe my blade while shaving so that I can see the cut whiskers.

Using my "Saturday" Titan 1918 ACRO T.H-70 and Proraso green cream face lathered, I performed my normal three-pass shave; WTG, XTG+fool's pass and XTG in opposite direction. Cut whiskers where observed in the lather with all passes. I then did another XTG pass in the same direction as the first. Some cut whiskers were still visible in the lather. A fifth XTG pass was then made in the other direction. This occasionally produced a cut whisker in the lather.

My final (sixth) pass was XTG in the same direction as the first. No cut whiskers were found!

After these six passes, I had no skin damage and my aftershave splash of Wahl Bay Rum mixed with Dickenson witch hazel showed me that I had no skin irritation.

What a shave and I loved every minute of it.

rookie !!!!

congrats

camo

 

[steveclarkus]

I’m coming up on four years in March so I should be over 1,400 shaves by then.

 

[PittViper]

This morning was my 800th SR shave. I felt good and had the time to see if I could shave until I could see no more cut whiskers in my lather.

I normally now do not shave ATG except for a fool's pass. If Ido a full ATG pass, I have nothing to shave 24 hours later. My normal shaving progression is WTG, XTG+fool's pass and then a final XTG only in the opposite direction.

This morning I wanted to see how many XTG passes it would brake before I could see no cut whiskers in my lather. I use a wet sponge to wipe my blade while shaving so that I can see the cut whiskers.

Using my "Saturday" Titan 1918 ACRO T.H-70 and Proraso green cream face lathered, I performed my normal three-pass shave; WTG, XTG+fool's pass and XTG in opposite direction. Cut whiskers where observed in the lather with all passes. I then did another XTG pass in the same direction as the first. Some cut whiskers were still visible in the lather. A fifth XTG pass was then made in the other direction. This occasionally produced a cut whisker in the lather.

My final (sixth) pass was XTG in the same direction as the first. No cut whiskers were found!

After these six passes, I had no skin damage and my aftershave splash of Wahl Bay Rum mixed with Dickenson witch hazel showed me that I had no skin irritation.

What a shave and I loved every minute of it.

I've been searching for xtg sr shaving techniques. I cannot seem to find on the site here exactly how to hold the sr for this. I wear a stubble beard year round with a mustache, so my main shaving is top of cheeks and half way under the chin all the way down. I just can't seem to find out how to both hold the razor, and position the skin in this area to shave xtg. I really want to learn how to do this. Was a breeze with a DE, but, now I'm with the big boys, lol. If you can point me in any tutorial direction for doing xtg in the below the chin/neck area, I'd really appreciate it. Thanks!

 

[Bobbers]

So with such a complete whisker removal it will you even have to shave tomorrow?

 

[rbscebu]

So with such a complete whisker removal it will you even have to shave tomorrow?

When I occasionally go for a BBS result with a SR, I have nothing to shave 24 hours late. I then have to wait a further 12 hours until I can feel some roughness ATG.

 

[steveclarkus]

This morning was my 800th SR shave. I felt good and had the time to see if I could shave until I could see no more cut whiskers in my lather.

I normally now do not shave ATG except for a fool's pass. If Ido a full ATG pass, I have nothing to shave 24 hours later. My normal shaving progression is WTG, XTG+fool's pass and then a final XTG only in the opposite direction.

This morning I wanted to see how many XTG passes it would brake before I could see no cut whiskers in my lather. I use a wet sponge to wipe my blade while shaving so that I can see the cut whiskers.

Using my "Saturday" Titan 1918 ACRO T.H-70 and Proraso green cream face lathered, I performed my normal three-pass shave; WTG, XTG+fool's pass and XTG in opposite direction. Cut whiskers where observed in the lather with all passes. I then did another XTG pass in the same direction as the first. Some cut whiskers were still visible in the lather. A fifth XTG pass was then made in the other direction. This occasionally produced a cut whisker in the lather.

My final (sixth) pass was XTG in the same direction as the first. No cut whiskers were found!

