My Plan to Eliminate Razor Burn on My Neck

[pdillon]

I'm just about a year into wet shaving and I still suffer from razor burn on my neck. I have grown to love shaving, so I try to do it every day. But with a three-pass shave, after the third consecutive day, I normally have quite a few bumps and some irritation on my neck. Then I have to take a day or more off to let it heal.

The only cure for razor burn is prevention. It's a matter of technique. So I have a plan: I will only do one pass shaves on my neck until I am consistently getting shaves completely free of irritation. If there is hair left behind, so be it. Perhaps I will do a touch up, but I don't think most people will even notice. Otherwise, I will try to get it tomorrow. I will slowly work my way up to two passes, and three if I find it necessary. But my logic is that if I can't do a single pass without irritation, how can I expect a second or third? Those passes will only further the damage.

Has anybody tried this? I'm thinking about this as a way of training my technique, so I'm curious on feedback or any other programs about how to improve technique.

I have been doing this for the past week and I have to say it's been going great.

[lukeoke]

Best of luck. I'm sure you will find a balance that works for you. Have you considered continuing with the three pass shave everywhere other than your neck?

[pipskicks]

Same problem for a shorter amount of time. I'm not sure if the soap/cream makes any difference at all as I've tried mixing those up and that doesn't seem to help, the pre-shave oil doesn't either, but I would think for at least the neck, why not try to give it as much help as possible. Razors also so far haven't really helped the neck burn.

I've had the best luck finding sharp yet smooth blades (i.e. feathers are very sharp, but doesn't have the smoothness IMO of say Gillette Yellows) those give you some leeway for poor technique (and in my case, going the wrong way because the grain of my neck is some weird swirl-type).
Finding the "best" way to shave from mapping has helped also a ton. I say "best" way because I personally have no "way to shave" since it's hard to shave in a circle. But I've found certain directions in certain spots help a lot. It's really annoying to keep changing the direction in small areas of my neck....but it's the only way...

[pipskicks]

What's your razor/blade combo?

[elsmooth]

My neck is really sensitive. I've been DE shaving for about 2 1/2 years, and I pretty much just do 2 WTG passes on my neck now. It gets me no irritation, and a pretty good shave. Occasionally, I'll throw in some XTG work, but NEVER true ATG...just too tender for that sort of treatment.

I think you're definitely on the right track.

[Rjacklin]

I am like elsmooth. I generally do 1 wtg & 1 xtg and that is it. The couple of times I have gone atg I get some nasty burn and weepers. Not worth it. Plus only I can really tell that it is not BBS because it looks fine and clean but you can just feel a little tiny bit of stubble when I rub my hair ATG with my hands.

[Blade Boy]

I started use a pre shave gel, Floids, but I'm sure there are many other good ones out there, it helps a lot, no nicks and no burn.

[Parallax]

What's worked for me is surprisingly counter-intuitive; at least it was for me. Some other fellas suggested it. I put a Feather in my Fat Boy and turned it up to 9. If I go very slowly, with really light pressure, I touch up with no razor burn.

[pdillon]

Have you considered continuing with the three pass shave everywhere other than your neck?
Yes! Depending on my time and mood, I usually do three full passes. Not sure if this was clear, but I do more than one pass underneath my chin and jaw too. It's only my actual neck that I'm cautious with.

What's your razor/blade combo?
I don't have a set combo yet. I shaved with the HD for the first six months, working through the WCS sampler. Got pretty good with that. Right now, I'm using the NEW Long comb exclusively and using up the rest of my blades. When I buy some more blades, I'll probably go for 200 of the red pack IP.

Regarding beard mapping, that helped me at first, but I haven't been able to go more than three or four days straight without taking off. My hair grows out from the adam's apple (luckily no swirls). I'm now exploring whether going WTG is good or not for me, or whether it's better to just go south-north or vice versa XTG because it's easier for me technique wise. I will experiment with trying WTG & XTG, or just XTG in two directions.


What's worked for me is surprisingly counter-intuitive; at least it was for me. Some other fellas suggested it. I put a Feather in my Fat Boy and turned it up to 9. If I go very slowly, with really light pressure, I touch up with no razor burn.
This does make logical sense to me. I have an R41 and I've used it with a feather, but I'm not good enough yet to where I can use it everyday for a week straight. This is my plan for getting there! Has anybody else "worked up" to a number of passes?

[YetiDave]

I only ever do one WTG pass on my neck because I'm so prone to razor burn there, and I have no razor burn now!

[gaj90027]

I've been at it for quite a few years now myself and just cannot shave ATG or XTG on my neck. 2 WTG passes gets me DFS on my neck and if I push it past that I pay for it every time.

[PugslyCat]

That sounds like a solid plan. I used up my last triple bladed carts and disposables a while back. I couldn't do a full three pass shave. What I wound up doing was two passes and some of the strokes from the Mantic59 advanced techniques video. While I couldn't do a full three pass shave a little blade buffing and J hooking took care of what was left behind with minimal razor burn.

