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pressure?

Chef455

Head Cheese Head Chef
What is you setup? Razor, blade, brush, soap/cream? How many passes? Have you mapped out your beard growth? How long have you been using a DE razor? More info and I think we can help.
 
cheftain by viking revolution and their japanese steel de razors generic brush proraso sensitive cream and sandalwood shaving cream. i usually do 3-4 passes. i nave not mapped it out. using it for the last 2 weeks
 
im missing stubble while shaving with not using pressure on the razor to myface. how do you all get past that
Try experimenting with the shaving angle. Your razor has a range of angles at which it is effective, from "riding the cap" (shallow angle) to "riding the guard" (steep angle). If you are shaving with the razor outside that range of angles, you won't get a close shave.

By applying more pressure, you widen the effective shaving angle, but are more likely to get irritation. Applying pressure is compensating for poorly controlled angles, but this is not really the best technique.

If you are used to cartridge razors, they have a built-in pivot. They adjust the shaving angle for you. With your DE, you have to control all that manually, which will take some practice.
 
"No pressure" doesn't mean literally no pressure. It's meant to suggest not to apply excessive pressure.

Finding that sweet spot between the optimal angle and the amount of pressure needed for each pass is the art.

Pls note that a different amount of pressure is needed for different passes. Say WTG, you can "let the weight of the razor do the work"... well, at least with some (heavy) razors you can. OTOH, going ATG will certainly require some amount of pressure.

As always it is YMMV, as thickness of hair and density of growth varies greatly, as well as skin sensitivity. Some folks can get a BBS with a single WTG pass, they are the guys who use the same blade for 50+ shaves. Others, need a fresh blade for each shave, as they have stubble like Chewbacca. Most people are somewhere "in between".

You might want to try stretching your skin and puffing your cheeks to get the stubble to protrude out of the hair follicle. It makes hair stand more upright, instead parallel to the skin and so it's easier to attack it and obtain that BBS.
 

musicman1951

three-tu-tu, three-tu-tu
There is nothing wrong with bearing down on that handle with a fair amount of pressure - as long as you like a face full of irritation.

But let's assume that you don't. I agree with the razor/blade angle suggestions and suspect you're close, but not 100% on the money. Experiment: move the handle closer to your face, and then the other direction. It should be pretty easy to tell which one works better.

If you have not purchased a blade sampler I suggest you do. It's possible the blade/razor combination you're using is too mild for your beard.

Is the missed stubble something you can see, or only feel. I wouldn't be in a big hurry to do daily BBS shaves until you're happy with your technique, which takes everyone a while. But if you're doing 3 or 4 passes and you feel the razor angle is pretty good, I'd try a sharper blade.

I use a pretty heavy razor, but all through my shave I remind myself to use less pressure. On down strokes I try and use less than the weight of the razor. I don't know that I actually achieve that, but that's my concept. Pressure is not the answer to your stubble problem.
 
Try experimenting with the shaving angle...

By applying more pressure, you widen the effective shaving angle, but are more likely to get irritation. Applying pressure is compensating for poorly controlled angles, but this is not really the best technique

+2! Yes indeed! It can take awhile to find the optimal approach for a particular razor. :thumbup: :thumbup:
 
would using too little pressure cause razor burn?
Not likely to. It is usually too much pressure, not using a good lather, going over the same area again and again too many times striving for a BBS, going against the grain when your skin can't deal with it, etc.

When people start out in this, they tend to believe they must get a BBS result or else they have "failed". You don't have to have a BBS shave, just aim for a close, comfortable shave to start with. You will get closer with practice. Try doing no more than three passes, or even two passes, plus some touch-ups.
 
Not likely to. It is usually too much pressure, not using a good lather, going over the same area again and again too many times striving for a BBS, going against the grain when your skin can't deal with it, etc.

When people start out in this, they tend to believe they must get a BBS result or else they have "failed". You don't have to have a BBS shave, just aim for a close, comfortable shave to start with. You will get closer with practice. Try doing no more than three passes, or even two passes, plus some touch-ups.
i did 3 with touch ups i have the bad habit of going overthe same spot a few times with no lather on it. just shaved using a very little pressure and very short strokes and got a nearly irritation free shave, even going against the grain after shaving yesterday! must be on the right track
also using cornhuskers lotion as a pre-shave has helped though id like to get a good one
 
i did 3 with touch ups i have the bad habit of going overthe same spot a few times with no lather on it. just shaved using a very little pressure and very short strokes and got a nearly irritation free shave, even going against the grain after shaving yesterday! must be on the right track
also using cornhuskers lotion as a pre-shave has helped though id like to get a good one
You will. It's just going to take some experimentation and practice, is all.
 
M

mtcn77

Be sure to try a tester pack.

I found more consistent shaves with a less than favourite brand. I find if the blade is too slippery, it skips across the face not delivering the bite needed to cut cleanly.
The blade can start pulling the beard if it does not cut evenly. It is both painful and you can hear the hair snapping like a cord!
You have to test the waters how much, or how little you need your blades in the quality of their sharpness.
If you can not cut at the base, it is also a form of tugging irritation, along with the shaving pressure irritation. Look to the stubble feeling to set them apart.
if you shave down at skin level where the hair is fully supported, the hair will shear off cleanly.

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If your blade starts lifting off your face, it will be bending the hair, digging in too high up the shaft of the hair, and pulling at the bulb down in the root of the hair.

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This can cause a lot of the problems with irritation and inflammation.
 
"No pressure" doesn't mean literally no pressure. It's meant to suggest not to apply excessive pressure.

Finding that sweet spot between the optimal angle and the amount of pressure needed for each pass is the art.

Pls note that a different amount of pressure is needed for different passes. Say WTG, you can "let the weight of the razor do the work"... well, at least with some (heavy) razors you can. OTOH, going ATG will certainly require some amount of pressure.

As always it is YMMV, as thickness of hair and density of growth varies greatly, as well as skin sensitivity. Some folks can get a BBS with a single WTG pass, they are the guys who use the same blade for 50+ shaves. Others, need a fresh blade for each shave, as they have stubble like Chewbacca. Most people are somewhere "in between".

You might want to try stretching your skin and puffing your cheeks to get the stubble to protrude out of the hair follicle. It makes hair stand more upright, instead parallel to the skin and so it's easier to attack it and obtain that BBS.
A+
 
No pressure doesn't literally mean zero pressure. It means not pushing the blade into your face. You want to keep the razor in contact with your skin without forcing it into your skin.
 
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