After these six passes, I had no skin damage and my aftershave splash of Wahl Bay Rum mixed with Dickenson witch hazel showed me that I had no skin irritation.

What a shave and I loved every minute of it.

Sounds like OCD to me

 

[rbscebu]

Sounds like OCD to me

You get that when you SR shave .

 

[PittViper]

So with such a complete whisker removal it will you even have to shave tomorrow?

I don't shave every day anyway, so that is not the point. I just see so many posts about people shaving xtg, that I wonder how they do it? I don't see how I can pull a SR razor across my lower face/neck sideways. I'm sure there is a way, but I would like to see a video or some advice on technique to even do this. It's not that I want or need to, it's just that I'm curious, as I am about everything.

Viper

 

[Darth Scandalous]

I don't shave every day anyway, so that is not the point. I just see so many posts about people shaving xtg, that I wonder how they do it? I don't see how I can pull a SR razor across my lower face/neck sideways. I'm sure there is a way, but I would like to see a video or some advice on technique to even do this. It's not that I want or need to, it's just that I'm curious, as I am about everything.

Viper

Short answer, it may not be easy below the jaw line. (XTG is easy for me because the whiskers grow basically left to right down there). ATG is my challenge.

Two things you can do. One, it's stretch as much skin upward over the jawbone as you can and shave across it while it's relatively flat above the jawbone and on the apex of the jawbone. Depending on how much slack is in your jowl that may be quite a bit. Second, for the lower parts of the neck, hold the blade as close to vertical as you can, either toe up or toe down while getting decent contact with a fair portion of the blade.. This will probably be in the neighborhood of 30 degrees from vertical depending on your facial proportions. Maybe even further from vertical if you're avoiding the edge of your beard. The key here is to make your stroke horizontal regardless of the angle of the blade.

If you're going toe up, from ear to chin, I find it easier to use the opposite hand. So left hand for right side and vice versa. Chin to ear seems to work better with the same hand as the side you're working on. At least for me. Experiment and you'll find what works. If I'm doing it with the toe down, I open the razor as far as it will go, so the spine is hitting the scales back by the tang, and I hold it by the scales near the pivot. Most of the work will be done by the heel of the razor in this orientation. Warning, this is a challenging shave stroke for me. Easy to nick yourself if you're not careful. Probably experiment with toe up, razor open 270 degrees, to start.

 

[PittViper]

Short answer, it may not be easy below the jaw line. (XTG is easy for me because the whiskers grow basically left to right down there). ATG is my challenge.

Two things you can do. One, it's stretch as much skin upward over the jawbone as you can and shave across it while it's relatively flat above the jawbone and on the apex of the jawbone. Depending on how much slack is in your jowl that may be quite a bit. Second, for the lower parts of the neck, hold the blade as close to vertical as you can, either toe up or toe down while getting decent contact with a fair portion of the blade.. This will probably be in the neighborhood of 30 degrees from vertical depending on your facial proportions. Maybe even further from vertical if you're avoiding the edge of your beard. The key here is to make your stroke horizontal regardless of the angle of the blade.

If you're going toe up, from ear to chin, I find it easier to use the opposite hand. So left hand for right side and vice versa. Chin to ear seems to work better with the same hand as the side you're working on. At least for me. Experiment and you'll find what works. If I'm doing it with the toe down, I open the razor as far as it will go, so the spine is hitting the scales back by the tang, and I hold it by the scales near the pivot. Most of the work will be done by the heel of the razor in this orientation. Warning, this is a challenging shave stroke for me. Easy to nick yourself if you're not careful. Probably experiment with toe up, razor open 270 degrees, to start.

Hey,

Thanks for the very cogent reply! Unfortunately, I wear a stubble beard year round, and my stubble extends to about 2" below my jaw line, so your first option of stretching the skin upwards toward the jaw bone wont work. My whiskers, at least where I need to shave my lower portion under my jaw and neck, mostly grow straight down, except in two areas, each side of the addams apple, which grow somewhat sideways, and I have been experimenting with techniques to tackle those two small areas. First couple of times, I got razor burn in those 2 areas pretty badly (do to poor technique), but have managed to avoid that as of late.

