What Exactly Is Cushion

[syngent]

The term is often used in reviews for creams/soaps, heck ive even used it myself. I got to thinking in the wee quiet hours of the night, and started to wonder if I actually understood what it meant in regards to shaving. I came to the conclusion that i don't, a razor blade can cut a hair at a microscopic level, so the edge of the blade can't be whats being cushioned as the blade would go through it easier then a hot knife through butter,.. so what exactly is being cushioned and why is it important.

I can understand water and the properties of the soap that help soften the hair for the cut

I can understand the slickness helping the skin not to bind at the edge causeing a cut or irritation

and i can understand keeping the skin supple so it will have more give and forgiveness to prevent a cut or irritation

So i guess this is one aspect i dont get and could use the masterminds we have here to help break it down for me so I know my gear better and help out on my technique, and im sure there are other new members and shavers who could benefit from this as well, thank you in advance to all who pitch in

[Kevan]

You're overthinking it. Cushion is how well the lather protects the skin from being abraded by the blade. Think of it in terms of canned goo/foam. The dense foam protects the skin from the blade.

[cb91710]

The lather helps to hold the moisture in the hair which softens it (opens the scales) and makes it easier to cut.
The lather also provides lubrication to the skin to help the blade slide over when held at the proper angle.

A blade will only CUT skin if it is moved in a slicing motion.
A blade will scrape skin if it is held at too steep of an angle.
Lubrication from the lather helps this be more forgiving, but the blade is still hitting the hair at an angle sharp enough to cut.

[syngent]

so its more a combination of things then a single aspect ? product "x" keeps the skin moisturized enough to keep it supple therefore it has good cushion,... something like that ?

[cvac]

This is really un-scientific, subjective stuff, but here goes...

The way I use the term "cushion" is to describe how much protection a given soap/cream gives me from the blade when I make a nice, stable, thick lather that is the consistency I prefer.

Some soaps cut closer than others, and some protect your skin from the blade better than others. My favorite soaps are the ones that give a close shave without irritation.

If "cushion" wasn't important, we'd all be using shaving oils and/or plain water for shaving without any cream/soap.

Note that if you are still working on getting consistent lather from a variety of soaps, you may not be able to judge the "cushion" of a given soap accurately at this point. Different soaps/creams have different product/water ratios.

[syngent]

Cvac, its not so much the getting/not getting good cushion,.. I have products i have gotten on with i can get an irritation free shave with no need for a/s, and from new stuff I have a feel for what i want out of a lather and work with it a bit before i use it.... just more how to articulate what the term actually meant.. if i got my hands on a new product and wanted to share with other members I just thought it would be nice to be able to know how to convey its properties with terms everyone knows

Upon reread the above may have sounded a bit snooty, it certainly was not meant that way, As i very much want your input and trust your opinions on the matter, thanks for popping in cvac :)

[syngent]

You're overthinking it. Cushion is how well the lather protects the skin from being abraded by the blade. Think of it in terms of canned goo/foam. The dense foam protects the skin from the blade.
This may be the case, I may be being to literal with the term

[Kevan]

No, you don't sound snooty or anything....it's just that sometimes a simple definition is easier than trying to look at something scientifically. At least, I think so.

[syngent]

No, you don't sound snooty or anything....it's just that sometimes a simple definition is easier than trying to look at something scientifically. At least, I think so.
agreed lol but at least if i use the term now ill know what im saying or rather i can use the term to define something i meant to say without having to say to much,.. lol might cut down on me sending out products i like to more experienced members to get a second opinion before i post lol though i dont mind doing that anyway

[dundak]

You're overthinking it. Cushion is how well the lather protects the skin from being abraded by the blade. Think of it in terms of canned goo/foam. The dense foam protects the skin from the blade.

+1 this. You can have a slick soap. Take Irish Spring or a bath soap. If you rub hand lather it on your face and take a stroke with your DE you can feel the slickness. It is also easier to get razor burn if your angle and technique are not spot on. No cushion. Bath soaps are made to clean and rinse well and many have surfactants to help. Shaving soaps are not as good at cleaning and do not rinse off as easily because of their composition. Many have added stearates or stearic acid which are even harder to rinse off. This leaves a layer of lubrication which acts as cushion.

Try washing your hands with shaving cream and you will see the difference. It will not clean well nor will it rinse off as easily as hand soap.

[syngent]

Try washing your hands with shaving cream and you will see the difference. It will not clean well nor will it rinse off as easily as hand soap.
Lol i do this all the time with my better smelling soaps or when i test lather

but i think i have a better grasp of what the term means when it is used, the function of it all I could experience I mean we all do when we shave,.. but articulation of a personal experience is tough to do when trying to relate that experience to someone else

glad i asked will definitely help when reviewing products going forward or understanding others when they are talking,

now if i could only get the whole scent thing down i would be happy, i mean really who takes two days to figure out nomad smells like jalapenos

[dundak]

Lol i do this all the time with my better smelling soaps or when i test lather

but i think i have a better grasp of what the term means when it is used, the function of it all I could experience I mean we all do when we shave,.. but articulation of a personal experience is tough to do when trying to relate that experience to someone else

glad i asked will definitely help when reviewing products going forward or understanding others when they are talking,

now if i could only get the whole scent thing down i would be happy, i mean really who takes two days to figure out nomad smells like jalapenos

I love C&E Nomad. Does have the jalapeno scent which I like. The big problem in reviews is the whole YMMV thing. A person's preference for cushion vs slick runs the gamut.

