I don't do ATG passes anymore because of irritation, etc. I (mostly) listen to what my dad told me about DE shaving and "always go down," except for my Gillette Slide pass, which is sideways and down simultaneously.
Does anybody else find themselves just unable to shave ATG?
- Thread starter Cygnus
- Start date
I love the smooth feel after an ATG pass, but I do have to be careful. Some razor/blade combinations do irritate the hell out of my skin going ATG.
S
stubble trouble
Jeff,
funny you should mention an "always go down rule" I always thought the same thing, but I didn't realize that the bottom 3/4ths of my neck switches grain direction and I can only shave "up." Literally, i tried for three months to use down / downward angled passes on my neck. The result was almost always unsightly redness and irritation that forced me to be a nightime shaver (it would take until the morning to look presentable / stop burning). I'm glad I finally had enough and tried that first upward pass, because now I can shave right before work, splash on some decent asl, and have a near BBS shave that looks and feels awesome. If i forget, and even try a downward pass on one side of my neck, it will hurt for at least a day. My neck skin is extremely sensitive, though. In contrast, a downward pass on my FACE is probably the most comfortable pass of the whole shave. I'm so glad I finally made this distinction in grain direction / pass technique. Otherwise, I'd still be blaming the redness on the wrong prep, pre products, blades, alcohol, fragrances, oils and everything else.
scott
scott
funny you should mention an "always go down rule" I always thought the same thing, but I didn't realize that the bottom 3/4ths of my neck switches grain direction and I can only shave "up." Literally, i tried for three months to use down / downward angled passes on my neck. The result was almost always unsightly redness and irritation that forced me to be a nightime shaver (it would take until the morning to look presentable / stop burning). I'm glad I finally had enough and tried that first upward pass, because now I can shave right before work, splash on some decent asl, and have a near BBS shave that looks and feels awesome. If i forget, and even try a downward pass on one side of my neck, it will hurt for at least a day. My neck skin is extremely sensitive, though. In contrast, a downward pass on my FACE is probably the most comfortable pass of the whole shave. I'm so glad I finally made this distinction in grain direction / pass technique. Otherwise, I'd still be blaming the redness on the wrong prep, pre products, blades, alcohol, fragrances, oils and everything else.
scott
scott
Thought I'd chime in once more to say I've been successfully going ATG when I dial the Slim back to a 3.
Perhaps I'll save the ATG passes for only those times when I need a super close shave and when I'm using the slim. I might try it now and again with other razors I have, but unless they are of the mild variety I don't think its going to work otherwise.
YMMV.
I shave ATG all the time, and I love it . . . but I'm using Dorco ST300 blades. I think this makes the difference.
Scritch. Scritch. Scritch. That sound makes me feel good.
Scritch. Scritch. Scritch. That sound makes me feel good.
+1, but Mantic does mention "if it's good enough, stop here" after each pass in his "10 minute wetshave" video. That's the advice that actually made me think, "you know, this is totally acceptable" after a single pass, which converted me to the single-pass WTG shave. And it is still much better than a cartridge shave--so one blade gets me a closer shave than multiple, and thus far, that goes for Merkurs, Gillette Yellow packs, Astras and Bics! I'm working my way through a sampler, and they've all been better than cartridges and done just fine for a single pass. I expect this trend to continue, as you noted Pogo, it's a poor workman.
This is what I'm going for. I allow myself touch ups, but the goal is a perfect single pass shave. In fact, I use the touch ups to think very carefully about that patch of skin and consider why it didn't get shaved properly. Then, the next shave, I watch for that patch. I have a pretty long list of patches to be careful about, and an ever growing toolbox of techniques to get each nook and cranny of my face shaved clean the first time. It's really fun, and there's always something more to tweak and improve on.
My wife can tell, but then my beard growth is measured in units of sandpaper grit per hour. However, she finds a single pass acceptably smooth as well, so while she'd like me to get closer, she's much happier with my DE shaves than any I've ever had before. Even if I am still a little scratchy (and green around the chin, but that doesn't go away even when I get a BBS--I have a Homer Simpson perma-shadow).
Ha!
P
Pogo
3eff Jeff,
Thanks for your reply.
I didn't remember Mantic saying, "if it's good enough, stop here" after the first pass in his "10 Minute Wetshave" video. Glad you pointed it out. Now I don't feel like an apostate.
To avoid irritation, I limit myself to with-the-grain shaving. Going across-the-grain and against-the-grain are certain to bestow ingrowns, burn, and folliculitis. In the unlikely situation where I would need a special shave, I would do two with-the-grain passes; but in my dotage those events occur less than once-a-year.
The advantages of double-edge razors, notwithstanding, I'm still fond of Bic Sensitive disposable razors. You might be interested in my review: http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?ltr=B&t=80911.
You will see in other threads that some members use multiblade razors with good results after they've improved their techniques. Shaving mindfully seems to be the key. I think we agree that it's the operator's technique, not his instrument, that gives the good shave. You can't buy yourself into a good shave. This approach also forestalls the acquisition disorders.
My wife of 42 years is able to see minor (read negligible) residual stubble-patches after my shaves when I point them out to her but she says they're not significant and discourages me from pursuing them (touch-ups) at the cost of skin irritation.
I've abandoned the notion of a "perfect single pass shave," or a perfect mutiple-pass shave, or a perfect anything. I used to chase perfection but found it only fed OCD, was too costly, remained continually out-of-reach, and was an annoying and ever-present shadow of dissatisfaction. Apropos shaves, and many other things, I find "good-enough" is a more comfortable way to go. Ultimately, everyone must find his or her level of "good enough."
Still, working on small improvements every day keeps shaving, and life, interesting. The corollary to that is I find it comforting that I'll never reach perfection and have to maintain it. It's more satisfying for me to know there will always be something I can enjoy working on.
Hope my maundering helps.
Pogo
Thanks for your reply.
I didn't remember Mantic saying, "if it's good enough, stop here" after the first pass in his "10 Minute Wetshave" video. Glad you pointed it out. Now I don't feel like an apostate.
To avoid irritation, I limit myself to with-the-grain shaving. Going across-the-grain and against-the-grain are certain to bestow ingrowns, burn, and folliculitis. In the unlikely situation where I would need a special shave, I would do two with-the-grain passes; but in my dotage those events occur less than once-a-year.
The advantages of double-edge razors, notwithstanding, I'm still fond of Bic Sensitive disposable razors. You might be interested in my review: http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?ltr=B&t=80911.
You will see in other threads that some members use multiblade razors with good results after they've improved their techniques. Shaving mindfully seems to be the key. I think we agree that it's the operator's technique, not his instrument, that gives the good shave. You can't buy yourself into a good shave. This approach also forestalls the acquisition disorders.
My wife of 42 years is able to see minor (read negligible) residual stubble-patches after my shaves when I point them out to her but she says they're not significant and discourages me from pursuing them (touch-ups) at the cost of skin irritation.
I've abandoned the notion of a "perfect single pass shave," or a perfect mutiple-pass shave, or a perfect anything. I used to chase perfection but found it only fed OCD, was too costly, remained continually out-of-reach, and was an annoying and ever-present shadow of dissatisfaction. Apropos shaves, and many other things, I find "good-enough" is a more comfortable way to go. Ultimately, everyone must find his or her level of "good enough."
Still, working on small improvements every day keeps shaving, and life, interesting. The corollary to that is I find it comforting that I'll never reach perfection and have to maintain it. It's more satisfying for me to know there will always be something I can enjoy working on.
Hope my maundering helps.
Pogo
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