Some things I "learned" that weren't true.

[Gafer]

This site provides a wealth of information but let me share some things that I "learned" here only to find out they weren't true for me:

1) You must rinse your face between each pass.
This simply isn't true. In fact, if you rinse your face between passes and you don't wipe the excess moisture from your face you end up in effect adding more water to your lather as you relather before each pass. After 3 passes you're likely to find you have thin, runny lather. When I started wet shaving I couldn't understand why I had this thin soupy lather by the end of my shave. I quit rinsing between passes and my problem was solved.

2) You must shower before shaving to get a good shave.
I've found this to not be true at all. I get my best shaves before showering.

3) The lather is in the brush, not the bowl.
This one messed with me for the longest time. Look, if you're using a smallish brush (20mm with 45mm loft) there is NO WAY this brush is going to hold enough lather for a four pass shave. Enter the shaving scuttle or bowl. The excess lather goes in there and I dip it like a paint pot. I was told this was sacrilege but it works for me.

4) Using hair conditioner on your beard before shaving softens your whiskers for a better shave.
I've tried this over and over but can't tell one bit of difference between using a conditioner or not.

5) You must use alum or witch hazel after shaving.
Honestly? The whole idea of alum or witch hazel seems so anachronistically cool but in the end, they just don't do much for me.

6) Feather blades are too sharp for beginners.
I'd say that most beginners quit because they didn't use a blade that was sharp enough. I tried and tried and tried to use Derby blades when I started. It wasn't until I tried a Feather blade that I learned that the tugging, pulling and irritation I was getting had nothing to do with my technique and everything to do with the fact that for my whiskers a Derby just isn't sharp enough. Don't fear the Feather.

7) A slant bar is not for a beginner.
I've found a slant to be the easiest razor to use of the dozen or so I have tried. For me, the geometry of the head takes care of the blade angle so all I have to keep in mind is light touch. Don't fear the slant.

 

[Luc]

Nice!

 

[joshmpdx]

Excellent post!

after reading Kyles prep article so long ago, it always Irks me to see fella's recommend conditioner as a preshave.

 

[talibeard]

Though there is a lot of information to be found here that is mostly true, there is also a lot going around about personal preferences. Some of them even bizarre.

I absolutely agree with the OP on most points btw and especially on the shower thing and the blades. Too much mythical proportions given to both Feather blades and the Slant. They are just tools to be mastered, you might or might not succeed in doing so, and nothing more!

Nice post.

 

[Sfbagger]

Hah!
Well done!

Still working through my Derbys,
Jeff

 

[wsfarrell]

Agree on the Feathers. I was scared witless the first time I tried one, but got the best shave of my life, no cuts, no irritation.

 

[vegaskid74]

Feather blades are too sharp for beginners.
I'd say that most beginners quit because they didn't use a blade that was sharp enough. I tried and tried and tried to use Derby blades when I started. It wasn't until I tried a Feather blade that I learned that the tugging, pulling and irritation I was getting had nothing to do with my technique and everything to do with the fact that for my whiskers a Derby just isn't sharp enough. Don't fear the Feather.

This is a great point. While I was working through my blade sampler trying all of the mild blades first (because it's common knowledge that newbs should not be using aggressive blades), I kept thinking, "This sucks. My $0.20 Wal Mart plastic twin-blade disposables shave better than this." Then I popped in a Feather as a last resort, and the clouds parted. I popped a Super Iridium in soon after, and I heard angels singing. No kidding, that's exactly how it happened.

 

[TonyH]

Great post, and I agree with every point. Sometimes on B&B "my preferred method" can sometimes become "the only right way to do it". Well done on figuring these things out for yourself!

 

[Drubbing]

I don't think any of those things have ever been carved in stone, the way you have written them suggests otherwise.

But they are good start points for beginners, most of which have some issues that these may help with. Some, or all of those points may be true for others. Everyone finds their own way after a while.

After over a year, I still can't tolerate Feathers when I give them another try, and sold my slant ages ago too. I don't use a bowl, so if the lather isn't in my brush, it isn't anywhere. I do rinse between each pass because I like to add more water and get at the remaining lather lurking deep in my brush. I shower at night and shave in the mornings.

YMMV.

 

[Optometrist]

Some great pointers. I totally agree on the feathers. I would recommend starting with a feather blade. The quickest way to learn angle and zero pressure is to use a blade that's sharp, and more easily cuts you when you get it wrong. I always rinse between passes. If you load enough product onto the brush initially, it should not dilute to an unacceptable after 3 passes, even when rinsing.

David

 

[Mumon]

Agreed. I liken it to using a knive in cooking: the sharper the better.

 

[Go West Young Man]

I think you've mistook suggestions for rules. Everything on your list falls under YMMV, none of them should ever be taken as hard and fast rules.

 

[ackvil]

I think you've mistook suggestions for rules. Everything on your list falls under YMMV, none of them should ever be taken as hard and fast rules.

+1. Every person is different and I am glad you have found what works for you.

 

[Gafer]

I think you've mistook suggestions for rules. Everything on your list falls under YMMV, none of them should ever be taken as hard and fast rules.

Certainly EVERYTHING around here, every thread, every post every sentence falls under YMMV. That said, there are definitely some concepts that are passed along as though they are universal facts. "Noobies shouldn't use Feather blades" is probably one of the more common. This well int3ended "suggestion" or whatever you call it nearly lead to me quitting wet shaving. Only because I finally chose to ignore this advice did I finally have a real breakthrough. So, the point of this thread was not to debate suggestions vs rules but rather to encourage our newbies to experiment with every "suggestion" they find here - even those that come off as "rules". Mostly, I'm just sharing what works for me and as always, YMMV.

