Help. One pass and all lubrication is gone.

Hey everybody. I have been wet shaving for years, but recently discovered many of the things I have been doing wrong. A few months ago I decided to take up a traditional DE razor. I started with an old Gillette that a friend who collects antiques gave me. It was too short for my big paws. I moved on to a newer Gillette TTO with a longer plastic handle. I like the length but I wanted a bit more heft. I finally ordered a Merkur 23C, and I like it very much. I'm also working through a sample pack of blades.

Here's my problem. I am making great lather with soap. (thanks to the information here) The problem is as the razor moves over my skin it takes every last bit of the soap, moisture, and lubrication with it. My skin is actually left dry as soon as the razor crosses it. I'm thinking there should be at least a little lubrication left behind, right? I don't have this problem with the Gillette TTO, but the Merkur takes every bit of the lather off. So, what am I doing wrong, or what do I need to do differently? I'm wondering if it has something to do with the Astra blades, (which Iam also using in the TTO) but I don't want to jump from blade to blade because I don't think I will learn anything that way. Can you help a fellow out?

ept000 said:

The problem is as the razor moves over my skin it takes every last bit of the soap, moisture, and lubrication with it.

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You may have heard this a thousand times already but it may help to use zero pressure on the razor -- let the weight of the razor do all of the work.

I find that preparing my face makes a huge difference here also. Hot shower, then I keep my face wet while building lather. Once I have some lather whipped up I work it into my face with the brush, starting with small circular strokes and then "painting" it on. This next step seems to make a big difference: I run hot water over a small washcloth and drape over my face for at least one minute (I use my hands to hold it on my face during this time). Then I lather up again and start shaving...even though all of the lather gets removed with each pass, the skin is still somewhat slick and moist. Throughout the shave I'll move my hand across my face to re-distribute some lather and/or water to keep everything wet as much as possible.

Is the dryness causing any razor burn or other issues?

Cheers,
Brennan

How is your water? Soft water tends to be a better lubricant, and more resistant to the stripping you describe.

The blade is the one variable that is approved for switching in the early going. Try a bunch of blades; they are vastly different. You are looking for a comfortable combination of smoothness (has to do with the weight and the coating), sharpness (the honing), and flexibility (determines how 'forgiving' the blade feels). Each of these variables may in turn perform differently in different razors! The Astra blade is known for being particularly sharp. My advice: if you want to jump the razor 'learning curve,' try a Derby next. Even if you hate it, it will give you a baseline. Everyone's tried it and reviewed it and compared it to every other popular blade. It's the Rosetta Stone of blade comparisons.

Welcome!

SpeedyB's questions about prep are good. I rub lather into my beard for a couple of minutes before I lather up for my first pass, and that seems to moisturize my face pretty well for the whole shave. But my skin is somewhat oily, and doesn't dry out easily. If your skin is drier, you might even be one of the folks who benefits from a pre-shave oil.

Which soap are you using? Do you think your lather might be a little too dry?

Actually, most of the soap will be gone with each stroke, along with whiskers. Sounds like you are doing fine. If you are going to do multiple passes, you should be rinsing and re-lathering between each pass.

Actually I am not having any problems with razor burn. I shower first and always wet my face with hot water before working in my lather, but if I have to back up for a small missed patch I have to have a dollop of lather on the fingers of a wet hand to rub on my face as I go. Blade buffing, if I am using the correct term, is out of the question with the Merkur. I am trying for absolutely no pressure on the razor, or to be more honest just a very tiny amount of pressure for control.

You guys type a lot faster than I do! My skin is slightly dry to begin with. Our water is fairly soft. I am trying to add water to my lather building until I see signs of it trying "break", but it may still be dry, I'm not exactly sure. On a good thick lather I can turn the bowl up-side-down for a few seconds and the brush will hang in the gobs of lather. I did notice that the Astra seemed way sharper than the Crystal, so maybe a blade switch is in order. Oh, and I'm using C&E Sandlewood.

pcullens said:

If you are going to do multiple passes, you should be rinsing and re-lathering between each pass.