Addressing your second suggestion, I just can't seem to figure out exactly how to use a SR to shave horizontally on slanted skin. I guess I will have to practice, but I, at the moment, just don't see how it can be done for me. I find to shave the lower 2" below the jaw down to where the hair stops growing atg (after first pass wtg), is my ultimate goal. That is where my current razor struggles. Sure, close shave, but the razor seems to be somewhat dull and definitely not up to the task. I feel I have to exert way more pressure than I feel is necessary with the blade to achieve atg. But, new razor coming soon, so we'll see if that changes.

Also, I am right hand dominant, but doing reading on here, I have adopted the method of using both hands to hold the SR. Was a challenge at first, but getting used to it now. So, for example, if I'm shaving the left side of my face, I hold with the left (non dominant) hand. Was a weird feeling at first as that hand is rarely used for much in my case, but I did adapt.

You insights have been valuable. I have found that if I can just get two passes wtg in most areas, the closeness is enough for me. Not seeking BBS shave! But, what I hope to adopt and use is one wtg pass, then one atg pass, and that's it. Since the razor I have is not up to that challenge, I am hoping the Dovo I have coming I think today from Maggard's will solve that problem.

Thanks so much for replying and giving me your insights.

Just an aside....For the decades I DE shaved with a Merkur, I did use all three types of passes. It was far easier as the blade is both not as wide, and I am actually holding a handle. Learning curve of holding a SR is very pronounced.

Viper

 

[Darth Scandalous]

A video would be worth a thousand word here, but to distill what I said last night: the orientation of the blade is at the mercy of your neck contours. The direction of the stroke is not, as much. On much of the face, the stroke direction can be perpendicular to to the cutting edge. In this case it is not. Make your cutting strokes in the direction you want to shave, orient the razor to fit your neck contours. It's easy to get nicks or irritation this way until you get comfortable with it.

Although in your situation it may not be worth it. I wore a beard for years and used a straight to edge it, and just did north/south and south/north.

 

[rbscebu]

I don't shave every day anyway, so that is not the point. I just see so many posts about people shaving xtg, that I wonder how they do it? I don't see how I can pull a SR razor across my lower face/neck sideways. I'm sure there is a way, but I would like to see a video or some advice on technique to even do this. It's not that I want or need to, it's just that I'm curious, as I am about everything.

Viper

It all depends on your whisker growth directions. Most of the whiskers on my neck and cheeks grow horizontally from the centre of my face/throat out. This means that, for me, XTG in those areas is N-S and S-N. The growth direction on my upper lip and chin is N-S so XTG there is E-W and W-E. I don't do an XTG on my uppe

 

[PittViper]

Hi,

Thanks for the replies. I got my Ralf Aust yesterday from Maggard's. The scales are horn.

I will use it for the first time today.

A question for all though: what type of horn is used in scales? I read somewhere buffalo, ox, or ram
Now, this is the stupid part of my question... I have seen live buffalo, but not ever a ra.lm or ox. The scales are not super dark, sort of a mid dark progressing to lighter in color. I will post a pic in a little bit.

I am vastly unfamiliar with making anything from horn, and except for this acquisition, have nothing else containing hirn6. How can one definitively know the type of horn?

Thanks, and I'll post a pic in a while...

Vioer

 

[PittViper]

Hi,

Thanks for the replies. I got my Ralf Aust yesterday from Maggard's. The scales are horn.

I will use it for the first time today.

A question for all though: what type of horn is used in scales? I read somewhere buffalo, ox, or ram
Now, this is the stupid part of my question... I have seen live buffalo, but not ever a ra.lm or ox. The scales are not super dark, sort of a mid dark progressing to lighter in color. I will post a pic in a little bit.

I am vastly unfamiliar with making anything from horn, and except for this acquisition, have nothing else containing hirn6. How can one definitively know the type of horn?

Thanks, and I'll post a pic in a while...

Viper

EDIT: Sorry for the crappy pic!

 

[PittViper]

BTW, sorry for the crappy pic!