In the past if i have experimented shaving regularly (with a gillette fusion) as in every day or every few days ive always had major issues such as razor burn and razor bumps. Do you think the problem may be that im leaving it for too long and because my beard gets thicker and coarser as time goes on, that no blade will offer a tug free shave and that shaving regularly with a DE razor would solve the problem?
Very coarse beard with razor bumps and burn. Shave regularly?
- Thread starter mattprince
- Start date
DE shaving with a good prep and a good shaving soap or cream may very well be your answer. It seems that a lot of people have skin problems with cartridge razors. If you decide to go this route [which I would advise] keep us informed and welcome to the forum. There are plenty of people here that can help solve your problems.
Charlie
Charlie
Welcome to B&B!
Going to a DE razor and a good soap/brush has resolved problems with rash and ingrown hairs for me and MANY others here on this forum. It's worth a try so I say go for it.
I'm 51 and always hated shaving. Only did it when absolutely necessary. Rash, ingrown hairs, etc were a chronic problem. I became intrigued with the DE razor after seeing the MicroTouch One commercials. I researched DE razors and decided to give it a try...
Now I LOVE shaving and do it EVERY DAY - I look forward to it in fact, which is something I'd never imagined possible. It's enjoyable and relaxing. The ritual of prepping, whipping up a lather with the brush, the splash of aftershave at the end... It's all very relaxing and I really have grown to enjoy it.
Lots of info and experience here. So learn from these folks and give it a try. My only suggestion is to not shave ATG for awhile til you get your face fully healed of any ingrown hairs you may now have. Your skin will get used to the DE razor after a few shaves, then you can venture into shaving ATG.
Personally I never shave ATG. I'm quite content with a nice clean, close shave (CCS). I only go WTG and XTG. It took about 5 weeks for them to fade away on my neck, but now I've had zero problems with rash or ingrown hairs since switching to DE in early December.
Going to a DE razor and a good soap/brush has resolved problems with rash and ingrown hairs for me and MANY others here on this forum. It's worth a try so I say go for it.
I'm 51 and always hated shaving. Only did it when absolutely necessary. Rash, ingrown hairs, etc were a chronic problem. I became intrigued with the DE razor after seeing the MicroTouch One commercials. I researched DE razors and decided to give it a try...
Now I LOVE shaving and do it EVERY DAY - I look forward to it in fact, which is something I'd never imagined possible. It's enjoyable and relaxing. The ritual of prepping, whipping up a lather with the brush, the splash of aftershave at the end... It's all very relaxing and I really have grown to enjoy it.
Lots of info and experience here. So learn from these folks and give it a try. My only suggestion is to not shave ATG for awhile til you get your face fully healed of any ingrown hairs you may now have. Your skin will get used to the DE razor after a few shaves, then you can venture into shaving ATG.
Personally I never shave ATG. I'm quite content with a nice clean, close shave (CCS). I only go WTG and XTG. It took about 5 weeks for them to fade away on my neck, but now I've had zero problems with rash or ingrown hairs since switching to DE in early December.
In some cases if the beard gets long after a few days it can curl under and that is followed by ingrown hairs. Razor bumps and irritation are two separate conditions. However, with care both can be eliminated. First, be sure your face is wet when shaving. Go for a thick, lubricating lather. The fewer passes you can get away with the better off you will be. If you have razor bumps the usual advice is to avoid ATG passes.
For razor burn the secret is no pressure on the blade and use the correct angle when shaving. This post may help you with no pressure on the blade. For blade angle, look here.
For razor burn the secret is no pressure on the blade and use the correct angle when shaving. This post may help you with no pressure on the blade. For blade angle, look here.
- Thread starter
- #5
Hi,
Ive just had another shave, which is roughly 24hrs to the previous one. Used Macca Root shaving cream as its supposed to be very slippy and used the Lord L6 razor with a brand new Gillette Silver blue blade in and it was a bit painful. A bit of razor burn and just couldnt get a close shave. My face is hurting a bit so perhaps im just not meant to shave daily?
Considering its a brand new blade i would have thought it would glide lovely with such little stubble but it was tuggy and felt like i was scraping all the time. I made sure the angle was approx 30 degrees but still felt like i was scraping. Could it be the razor isnt aggressive enough?
Any ideas?
Matt
Ive just had another shave, which is roughly 24hrs to the previous one. Used Macca Root shaving cream as its supposed to be very slippy and used the Lord L6 razor with a brand new Gillette Silver blue blade in and it was a bit painful. A bit of razor burn and just couldnt get a close shave. My face is hurting a bit so perhaps im just not meant to shave daily?
Considering its a brand new blade i would have thought it would glide lovely with such little stubble but it was tuggy and felt like i was scraping all the time. I made sure the angle was approx 30 degrees but still felt like i was scraping. Could it be the razor isnt aggressive enough?
Any ideas?
