Razor feels like it's sticking

[sfeile]

[MENTION=84837]phoeg[/MENTION] Since this is happening to you mid-shave, my bet would be that it is the particular soap/cream combined with your skin.

You sound like you have a decent idea of how to make a good lather, since you get good results with some products. I get the same issue as you with certain products as well. My skin is very dry, worse this time of year when the snow is flying and the heaters are on.
My face tends to suck the moisture right out of certain products despite shaving right after a shower.

I have tried quite a few brands, and some are awesome for me, others get PIF'd. I give them an honest shot by adding more water to the mix, but there is a point that will make a lather useless as well. Also, too much glycerine and my face don't agree either, so that usually isn't an option either.

Bigelow creme is Proraso. That is a brand that I have an issue with. I have tried Bigelow and Proraso red in a tub and they both dry out horribly for me. Arko, Old Spice cream, Williams, VDH, as well as a few other big names give me problems also.

Captain's Choice works very well for me, as do most Razorock products I have tried. Cella, Soapy Bathman, Blades Grim, Sudsy Soapery, and Martin De Candre have all given me very good results as well.

My favorite for performance on my skin has been Mystic Waters. Very slick soap that feels great on my skin post shave. Scents are good, great longevity in a tub, and a decent price as well.

Bottom line, seemingly having the same issue as you, I don't think it is your lather making ability. Give the trouble soaps a fair shake, then move on. They won't all work well for you, but trying new things is part of the fun of this.

 

[John Rose]

If you have a cream you enjoy and want to get the slickness up, you can also give yourself a quick hit with a soap stick like arko before the cream and make a super lather. It's never a bad thing to play around and experiment with a product to find out how to get the most out of it. Good luck!

I've been doing that with a Speick stick, followed by various bowl-lathered soaps, and it works really well for me. Even rubbing on a well-bloomed puck of Williams before brushing on the Williams lather works too.
Just don't try using Pear's bath bar soap for that, even if it does have glycerin. Worst. Burn. Ever.

 

[phoeg]

I think I found the problem: not enough cream. This morning I used the remainder of my sample, which was just a bit more than I used the other day. With about the same amount of water the difference was huge.

I likely won't buy the full size of Crown—because I don't care for the DoubleMint gum scent and, I have numerous other soaps & creams I really like —but I nevertheless got an excellent shave this morning. It did a nice job AND, I got the proverbial "residual slickness." Oh, and the lather in the bowl and on my face was much better today.

So the lesson I learned: sometimes ya need more cream.

 

[ciderguy]

So the lesson I learned: sometimes ya need more cream.

I'm glad you got to the bottom of it.

 

[BigJ]

Looks as though you should stick with what works!

+1! Whatever works is just fine!

 

[phoeg]

I'm glad you got to the bottom of it.

The cream sample or the problem? 😁

But seriously, I did learn something. I'm amazed at how many variables there are to a seemingly simple task such as shaving.

 

[gitira6]

I always end up going back to Cella, doesnt dry my face out, nice and slick

 

[phoeg]

I always end up going back to Cella, doesnt dry my face out, nice and slick

I have two shaves-worth left of my Cella sample. I'm saving my favorites for last. I loved my first one or two shaves with it.

 

[HazMat Shaver]

I used to think that the big thick fluffy lather was what to shoot for. Now my lather is just before it gets runny. Always smooth shaving. Now I'm using a Straight Razor and slickness is a must. After the blade scrapes it off there is not much slickness left because of the straight but there is still some. More water!

 

[CBLindsay]

Since experimenting with different soaps and creams will inevitably lead to dryer lather from time to time I would suggest the use of a pre-shave soap. A simple $.99 glycerin bar used to wash your face just prior to lathering (don't rinse ALL the glycerin soap off before lathering, just splash more clean water on your face then lather away). I use a preshave soap (Musgo Glyce or one i've made my self) and have found that it goes a long way to reducing that first past drag that happens when your lather is drying or just not wet enough to begin with.

EDIT: also, a $1 puck of Williams mug soap makes an incredible pre-shave soap ...SOOO slick.

 

[phoeg]

I would suggest the use of a pre-shave soap. A simple $.99 glycerin bar used to wash your face just prior to lathering (don't rinse ALL the glycerin soap off before lathering, just splash more clean water on your face then lather away).

Thanks for that tip. I'll have to see what I can get next time I'm at CVS.

 

[John Rose]

A simple $.99 glycerin bar used to wash your face just prior to lathering (don't rinse ALL the glycerin soap off before lathering, just splash more clean water on your face then lather away).

Maybe not Pear's Transparent Soap though, unless you rinse it all off.
I tried a thing where I rubbed a bar of Pear's on my wet face, left it on, and then brushed bowl-lathered soap on top of it. I got the worst burn since I re-started DE shaving last summer, but it felt more like a chemical burn than a razor burn, and I started feeling it a bit half way through the first pass. It even hurt to rinse with cold water on a face cloth.

I still like Pear's okay for face washing during my pre-shave shower though, and the soap-over-soap gimmick works (for me) as long as they're both shaving soaps or cream.

EDIT: also, a $1 puck of Williams mug soap makes an incredible pre-shave soap ...SOOO slick.

Yup. That was one of the soaps I tried before the Pear's disaster. A well-bloomed puck rubbed over my face, left it on, and then brushed on bowl-lathered Williams. It was amazing.

 

[phoeg]

@phoeg Since this is happening to you mid-shave, my bet would be that it is the particular soap/cream combined with your skin.

I get the same issue as you with certain products as well. My skin is very dry, worse this time of year when the snow is flying and the heaters are on. My face tends to suck the moisture right out of certain products despite shaving right after a shower.

i got this same thing again this morning with the last of my Captain's Choice bay rum soap sample. It's the smooth, polished top of the razor that wants to stick to my skin. Only having this issue with the CC soaps, which bugs me because I love their scents. I too tend to have dryer skin in winter, so maybe it's part of it. Also, the samples of their soap don't always lather fully. I still had a big clump of the soap in my bowl when I rinsed it. Soooo, I think I'll order the tub of the soap and lather in there. But the sticking puzzles me. I'd hate for the CC soaps not to work well for me, because as I stated I like very the scents.

tomorrow is another experiment. ��