'Razor Bumps' on Neck

**Juddy** · 02-07-2010, 07:16 AM

First off I'm fairly new to DE razor blades - used cartridge razors before. Anyway for my first shaves I've been using a combination of Merkur and Derby blades. Recently I decided to try out a Gillette 7 o'clock 'yellow' blade and the first shave went reasonably well but on the second shave I've been left with some nasty ingrown hairs/razor bumps on my neck. I did my normal 3 Pass shave - 1x WTG 1x XTG 1x ATG - and my prep was the same as before; note I've had no previous irritation.

Would it be safe to assume that it's the Gillette blade that doesn't 'agree' with my skin/style?

**PatrickNewing** · 02-07-2010, 09:16 AM

I'm new to this but from my limited experience its too harsh blade angle when going down the neck - or maybe in your case a little sharper blade youre not used to - thats cutting the hairs right down and causing the red bumps.

**njpaddy** · 02-07-2010, 09:53 AM

Worse nick I got so far was with a yellow. I now use yellows only in my mild razors (SS) and mild blades (Derby, Merkur) in my more aggressive razors. IP Reds seem to go with any razor. I would suggest sticking with the Derby or Merkur blades for a bit. They're more forgiving of lapses in technique. I think after we start off with a few good shaves we get overconfident. I found most of my "bad" shaves probably occurred in the 2nd or 3rd week when I began trying new razors and blades.

**sherlock** · 02-07-2010, 11:34 AM

For me i had the ingrown bump/problem on my neck with using derby blades. Now am starting on a sample pack only used the feathers but a sharper blade left me with no irritation on my neck YMMV

**NickCutlip** · 02-07-2010, 01:32 PM

Welcome to B&B !!

**mblakele** · 02-07-2010, 01:50 PM

Welcome!

Besides experimenting with blades, pay close attention to your blade angle. Try to keep your wrist locked, and move the razor by moving your arm from the shoulder. It's easy to move your wrist instead, especially on the neck, but this tends to change the blade angle in uncontrolled ways.

**Oil of Dog** · 02-07-2010, 01:59 PM

Originally Posted by Juddy

First off I'm fairly new to DE razor blades - used cartridge razors before. Anyway for my first shaves I've been using a combination of Merkur and Derby blades. Recently I decided to try out a Gillette 7 o'clock 'yellow' blade and the first shave went reasonably well but on the second shave I've been left with some nasty ingrown hairs/razor bumps on my neck. I did my normal 3 Pass shave - 1x WTG 1x XTG 1x ATG - and my prep was the same as before; note I've had no previous irritation.

Would it be safe to assume that it's the Gillette blade that doesn't 'agree' with my skin/style?

Maybe hold off on the ATG for a while. I'm new to DE shaving also, and I do WTG x 2 and one XTG pass. No razor bumps or irritation so far, and I've always had those issues on my neck with cartridges. Looks BBS all the same, anyway.

What are you using as your AS? That might be a factor.

**sodajerk** · 02-07-2010, 02:00 PM

Welcome!

I had something similar in the beginning caused by the following; too dry lather and/or too much preasure. For me, angle and direction were not a problem - they were not perfect but close enough not to cause problems. I couldn't get preasure right because of my poor lather. The lather looked good but I finally realized it was dryer than it should be. A thick, wet (but not watery) lather is an effective lubricant that helps prevent skin irritation.

**TheScalpel** · 02-07-2010, 02:00 PM

that and make sure that you apply NO PRESSURE at all on those ATG passes...

**Juddy** · 02-07-2010, 02:04 PM

Thanks for all the suggestions and help guys! I'm probably going to hold off on the ATG while I refine the other aspects of my shave.

**baba** · 02-07-2010, 02:15 PM

Remember, much of what causes ingrown hairs or razor bumps is bacteria. Make sure your blade is cleaned with alcohol or a few pumps of hand sanitizer before and after you shave...just make sure you rinse it before you use it again.

**cmiwa** · 02-07-2010, 09:36 PM

A little trick I picked up here for the neck is to go slow. Half as slow as you do on face.

Along with the other fine advice above re technique -- blade angle, no pressure when ATG, etc -- and a little patience you should eventually figure out how to minimize/eliminate the bumps. It took me about a month and now I rarely have issues on my neck.

Good luck and many happy shaves!

**zackr** · 02-07-2010, 09:55 PM

yeah, i've only been shaving about a month-1.5 months and I found that i got a little overzealous on the neck at the beginning and I saw two things happen. When I went for final pass ATG, i found my angle changing improperly and i was pressing enough to cut myself pretty regularly. One shave was particularly bad and I thought I was going to need a skin graft haha.

**Drubbing** · 02-07-2010, 10:05 PM

Originally Posted by Juddy

I did my normal 3 Pass shave - 1x WTG 1x XTG 1x ATG - and my prep was the same as before; note I've had no previous irritation.

Would it be safe to assume that it's the Gillette blade that doesn't 'agree' with my skin/style?

Far too early to say. But that result is usually becasue of poor technique. It's going to take a lot more practice to get proficient. Many peopel think the'yre usung hardly any pressure to begin with, then they look back....

If you think and are aware you're going too hard at it, then there's your answer. I've been cart shaving for nearly 30 years. Took me over 3 months to nail this thing.

I'd drop the ATG pass for now.