[CrotalusHH]

It is confusing when people use slickness and cushion in the same sentence. IMO slickness is all that is really important when the blade meets the face. Until then the lather is just there to wet and soften the beard. It's appearance isn't important except as a general clue about how wet it is.

No matter how luxurious the lather looks or how thick it goes on, the razor takes it all off with a single pass.

You know what they say about opinions. :)

[Vlad]

I've never used cushion for the same reason...I don't really get what it means, or at least I can't differentiate the feel from slickness. At least it makes a performance evaluation easier for me. It's either good or not!

[rxonmymind]

Cushion is what one feels when the head of the razor across it's width meets the millions of microscopic air bubbles between your lather and the layer of skin. Big bubbles collapse and provide little cushion. But the same bubbles that are very, very small and concentrated offer greater cushion for the razor. Not the blade itself obviously. The slickness is how easily, no matter how sharp the blade, glides across the soap on your skin.

[Bellac]

Think of it like this, shave yourself by using just mineral oil. It is incredibly slick and lubricating, but it has no cushion. Most likely you will feel the blade raking across your face. Use that as a standard to compare other soaps to get the idea of cushion. If you want the other extreme, cover a piece of paper on your face and try to shave. Fantastic cushion, you would have to use a lot of pressure just to feel the blade.

:biggrin: :biggrin: :biggrin:

[john shea]

My non-scientific understanding is that the term slickness pertains to the property of the razor's ability to slide across the lathered skin without dragging or sticking. Cushion pertains to the razor's resistance to cutting into or abrading while sliding across the lathered skin. I add six drops of glycerine to my lather usually made from MWF, Tabac, ProRaso Green, or Cella. After shaving but before rinsing, my face feels BBS. After rinsing with cold water, I can feel patches of short stubble that I have to clean up by buffing ATG. I think that the BBS feel before the cold water rinse is the cushioning effect of the soap residue. The cold water rinse removes the cushion allowing for a closer shave during clean up, but also requiring greater care to avoid a nick or abrasion of the skin. Loss of slickness through drying can also lead to nicks or abrasion through pulling up the skin while sticking. I take great care to preserve wetness during buffing after my cold water rinse and to use very light pressure, sometimes less than the weight of the razor.

HTH

[SiBurning]

Slickness is how easily the blade moves. Cushion is how my face feels during and after.

[Useless shaver]

Cushion = protection.

Cushion is something that mitigates or relieves an adverse effect.

[syngent]

seems like different people break it down differently, but it all ends up a simple way of talking about just that useless, relief against adverse effects

[BlackBard]

+1 this. You can have a slick soap. Take Irish Spring or a bath soap. If you rub hand lather it on your face and take a stroke with your DE you can feel the slickness. It is also easier to get razor burn if your angle and technique are not spot on. No cushion. Bath soaps are made to clean and rinse well and many have surfactants to help. Shaving soaps are not as good at cleaning and do not rinse off as easily because of their composition. Many have added stearates or stearic acid which are even harder to rinse off. This leaves a layer of lubrication which acts as cushion.

Try washing your hands with shaving cream and you will see the difference. It will not clean well nor will it rinse off as easily as hand soap.

Good point.

[syngent]

its a little like an engine oil then in a way,... all provide lubrication but they come in different weights for different engines i.e. 20w50 vs a 0w20 all have the lube and different additives to help out but the weight is a constant for an engine oils version of cushion which is why wd40 would never work its to thin and would not be able to hold up its slickness where as a thicker oil can hold up better and its cushion helps keep the lubrication in tact ? or thats how my head finally got around it

On a different note, ya'ay 500th post

[Ski-Patroller]

I occasionally use p.160 I think it has so much cushion that it floats the razor (especially my Feather AS) off my face. Cella is perfect. Vitos seems to be lacking cushion compared to Cella.

[CrotalusHH]

Cushion is what one feels when the head of the razor across it's width meets the millions of microscopic air bubbles between your lather and the layer of skin. Big bubbles collapse and provide little cushion. But the same bubbles that are very, very small and concentrated offer greater cushion for the razor. Not the blade itself obviously. The slickness is how easily, no matter how sharp the blade, glides across the soap on your skin.

I just find it hard to swallow that the bubbles have any effect on the blade at all. When I make a pass there is nothing left on my skin. It's actually dry.

Just my opinion.

[Acmemfg]

Hey...use what feels good on your face during the shave. That's all I ever worry about. Cushion issues I address on the La-Z-Boy site.

[mblakele]

To me, cushion is a description of how good lather feels. The lather may or may not cushion the blade: my eyes are not good enough to say. Either way, cushion is a useful word for describing one quality of a good shaving lather. If I shave with a lather that lacks cushion, I notice.

But if you find that a cushiony-feeling lather is unimportant, and you can shave with something that is only slick.... Do what works for you.

[smalltank]

cushion=supports the blade on the cream to allow it to cut