Matt
Seems like angle may be the problem and also pressure. First the angle. Start with the head to your face and handle parallel to the floor. Then slowly move the handle lower while taking small swipes. When the blade starts to cut, that's your angle. I was very surprised at the angle and how far the handle was up in order for it to cut. I was used to it being parallel to my face with a cartridge.
Second is pressure. Because you are using an L6, it has a very light handle of aluminum so the overall weight is light. The way your brain compensates is to add pressure. Sometimes without you even knowing so stay vigilant during your shave. I still start every shave as I've said withghe head on my face and slowly move down while taking strokes until it starts cutting. Every razor is different so you will need to do this. Some are more shallow than others.
It gets better. I ended up switching from my EJ89 to a merkur 34c, which helped me get my techilnique down. For me the 34c was far more user friendly with the shorter handle.
That's all I have right now for you. I'm relatively new too, but will pass on what helped me.
Seems like angle may be the problem and also pressure. First the angle. Start with the head to your face and handle parallel to the floor. Then slowly move the handle lower while taking small swipes. When the blade starts to cut, that's your angle. I was very surprised at the angle and how far the handle was up in order for it to cut. I was used to it being parallel to my face with a cartridge.
Second is pressure. Because you are using an L6, it has a very light handle of aluminum so the overall weight is light. The way your brain compensates is to add pressure. Sometimes without you even knowing so stay vigilant during your shave. I still start every shave as I've said withghe head on my face and slowly move down while taking strokes until it starts cutting. Every razor is different so you will need to do this. Some are more shallow than others.
It gets better. I ended up switching from my EJ89 to a merkur 34c, which helped me get my techilnique down. For me the 34c was far more user friendly with the shorter handle.
That's all I have right now for you. I'm relatively new too, but will pass on what helped me. The angle is a big part of the irritation. You want to cut hair, not scrape skin off!!! Lol
There are quite a few folks, here, including myself, who have very coarse beard and sensitive skin and we get very good shaves.
Be patient, make sure your prep and lather are fine, use very light pressure and be conscious of your angle with the razor and don't go for a BBS shave. You need to learn this new way to shave and you also need to learn to use very light pressure. It does come if you are patient enough.
Best of luck.
Be patient, make sure your prep and lather are fine, use very light pressure and be conscious of your angle with the razor and don't go for a BBS shave. You need to learn this new way to shave and you also need to learn to use very light pressure. It does come if you are patient enough.
Best of luck.
I use the Lord l6 as well but I use it with the VDH premium kit and still using the first thing of soap I got with it. Sometimes you win and the razor works and sometimes you lose the battle with the razor. When you're learning your technique will sometimes be good other times not so good. Today was a bad day for me, my face was on fire when I put on some witch hazel. The previous shaves I had for awhile now witch hazel feels like water to me usually, I didn't know it could sting as much as it did today.
Things get better with time, I am not sure if I can shave daily either. But I think i just found a way on how to shave without irritation and getting ingrown hair on one trouble spot on my neck which is a big victory fairly recently. So things do get better with time as you develop your technique. Stick with it and you will be rewarded. I've been shaving with my Lord L6 since early december.
Biggest issue I found I have is angle, check and make sure you have the right angle. And don't underestimate prepping your face as it helps a lot.
I think once you get the hang of it, that you will find the DE shave to be far superior to the Fusion shave. It's like night and day. Plenty of good tips above.
Good luck.
Good luck.
- Thread starter
- #11
Hi,
I really think either the razor is faulty or the blades are, or my beard is just brillo pad
Im going to buy a new razor tonight. Any ideas which razor would suit s newbie with wire for hair and sensitive skin?
Was thinking the following razors...
Parker 96r
Muhle R89
EJ89L
Any help appreciated,
Matt
I really think either the razor is faulty or the blades are, or my beard is just brillo pad
Im going to buy a new razor tonight. Any ideas which razor would suit s newbie with wire for hair and sensitive skin?
Was thinking the following razors...
Parker 96r
Muhle R89
EJ89L
Any help appreciated,
Matt
no it doesnt matter how long you let it go,some shave everyday and some go a couple days...prep is very important if you have a coarse beard,you want to soften as much as possible,and combine that with a good soap or cream not the canned monkey dung either..but i would suggest getting a sampler pack of blades and finding the blade that best works for you...all the prep in the world and the best creme or soap aint gonna matter without a blade that best works for you...
i have a fairly coarse beard myself i shower for 15 to 20 mins,to get it as soft as i can,and my 64 ss is loaded with a feather..but its what gives me the most comfort with no irritation on my sensitive skin..but not all blades work for everyone,you just have to find the one for you...
How long have you been at this? It took my face several weeks to adjust. I have a very dark coarse beard, but sensitive skin, and very prone to ingrowns. There are three variables in the shaving equation: 1) the equipment; 2) the prep; 3) the technique.