 

[Pkrankow]

1) You must rinse your face between each pass.
I wipe with a wash cloth to determine where I had good performance and where I had poor performance. My face is not dripping wet like when I start, but it is not dry either.

2) You must shower before shaving to get a good shave.
Eh...

3) The lather is in the brush, not the bowl.
My brush holds plenty for a 2 pass shave with touch ups. When face lathering I get enough, and when bowl/scuttle lathering the bowl is rather clean.

4) Using hair conditioner on your beard before shaving softens your whiskers for a better shave.
Eh...

5) You must use alum or witch hazel after shaving.
Witch hazel feels good to me.

6) Feather blades are too sharp for beginners.
Don't fear the Feather.

Very true.

7) A slant bar is not for a beginner.
no opinion as I have never used a slant

8) You have to have a badger brush
Cheap badgers suck. In the under $20 price point you get get an awesome Omega boar that will break in to be incredibly soft, or a horrible scritchy clipped "pure" badger that will always be scritchy and mediocre.

As always YMMV

Phil

 

[kg4ghn]

This site provides a wealth of information but let me share some things that I "learned" here only to find out they weren't true for me:

1) You must rinse your face between each pass.
This simply isn't true. In fact, if you rinse your face between passes and you don't wipe the excess moisture from your face you end up in effect adding more water to your lather as you relather before each pass. After 3 passes you're likely to find you have thin, runny lather. When I started wet shaving I couldn't understand why I had this thin soupy lather by the end of my shave. I quit rinsing between passes and my problem was solved.


I agree with this, I don't rinse between passes. I also haven't seen it on here that you MUST do this. I hadn't even heard of this until after being here awhile. Maybe I wasn't paying attention.

2) You must shower before shaving to get a good shave.
I've found this to not be true at all. I get my best shaves before showering.

This one is true for me. I have not been able to get good shaves without taking a shower first. The 3 or 4 times I have tried turned out horrible.

3) The lather is in the brush, not the bowl.
This one messed with me for the longest time. Look, if you're using a smallish brush (20mm with 45mm loft) there is NO WAY this brush is going to hold enough lather for a four pass shave. Enter the shaving scuttle or bowl. The excess lather goes in there and I dip it like a paint pot. I was told this was sacrilege but it works for me.

I get enough for a four pass shave in my brush face lathering. Sometimes I have to squeeze the last bit out, but usually it's fine.

4) Using hair conditioner on your beard before shaving softens your whiskers for a better shave.
I've tried this over and over but can't tell one bit of difference between using a conditioner or not.

I haven't really noticed any difference here either, although to be fair I have only tried using the 2-in-1 shampoo/conditioner I usually use.

5) You must use alum or witch hazel after shaving.
Honestly? The whole idea of alum or witch hazel seems so anachronistically cool but in the end, they just don't do much for me.

I don't think you have to use either. I use an alum block for better grip for skin stretching when using a straight and that's about it. I love the way witch hazel feels but I can't get over the smell. Regular AS works fine for me.

6) Feather blades are too sharp for beginners.
I'd say that most beginners quit because they didn't use a blade that was sharp enough. I tried and tried and tried to use Derby blades when I started. It wasn't until I tried a Feather blade that I learned that the tugging, pulling and irritation I was getting had nothing to do with my technique and everything to do with the fact that for my whiskers a Derby just isn't sharp enough. Don't fear the Feather.

It's just a razor blade. No need to be scared of it. It isn't a good blade for my face, but it wasn't horrible. Your face is not going to melt or fall off because you are using one.

7) A slant bar is not for a beginner.
I've found a slant to be the easiest razor to use of the dozen or so I have tried. For me, the geometry of the head takes care of the blade angle so all I have to keep in mind is light touch. Don't fear the slant.

Never used a slant, can't comment.

My comments in red.

 

[rickcharles606]

Yeah, great post. Just goes to show you that a great shave is a personal experience

 

[Peterfazekas]

I discoverd your first post myself, when i bowl lather (always) the rinsing messes up my lather. I can see how it could work much better with face lathering though.

 

[AdrianR]

Like many rituals that have an air of 'sacredness' to them, shaving has many myths around it. I think that many of these myths are continued by newcomers who cannot (or will not) understand the truism 'YMMV' - that what works for me may not work for you.

Add to this mix, the expectations of those moving from the world of cartridge-and-goop to DE. They may have come to understand that DE shaving will be cheaper, closer, less irritating, bring world peace and give them rock-hard abs. They may fail to understand the need to travel slowly along their own particular learning curve and forgo instant gratification - that to acquire any new skill takes time.

So, shortcuts develop and get passed on - becoming changed in the process, like Chinese whispers. Without the critical thinking skill to sort wheat from chaff (that is, to understand 'YMMV' and adapt accordingly), some folk will adopt these methods and swear by them - just as they may have sworn by cartridges and goop - without having knowledge of alternatives.

Fortunately, we have excellent fora - such as B&B - to help each other combat ignorance and unthinkingness.

 

[OriginalCrash]

Good post, some good points... I myself will probably make the jump and get a slant bar razor soon... I'm enjoying using a DE razor so far but on some areas (especially my chin) I just can't seem to get my Feather Portable to glide smoothly... and that's after experimenting with a few of the 'sharper' blades and playing with lather consistencies. I'm hoping the design of the slant bar will help it slice through there more easily... and without slicing off too much skin in the process.