My first ever attempt at shaving ATG! (It burns a bit)

[Phoenixkh]

There are a couple of things that might have contributes to your irritation.

1. The BIC chrome platinum blade is one of the sharpest available. Thus, they can cause irritation if the remainder of your shave procedure is not correct.

2. Proraso Red produces a suitable lather for many people, but it does not provide a high level of cushion/protection for those with sensitive skin. Proraso is a below average soap according to my evaluations. If you are going to try to shave ATG with BIC blade, you need to upgrade your lather. There are plenty of options available.

I experienced the same thing with Proraso White... I was adding a little glycerin to help it along but in the end, I had added some much better soaps/creams so I gave it to our youngest son. He only shaves around his beard so has a less challenging shave.

 

[fishepa]

I wish you the best of luck. I still haven't mustered up the courage to go ATG. If my WTG and XTG 2 pass shave is a B on the baby butt smoothness scale I'm good with that.

 

[LRod]

I wish you the best of luck. I still haven't mustered up the courage to go ATG. If my WTG and XTG 2 pass shave is a B on the baby butt smoothness scale I'm good with that.

LOL, that's me!
I've been happy with my 2 passes but decided to do the experiment. I might just stick to what I know and then later on at some point, try it again.

 

[RayClem]

I don't only use Proraso but when I do I get good slickness out of it. So far I've been good with the Bic's as well but maybe will try a different blade.

Like I said, Proraso is OK for many people. If your skin is not sensitive, it might work just fine. However, you indicated that you got irritation. Thus, you either need a better soap or a blade that is not quite as sharp as BIC.

 

[Phoenixkh]

Like I said, Proraso is OK for many people. If your skin is not sensitive, it might work just fine. However, you indicated that you got irritation. Thus, you either need a better soap or a blade that is not quite as sharp as BIC.

RayClem,

Your name comes up often here... always attached with affection and respect.. in regards to soaps and creams. I haven't looked but do you have a thread where you pass on the knowledge on soap and cream selections you've gained over the years?

I know I should just use "search".....

 

[dmshaver]

Good for you for trying ATG! As others have said, watch your razor angle & stretch your skin. Oh, & no pressure!

 

[pipskicks]

If it doesn't go well, don't let the people here make you feel bad about it my hair grows in all directions and ATG doesn't go well for me usually and doesn't make a noticeable enough difference for me to work on it. I do go sideways but not fully ATG.

 

[musicman1951]

There are a few possibilities, including just a little more practice needed. But another possibility is that you have sections of skin that virtually refuse to tolerate ATG.

Most of my beard is fine with it, but my upper lip will not stand for ATG. But I find that blade buffing XTG gets me nearly the same results.

There is more than one way to skin a beard, keep experimenting.

 

[Benzadmiral]

Another thing to try... skip your XTG pass and substitute the ATG pass. I did that... less irritation, better end results. I was doing a three pass shave with some buffing around problem areas.... skipping the XTG pass seems to be working for me. And I have a pretty coarse beard... old man, grey whiskers.

Experimentation is part of the fun in traditional wet shaving.

I've found that XTG works better for me, on my throat anyway, if I've done a WTG and then an ATG pass first.

 

[Phoenixkh]

There are a few possibilities, including just a little more practice needed. But another possibility is that you have sections of skin that virtually refuse to tolerate ATG.

Most of my beard is fine with it, but my upper lip will not stand for ATG. But I find that blade buffing XTG gets me nearly the same results.

There is more than one way to skin a beard, keep experimenting.

I do do a few ATG strokes up to the bottom of my nose because that the only way I can seem to get close enough to get it all. But I'm with you.. I use various angles of cross grain strokes for my upper lip. Add to that, I have a few bumps just outside my upper lip area that I can catch if I'm not careful.... I have learned where they are with a bit of blood letting. They are barely visible until I catch them with the blade.... they show up pretty quickly then. <eg>

 

[Vespasian]

I finish every shave by going ATG across my neck; no other technique gets me a close enough shave to be satisfied with. It can be a little irritating. I find that LOTS of lather helps quite a bit. But I don't shave every day, and I keep my TFS balm handy.