[gus1942]

I only ever do one WTG pass on my neck because I'm so prone to razor burn there, and I have no razor burn now!Describe direction of your one WTG pass. If it's North to South, I bet it's XTG. Just checking to see if you map your growth.

[noahpictures]

This is a huge YMMV problem, therefore to find a solution is to try different methods starting with mapping your beard, different angles (I shave WTG, XTG, ATG), using little or no pressure and trying different blades. For me Personna Med (Hospital Use), Personna Lab and Astra SP blades were the best in the R41.

[cxg231]

Thanks everyone, this thread has been helpful for me. I usually get irritation right at the bottom of my neck where the beard ends. I'll be trying some of your suggestions for sure! Reminds me yet again why B&B is the place to be! :smile:

[Retiredgene]

Describe direction of your one WTG pass. If it's North to South, I bet it's ATG. Just checking to see if you map your growth.

+1

I found my neck irritation was for that very reason. Beard going from throat to ear meant a North to South was XTG on 1st pass. So I changed direction to be WTG also used much shorter strokes and irritation has been gone for months!

Gene

[Dboygoode]

I had the same problem at first. I've recently found that using noxzema as a preshave works well. I use a fat handle tech, with derby blades so far giving the best results. Those blades feel a little dull on a 2+ day growth, so I'll use a feather in my ball end tech on the first pass and then switch to the fh. And something else I've been trying the past couple mornings (since its been so hot) is cold water for the entire shave. And it actually feels pretty awesome, especially with the tobs shave cream and noxzema.

[jsj_297]

I alternate 2 passes one day, the next day 3, alternating every day. Seems to have helped my neck irritation bunches.

[pdillon]

I thought I would post an update, as this method has really been helping me. By going down to 1 pass on my problem spot, the lower neck, I have been able to shave every day with minimal irritation. If there is irritation, it normally heals up by the next day or is small enough to shave around it. Shaving every day has been enjoyable, but I also feel like the consistency is allowing me to focus on technique. I will probably take my time before adding another pass.

Perhaps this plan was really obvious, but it took me a year to think of it! I dove right in and started doing two or three passes on my neck from the get go. I think many people will have less tolerance towards leaving hair behind than me, but to my mind red bumps are much worse than a little stubble. So if you are someone who has been struggling with neck irritation, I recommend experimenting with doing fewer passes and then working your way up to more hair removal as your technique improves.

[Norio]

Thanks for the update!

[Bobtrumpet]

It's always nice to find something that works. Thanks for sharing your approach and results!

[pdillon]

I have been shaving 2-3 passes on the face and 1 pass on the face everyday for about 4 weeks now. This morning the lather was slick, my hand was steady and I had the time so I decided to add a second pass. The results were good: I was able to reduce much more of my beard. The only problem spot was at the bottom of the neck, slightly above and to my left of the adam's apple. I think it is where I would start my XTG. Probably an issue of angle, or perhaps a Dorco blade on its 3rd use (but probably angle :wink2:). In general, I could tell my technique was on, though, because I could hear the razor more than I could feel it, if that makes sense.

I am enjoying this experiment so I definitely don't want to rush adding a second pass too quickly, but I will probably start working it in once or twice a week and now I will know what to look for. This is really focusing my attention on technique, both for razor and lather. Perhaps it is the NEW Long Comb I am using exclusively, but it seems like changing brands of blade is not making that much difference. Perhaps once I have my technique dialed in, the differences in blades will become much more apparent.

[pdillon]

Today was the first setback in recent memory. I have been shaving every day--most days 1 pass on the neck but often adding a second--without any significant neck irritation and making steady improvements in technique. I must have used my NEW long comb for two months straight. I really got the technique down with it. What a fantastic razor!

I used my R41 every weekday this past week and had very good results as well. I would expect my technique with that razor to improve also from steady use.

Yesterday and today I have been using my Goodfella, and the irritation is creeping back in. I must be overly compensating for the mildness of the razor. Many people suggest aggressive or efficient razors like the R41 to get rid of razor burn and that has been borne out here. I just wonder if I will be able to work with my Goodfella to start getting irritation free shaves on the neck. Hopefully I won't have to take a day off tomorrow.

[pdillon]

I have switched back to my first razor, the Merkur HD for the past couple of weeks and I have not been having great results. The Gillette NEW LC is definitely a most excellent razor. It is my favorite of those I own. I'm not sure if the NEW LC is THAT much better than the HD, but rather I think I'm having a hard time adjusting my technique. I'm probably applying pressure on my neck. Something about the bar safety guard or the bulkiness of the head is putting me off. Not sure if I will soldier ahead with the HD and try to perfect my technique, or perhaps put it up on BST as my NEW LC leaves really nothing to be desired in terms of performance.