All three take trial and error. It took me weeks to find that the Astra SP blades worked perfectly for my skin. My prep also took time to figure out. What works for me is to shave after a hot shower during which I scrub my beard with a soft toothbrush to loosen any ingrown hairs and then wash my face with Noxzema. I've found that tallow-based shaving soaps work best for me and I face lather for 2 min slowly adding cold water.
I then cold water shave with a Gillette open comb New or a Merkur adjustable on 2.5 or 3. The best advice I ever read about pressure was to shave like your face is severely sunburned.
I normally just do one pass with the grain, and never more than 2 passes - one with the grain and one across the grain. Then a warm water rinse, cold water rinse, brush my teeth, and another cold water rinse.
During the winter I use natural shea butter on my face post-shave. During the summer, I use an alcohol-based aftershave with a few drops of glycerin.
With that regimen, which took several weeks to develop, I rarely get an ingrown. Maybe 1 every 3-4 weeks.
Captain Coarsebeard
All three take trial and error. It took me weeks to find that the Astra SP blades worked perfectly for my skin. My prep also took time to figure out. What works for me is to shave after a hot shower during which I scrub my beard with a soft toothbrush to loosen any ingrown hairs and then wash my face with Noxzema. I've found that tallow-based shaving soaps work best for me and I face lather for 2 min slowly adding cold water.
I then cold water shave with a Gillette open comb New or a Merkur adjustable on 2.5 or 3. The best advice I ever read about pressure was to shave like your face is severely sunburned.
I normally just do one pass with the grain, and never more than 2 passes - one with the grain and one across the grain. Then a warm water rinse, cold water rinse, brush my teeth, and another cold water rinse.
During the winter I use natural shea butter on my face post-shave. During the summer, I use an alcohol-based aftershave with a few drops of glycerin.
With that regimen, which took several weeks to develop, I rarely get an ingrown. Maybe 1 every 3-4 weeks.
Captain Coarsebeard
Reading through your posts, I don't see any mention of preshave work. Are you showering, cleaning the hair, or applying a preshave of some sort (like Noxzema)? At minimum try to shower and soak the beard for a minute or two under the stream of water.
As far as tugging, its more than likely a combination of two things: blade angle and lather quality. I say blade angle because you mention tugging and scraping. I say lather quality because you used the phrase "supposed to be very slippery", which leaves the impression that you didn't find it to be slick? You'll likely want to try loading a bit more product and using more water. Test your final lather by rubbing it between your finger tips and seeing how slick it is, how long it takes to lose slickness, and whether or not it drys/flakes. Good lather should be very slick and should stay slick for at least 5 to 10 secs of vigorous rubbing. Even after it should still have some slickness. If the razor is skipping on the skin, this is another good indicator.
The irritation you mention is likely the above two issues combined with excess pressure on your part. Build good lather, concentrate on the angle, use light pressure (basically the weight of the razor + whatever you need to hold the razor angle), don't make extra passes on latherless skin, splash your face with water before building lather/reapplying, always shower, and most importantly, only make two passes for now, WTG and WTG or XTG or ATG (your choice on the second pass. Shaving daily I go WTG then XTG/ATG (diagonal)). If you beard is still a bit stubbly, don't worry about it. It only takes one day of bad technique and you skin is going to let you know/take a couple days to heal.
A lot of B&B members have added this product into their pre-shave routines. It moisturizes your skin and really help eliminate razor burn.
http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/393631-Noxema-I-Think-I-Love-You?highlight=noxzema+I+think+I+love+You
http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/393631-Noxema-I-Think-I-Love-You?highlight=noxzema+I+think+I+love+You
Hi,
I really think either the razor is faulty or the blades are, or my beard is just brillo pad
Im going to buy a new razor tonight. Any ideas which razor would suit s newbie with wire for hair and sensitive skin?
Was thinking the following razors...
Parker 96r
Muhle R89
EJ89L
Any help appreciated,
Matt
I have all of those razors, but would recommend the merkur 34c. I found its more user friendly when new. I started with a EJ89 but had lots of trouble, almost to the point of quitting, but when I changed to the merkur 34c it all fell into place!! YMMV if course. They are all good razors. Out of the list you gave, the EJ.
Hi,
I really think either the razor is faulty or the blades are, or my beard is just brillo pad
Im going to buy a new razor tonight. Any ideas which razor would suit s newbie with wire for hair and sensitive skin?
Was thinking the following razors...
Parker 96r
Muhle R89
EJ89L
Any help appreciated,
Matt
Far more likely that it is you and not the razor, but you'll probably want the most aggressive out of those three if feathers in a milder razor cannot handle your beard. However, all the razors you chose are fairly mild so I'm not sure how much improvement you'll get over the Lord.
Welcome!
Nothing I can add to all the excellent advice above!
Nothing I can add to all the excellent advice above!
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