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So I had my first wet shave tonight with my new to me DE razor and 7am blade. I am still hurting. Used a Palmolive shave stick, and badger hair brush. worked up a great lather. shaved 1 pass WTG with as little pressure as possible. No real nicks but a few weepers. My chin is smooth without much burn but my cheeks and neck feel like I didn't remove any stubble but are on fire. Did my usual preshave/postshave used witch hazel after. Did I do something wrong or is this normal for a noob?
 
You probably want to check the angle you're shaving at. Nothing wrong with your prep/setup. And just don't use pressure, let the razor's weight do all the work. Also, switch blades in case you're using a bad one.
 
So I had my first wet shave tonight with my new to me DE razor and 7am blade. I am still hurting. Used a Palmolive shave stick, and badger hair brush. worked up a great lather. shaved 1 pass WTG with as little pressure as possible. No real nicks but a few weepers. My chin is smooth without much burn but my cheeks and neck feel like I didn't remove any stubble but are on fire. Did my usual preshave/postshave used witch hazel after. Did I do something wrong or is this normal for a noob?
Sounds like you've got all the tools. It might just take some time to get used to adjusting your angles to all the contours of your face. Keep going easy and with practice you'll be an old pro in no time!
 
Prep is key for a good shave. The whiskers need to be ready to shave, plumped up with moisture.

Angle, blade, and the no pressure technic will give you a nice shave using a WTG pass. Keep working on technic. Try another blade next time. All will get better with time.
 
Unfortunately it's all too "normal" for noobs. It's technique. You'll get it.

To ease the burn try Witch Hazel, it helps a lot. I use the cheap stuff at the Dollar Store, it's all the same unless you spring for Thayers.

BTW, the burn is built into the razor and blade as a training aid. When you get it right it stops doing that. :001_rolle OK, so maybe I made up that last bit.
 
"7 a.m." is a knockoff blade; the real things are called Gillette 7 O'Clock. The best thing is to order a sampler pack from Razor Blades and More or one of the other vendors.

Your main issue does sound like angle, though. Give yourself time -- it'll come!

Welcome to B&B!
 
After my first DE shave I had similar results. Dont get discouraged though. Try the same routine a few more times and if you're sure it doesnt work switch 1 variable. For example, when I tried shaving with cold water only after a few tries with hot water, it really helped my results. Also, focus on your technique and lather. Thats the advice I can give you as a newbie, good luck and happy shaves!
 
You did well to use as little pressure as possible. I'm guessing, though, that it was still too much. Remember that shaving is a process of beard reduction. Each pass reduces the stubble a bit. A single, with-the-grain pass is not supposed to make your face feel completely smooth.

What you describe is pretty normal for starting out. Don't worry about smoothness, right now. If you work on the technique, the smoothness will come.
 
As a newbie I can say I have the best results by focussing on technique, do a 2 pass shave (1 WTG, 1 XTG) and a 1 pass shave on sensitive areas (in my case, the neck).
 
i don't think you made a good lather at all, you said you only went wtg and used very little pressure with still stubble left and weepers?

with a good lather none of that should have happened with only a wtg pass.

when your building lather on your face use some fast scrubbing motions with your brush, up n down, left 2 right and round n round. this will lift and lubricate your hairs better and make it easier to cut. also make sure you use plenty of product, also go to the wiki, jim and joel have some good lather posts.

you should be able to do a 3 pass shave, wtg/atg/xtg with no irritation and maybe a couple small nicks/weepers once in a while.
 
As said above, most likely it was an issue with pressure and angle.

DE shaving is different from cartridge shaving in that you must be sure you are not putting any pressure on the blade. Let the weight of the razor do the work for you. To assure this I use two fingers and my thumb to hold the razor with another finger resting on the tip of the handle. This results in holding the razor very lightly with no pressure on the razor. You want to hold the razor as lightly as you can without it falling from your hand. And here is a good post that will help you on blade angle.
 
STEP AWAY FROM THE 7am BLADE!!

That is the only blade that I have shaved with that gave me burn and tugging every time.
 
Welcome to B&B!

Still being within a year of wetshaving myself, I tend to prefer the Derby and Red Personna blades because they are a little more gentle on my sensitive skin.

Go easy on the pass with light pressure and only do 1 WTG pass every other day or every day after a shower to let your face get accustomed to this new way of shaving. It might just be your skin freaking out and saying, "WOAH! What's going on here?"
 
S

surpera1

get some good blades
wilkinson sword are fairly forgiving @ wally world
what model gillette are you using ?
wash your face with soap and water
rinse well to hydrate beard
lather well and keep wet
it takes time to get good at it
after a while you can use most any of them effectively
you will get it
 
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