Massive variance in shave quality?

Blood donor said:

So I've had some great shave days approaching/hitting BBS. And others, with the same set up, where after 4-5 passes I still have a rough shave, quasi stubble that becomes stubble after a few hours, and irritated skin.

is this normal?? There seems no pattern - last week I shaved daily with no issues. This week, poor shave on tues and today. I thought it was bad blades, but I'm switching mid shave to check with new Astros, feathers, and gillette reds. They can't all be bad, so it is something else....

bottom line is does anyone else have those days where the shave is pretty rubbish and not at all close no matter how many passes?

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Blood donor said:

Four months in.... Feel like some shaves are worse than the first week. So strange to have massive variance from perfect to shambolic.... Surely the technique can't vary by that degree!

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SiBurning said:

IMO, conditions change all the time. Humidity, diet, how much you drank--and what you drank--all contribute to different face/skin conditions, which affect your shave. You have to learn to adapt. Especially if you're going for that BBS all the time. Eventually, you'll learn how to adapt by how things feel and at some point in the distant future you won't even realize that you're doing it. I stopped trying to give advice to new folks because it's impossible for me to relate, but I don't think you can approach shaving at the level you're looking for thinking it's a 100% repeatable process like forming sheet steel cause it just ain't. (And I'm sure we have some metal workers around that'll claim it ain't all that repeatable either.)

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strop said:

I periodically find myself getting complacent, and just not paying enough attention to what I'm doing. After a while, things to seem to go along on autopilot and then all of a sudden, bad shave.

Could be just a little of this and that. Change in soap, lather, angle, etc.

It's magical when it all comes together, but miserable when it doesn't.

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SiBurning said:

IMO, conditions change all the time. Humidity, diet, how much you drank--and what you drank--all contribute to different face/skin conditions, which affect your shave. You have to learn to adapt. Especially if you're going for that BBS all the time. Eventually, you'll learn how to adapt by how things feel and at some point in the distant future you won't even realize that you're doing it. I stopped trying to give advice to new folks because it's impossible for me to relate, but I don't think you can approach shaving at the level you're looking for thinking it's a 100% repeatable process like forming sheet steel cause it just ain't. (And I'm sure we have some metal workers around that'll claim it ain't all that repeatable either.)

Click to expand...

Blood donor said:

So I've had some great shave days approaching/hitting BBS. And others, with the same set up, where after 4-5 passes I still have a rough shave, quasi stubble that becomes stubble after a few hours, and irritated skin.

is this normal?? There seems no pattern - last week I shaved daily with no issues. This week, poor shave on tues and today. I thought it was bad blades, but I'm switching mid shave to check with new Astros, feathers, and gillette reds. They can't all be bad, so it is something else....

bottom line is does anyone else have those days where the shave is pretty rubbish and not at all close no matter how many passes?

Click to expand...

gwsmallwood said:

How long have you been using the DE? I've been at it since June, and I still have the occasional few days in a row of sub-par shaves. For me, I think it's mainly lapses in technique, either with angle and pressure, or lather, or both. But overall, you should start seeing consistent improvement, and progressively more good days than bad, I would say somewhere between the 4 and 8 week mark.

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Blood donor said:

I may have cracked it, though as ever with this face chess, there is a web of possible variables! I've focussed on a bit more prep to ensure my beard is fully soft and saturated. Previously I was still always showering, but perhaps not always enough to fully soften. Once you are out of that showe, the beard will never get softer, just gradually harden up.....

So far ar this week, two shaves, two great results where I can tell after the first pass that the shave will go well. Now for the slant arriving in the post tomorrow!!

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