Against the grain on first pass

**shumanfoo** · 02-08-2011, 06:43 AM

I've been doing the same routine for several months.

WTG then ATG then XTG. As the theory goes keep reducing the beard.

Today for some reason I started off doing ATG. Then I did it again ATG.

So my usual 3 pass shave became a 2 passer. And a double ATG at that!

I thought for sure that some evil thing would happen if I did it this way.(Like when you cut the label off of pillows)

It sure feels like a BBS shave to me.

Does anybody else out there do ATG on the first pass?

I'll do it again tomorrow, but just curious. I know that YMMV holds as always.

**Jethro1984** · 02-08-2011, 06:44 AM

I have never tried it but have wondered what would happen. My problem is just that my hair grows many different ways and I can get acceptable reduction by going straight down for the first two (except the lower half of my neck in which I go straight up).

**fccexpert** · 02-08-2011, 07:34 AM

I only do one pass using a Natural Stroke(tm), because of the way my beard grows, this is ATG on some parts of my face, XTG on others and WTG on a few. I generally get BBS, but occasionlly have to do a touch up on one or two places. When this happens, I use the same Natural Stroke but with water only.

**hermy65** · 02-08-2011, 07:39 AM

I tried doing an against the grain on my first pass but it led to bad things...my hair grows in like 72 different directions on my neck alone so i wont make that mistake again...

**Jethro1984** · 02-08-2011, 07:52 AM

Originally Posted by fccexpert

I only do one pass using a Natural Stroke(tm), because of the way my beard grows, this is ATG on some parts of my face, XTG on others and WTG on a few. I generally get BBS, but occasionlly have to do a touch up on one or two places. When this happens, I use the same Natural Stroke but with water only.

What is this "natural stroke" stuff. Explain please.

**sas71** · 02-08-2011, 07:57 AM

ive done it but when i put on the A/S i new that it was a mistake to change up my routine.

**mattymatt** · 02-08-2011, 07:59 AM

I have never tried ATG for a first pass. I might give it a go and see what happens.

**mkc1mjb** · 02-08-2011, 07:59 AM

I typically wait until the last pass to go ATG, but I'm going to try going with it first tomorrow to see how it goes.

**Sirius3** · 02-08-2011, 08:42 AM

I used to only go ATG when i was using cartridges(sensor) and canned goo, i had never even heard of multiple passes etc i definitely got a smooth shave...but that terrible skin/complexion i thought was genetic turned out to be my shaving. If you have tough skin, which it seems many on these boards do compared to my girly sensitive skin then you may not get the same problems as i did. Right now i usually go WTG then ATG twice...XTG does nothing for me, sometimes i will go WTG twice and finish up by going ATG...in any case apart from a bad shave here and there my skin is looking much better..i personally think it was the ATG passes that caused the bad complexion as i still whip out the sensor on occasion and use multiple passes starting with WTG and i don't have the same problems as i used to.

**gsurko** · 02-08-2011, 08:51 AM

When you get to the "Pearly Gates". Ole Pete's going to look in the book, see what you did and kick you down the stairs.

**shumanfoo** · 02-08-2011, 11:47 AM

Originally Posted by gsurko

When you get to the "Pearly Gates". Ole Pete's going to look in the book, see what you did and kick you down the stairs.

Oy. I sure hope not! And to all the guys that say they will try 1st pass ATG tomorrow morning....Yikes. Hope it works out.

**Nils** · 02-08-2011, 12:27 PM

My face hurts like hell just thinking of it!

Great if it works for you, but it would kill me. But the shave I could get from it....wow.

**Optometrist** · 02-08-2011, 12:42 PM

In my Fusion days when speed was of the essence, I always just did ATG and never had any reaction to it. I have on several shaves, if running late, repeated this with a DE, and again, it works fine for me. I just enjoy the whole process of shaving now though, and see little point in anything less than 3 passes.

David

**Go West Young Man** · 02-08-2011, 12:50 PM

Originally Posted by shumanfoo

Does anybody else out there do ATG on the first pass?

I'll do it again tomorrow, but just curious. I know that YMMV holds as always.

Irritation has a bad habit of creeping up on you as it accumulates. Now, you might be one of those guys who can pull off ATG on the 1st or 2nd pass, but the odds are that in a day or two your face is going to feel pretty lousy.

Originally Posted by Jethro1984

What is this "natural stroke" stuff. Explain please.

Oh, god, please don't get him started.

**shumanfoo** · 02-08-2011, 01:27 PM

[QUOTE=Go West Young Man;2813765]Irritation has a bad habit of creeping up on you as it accumulates. Now, you might be one of those guys who can pull off ATG on the 1st or 2nd pass, but the odds are that in a day or two your face is going to feel pretty lousy.

Now I'm beginning to chicken out. Brawk. Brawk.

**Roobaix** · 02-08-2011, 01:48 PM

I wouldn't be able to do it. I'd get all kinds of irritation and ingrowns the next day.

My friend does it though, oddly enough because in his words "It's too hard to shave my neck with the grain..." as in it's too diffult to follow the hair pattern.

**jpkunst** · 02-08-2011, 02:09 PM

I go ATG on the first pass if I have very little growth (previous shave less than 24 hours before). Never a problem.

**ace43** · 02-08-2011, 02:13 PM

I tried it and never had a problem with it. It seemed to work well for me because I was no longer "pre-irritating" my face. I thought it would be a problem, but once I had tried it and got great results I was hooked.

**Altair** · 02-08-2011, 10:39 PM

I like to go XTG, Then ATG. I never go WTG. its all in the technique and a good blade.

your face has to be well prepped and you have to get used to it. I love it BBS Every time.

I have done XTG on First Pass as well. No issues. But my usual is XTG, ATG

**theagent** · 02-08-2011, 10:46 PM

I do this on my neck, but I go fairly quickly, and at a shallow angle for the first pass, just to reduce the beard a bit first. When I try to go WTG on my neck I can't pick up much hair, because the hairs lay fairly flat against my skin... So I either do XTG or WTG on the neck for the first pass, and ATG always on the second. Everywhere else I go WTG once, XTG once, and ATG once.