Reason for Blade tugging

greenp · Sep 21, 2014

Hi

Ive been DE shaving for about 6 weeks and making some good progress but I recently tried Feather blades and I still experienced some tugging using these super sharp blades.

Is there 1 cause for blades tugging against whiskers. I thought sharper blades may cure this but didnt. Or is related to face prep, angle, blade choice or all of the above.

Thanks.

Eeyore · Sep 21, 2014

Are you only experiencing tugging on the ATG pass? If yes, I think time and practice will solve that.

greenp · Sep 21, 2014

Thanks for your response. Its generally WTG or XTG. The problem seems to be with coarser areas such as chin & upper lip. Esp with growth > 1 days growth.

docholliday77 · Sep 21, 2014

I'm no further along this road than you, but I'll throw in my $0.02.

If not blade (and Feathers should be plenty sharp), I'd guess angle. Sometimes when I'm doing a poor job with angle, it seems like the blade is hopping across my skin. I think this is because I've got it too steep. When I focus more on a shallow angle (turning the razor just enough that it starts cutting whiskers), it really seems smooth. This is easy to do on my cheeks, but not so easy on the various contours of my neck.

Eeyore · Sep 21, 2014

Do not underestimate the importance of a good prep! That can make the difference between a blade gliding through the whiskers, and a blade catching on the stubble.

PMT · Sep 21, 2014

docholliday77 said:
I'm no further along this road than you, but I'll throw in my $0.02.

If not blade (and Feathers should be plenty sharp), I'd guess angle. Sometimes when I'm doing a poor job with angle, it seems like the blade is hopping across my skin. I think this is because I've got it too steep. When I focus more on a shallow angle (turning the razor just enough that it starts cutting whiskers), it really seems smooth. This is easy to do on my cheeks, but not so easy on the various contours of my neck.

+1 and I could watch Val Kilmer as Doc all day long, also heard he is doing Mark Twain live!

xxvaleria · Sep 21, 2014

I usually experience tugging and skipping when my face and lather are too dry. Try adding more water when making lather, and rinse your face between passes to keep it hydrated.

mswofford · Sep 21, 2014

I definitely rinse between passes also; Besides hydration, it keeps shave residue (cut whiskers) from getting into your brush when you re-lather your face.

ackvil · Sep 21, 2014

xxvaleria said:
I usually experience tugging and skipping when my face and lather are too dry. Try adding more water when making lather, and rinse your face between passes to keep it hydrated.

+1. That plus be sure your angle is right.

BSAGuy · Sep 21, 2014

I agree with this. Bad angle = skipping, tugging, and scraping.

docholliday77 said:
I'm no further along this road than you, but I'll throw in my $0.02.

If not blade (and Feathers should be plenty sharp), I'd guess angle. Sometimes when I'm doing a poor job with angle, it seems like the blade is hopping across my skin. I think this is because I've got it too steep. When I focus more on a shallow angle (turning the razor just enough that it starts cutting whiskers), it really seems smooth. This is easy to do on my cheeks, but not so easy on the various contours of my neck.

gwsmallwood · Sep 21, 2014

Just to add one more thing to think about, make sure to use short strokes too. I have very coarse hair, and I notice a big problem with that when I let my strokes get too long.

wazza · Sep 21, 2014

Eeyore said:
Do not underestimate the importance of a good prep! That can make the difference between a blade gliding through the whiskers, and a blade catching on the stubble.

+1 with prep. I'd also go with angle too.

lr11 · Sep 21, 2014

Angle and the pressure for which you grip the razor are the main problems here.

mkiraly · Sep 21, 2014

xxvaleria said:
I usually experience tugging and skipping when my face and lather are too dry. Try adding more water when making lather, and rinse your face between passes to keep it hydrated.

+1

docholliday77 · Sep 21, 2014

PMT said:
I could watch Val Kilmer as Doc all day long, also heard he is doing Mark Twain live!

Yes, looking at my avatar so frequently, I realize it has really been too long since I watched that movie. Besides Kilmer's stellar performance, Doc's character has so many great lines. I heard about Twain too - that would be fun to see.

greenp · Sep 21, 2014

Guys, thanks for the responses.

I'll continue working on all these things as I'm sure I can keep on improving. I'm thinking that maybe blade angle might be the key as I have experimented with face prep vs no face prep, different shave soaps and creams and obviously some blades.

I generally still get some razor burn on lower neck which is probably another indicator of bad angle or pressure.

I normally use Proraso white preshave and rinse my face between passes/lathering. Lathers include Proraso Green, HTGAM Synergy, TOBS Sandalwood cream, Body Shop Maca root cream.

I did notice on last shave with proraso green that I had a hard time rinsing razor to remove lather (DE89). Is this an indicator of lather too dry?

ackvil · Sep 21, 2014

If the lather is too dry it will stick to your razor blade and you will not get a smooth shave.

gwsmallwood · Sep 21, 2014

greenp said:
Guys, thanks for the responses.

I'll continue working on all these things as I'm sure I can keep on improving. I'm thinking that maybe blade angle might be the key as I have experimented with face prep vs no face prep, different shave soaps and creams and obviously some blades.

I generally still get some razor burn on lower neck which is probably another indicator of bad angle or pressure.

I normally use Proraso white preshave and rinse my face between passes/lathering. Lathers include Proraso Green, HTGAM Synergy, TOBS Sandalwood cream, Body Shop Maca root cream.

I did notice on last shave with proraso green that I had a hard time rinsing razor to remove lather (DE89). Is this an indicator of lather too dry?

Sounds like it. I would also suggest not rinsing between passes. Just splash a little more water on so you keep some of the slickness of the left over lather.

greenp · Sep 22, 2014

Just shaved. Incorporated the shorter strokes and much shallower angle - actually surprised myself how much shallower. Also added more water to lather and kept face wetter.
Result was less tug and 1 of better shaves.
Thanks.

beowulf · Sep 22, 2014

I had my own lightbulb moment a couple of weeks ago when angle and pressure fell in to place without thinking about it - and, when I slightly increased the speed of a blade stroke (increased confidence) I found the resulting shave went without any tugging or dragging at all. I had to conclude that I was previously getting issues with me passing the blade over my face too slowly and therefore tugging rather than cutting.

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Reason for Blade tugging

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