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Yes, I am doing that.

I experienced some of what you are going through when I first started DE shaving. The biggest change that I made that allowed me to begin focusing on tehcnique was a shift from soap to a cream. I spent at least six weeks with Poraso cream from Bath and Body before I started trying anything else. I find that creams in general leave my face feeling better and my shaves are much closer(than with soaps) than anything else. Of course ....everyone's beard is different !!! Don't give up and keep asking for help as there is plenty here !!!
Happy Shaving !!!

ept000 said:

Actually I am not having any problems with razor burn. I shower first and always wet my face with hot water before working in my lather, but if I have to back up for a small missed patch I have to have a dollop of lather on the fingers of a wet hand to rub on my face as I go. Blade buffing, if I am using the correct term, is out of the question with the Merkur. I am trying for absolutely no pressure on the razor, or to be more honest just a very tiny amount of pressure for control.

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The Merkur is probably heavier than the super speed, so you may need to lighten up even more. Your angle might be slightly different too, causing the Merkur safety bar to sweep up more lather than the super speed does.

That said, I think it's normal to add a little more lather for buffing a spot or otherwise shaving the same area again.

Could be a sign you're doing things right. There shouldn't be any left after a swipe. If you can't blade buff like that, you can back the blade up gently to deposit the cream back onto your face. A different soap or cream might leave more residual stuff enabling you to blade buff some areas.

Personally, I find there's some areas/times I can blade buff normally, and others when I need to deposit more cream, either by backing up or having the brush in the other hand. Not sure if this is a function of speed, pressure, the state of the cream, my state of mind, or how many times I've gone over or expect to go over the spot. I kind of just go with the flow and adapt. Maybe you can figure out something more consistent.

ept000 said:

Here's my problem. I am making great lather with soap. (thanks to the information here) The problem is as the razor moves over my skin it takes every last bit of the soap, moisture, and lubrication with it. My skin is actually left dry as soon as the razor crosses it.

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Sounds exactly as the world should be.

Maybe the 23 is heavier or more head weighted than the others? In any case, this is what happens when I shave, and it takes stubble with it, which is what we want.

You shouldn't go over an un lathered spot if that is what you see as a problem, that's what multi passes are for.

The advice train is rolling so I'll simply say welcome to B&B!

Welcome to B&B !!

mark2cars said:

I experienced some of what you are going through when I first started DE shaving. The biggest change that I made that allowed me to begin focusing on tehcnique was a shift from soap to a cream. I spent at least six weeks with Poraso cream from Bath and Body before I started trying anything else. I find that creams in general leave my face feeling better and my shaves are much closer(than with soaps) than anything else. Of course ....everyone's beard is different !!! Don't give up and keep asking for help as there is plenty here !!!
Happy Shaving !!!

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Welcome to B&B! Same with me, the creams seem to leave my face softer and do not dry out my skin. My experience is limited, but the Poraso (C.O. Bigalow) and AOS work very well for me.

Another "Welcome to B&B".

Let me second the comments above that what you are doing and experiencing seems to be exactly right and nothing needs to be changed.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8516841982964641110#

Welcome to Badger & Blade. Lots of help here as you can see!

Thanks everybody. Last night I did several things different. I face lathered and made my lather a little wetter than normal. I was also thinking the same thing Drubbing was, maybe the extra weight of the 23C was pressing harder than I thought, so I was very careful with my pressure (or lack of). This was the second shave with this particular Astra blade, and the last few got better with a few shaves on it as well. Add all that together and I hade a great shave. BBS with not a single nick or burn. I applied my ASB as normal but this was the first time I can say I could have gone right to a splash without any sting. Thanks everybody!

By the way, my SAD, RAD, and BAD are all under way. Three razors, five soaps, and four brushes....... There's probably no use in fighting it.