The Neck Area Shaving Info Thread : post tips, suggestions that would help others.

Stubblefield said:

My thoughts: Don't expect perfection. My neck is my most troublesome area, and if I try and achieve BBS I end up with irritation. Nowadays, I make two WTG passes most days, and only occasionally go ATG. Less irritation, for sure. I also tossed any of the soaps that seemed to add to the irritation.

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Stubblefield said:

My thoughts: Don't expect perfection. My neck is my most troublesome area, and if I try and achieve BBS I end up with irritation. Nowadays, I make two WTG passes most days, and only occasionally go ATG. Less irritation, for sure. I also tossed any of the soaps that seemed to add to the irritation.

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Many_Vices said:

You bring up irritating soaps. I only have two Catie's Bubbles soaps (LPV and LTV), but both of them, after the first pass, really start to irritate my skin. They give me a phenomenal shave aside from this and the irritation only lasts about ten minutes post shave but I wish they didn't do this seeing that my 10 or so other soaps don't.

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alex2363 said:

Have you tried cold water compress to reduce the irritation?

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Many_Vices said:

I have and I cold water shave as well, however, I'm thinking it has to be that I'm having a reaction to something in these two soaps. It's more of an itching sensation than an irritation like I'm having some sort of reaction to an ingredient.

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Stubblefield said:

My thoughts: Don't expect perfection. My neck is my most troublesome area, and if I try and achieve BBS I end up with irritation. Nowadays, I make two WTG passes most days, and only occasionally go ATG. Less irritation, for sure. I also tossed any of the soaps that seemed to add to the irritation.

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RockstarWelder said:

I am a fairly new wet shaver, I decided to try wet shaving because like many I have ultra sensitive skin, even some soaps with a clean ingredients list would still cause irritation. I am lucky to have a wet shaving store nearby they have been great at working with me giving me demos and tips, as well as products to try. (a side note check out nick shaves on YouTube) I have a Merkur 38c, which i use with less aggressive blades. I was ready to give up on wet shaving until they let me demo the Feather AS2 with a feather blade this razor is wonders for sensitive skin, like many have said a sharp blade does wonders for irritation, no tugging. but in my experience a sharp blade with a mild razor helps a lot as its not aggressive. likewise a more aggressive razor with a milder blade think shark, personna lab blue, etc.

I have a very unconventional or wild neck growth, it goes all over the place beside my ears WTG is down, under my chin down, the rest of it goes in all different directions the main pattern of the rest is up at an angle towards my chin, I got a lot of irritation on my neck and across the grain is not an option too sensitive and hard to get my chin close I am little on the chubby side so under the double chins etc is hard to reach. to handle this I have found light pressure making funny faces will take care of the chin going cross grain. For the neck I go up towards my chin at angle or will use some j hooks as well. I lather over each area I need so my razor never touches skin without lather.

1) WTG - n-s over my whole face
2a)XTG - cheeks, chin, moustache
2b) neck - WTG near ears where growth is n-s, rest of the neck up at angle towards my chin, neck right under the chin if it can handle it that day against the grain
3) XTG opposite direction - cheeks, chin, moustache
4) cleanup pass if needed.

I hope this helps just my two cents on what I have discovered works for me, I hope this helps anyone. I had to be my own Guinea pig I suffered many bad shaves before I found a basic recipie. this is a very helpful thread thanks to all who have contributed. as a side note like the gentleman etiquette on the forums, very refreshing to see!

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hcoop111 said:

For me simple... Wtg xtg atg..i never have any problems with shaving any part on my body..unless its a faulty blade or terrible quality ...wich so far i havent found many..it just comes down to how you do it how hard you push the way you hold something etc etc

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hcoop111 said:

Sure ... When you tilt your head forwardlike wayyy forward under your chin can create rolls of skin....or neck as well...when i tested this i just stretched the skin back to being flat while keeping my head in the same position ...i found this because i thought how can you make that area shave if you have soft skin on the sides of your neck..somehow i stumbled on that...it may of been just a thing that worked for me ...so it may not work for everyone or anyone haha but its worth a shot i hope ive explained that its hard for me to explain kinda lol

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MntnMan62 said:

I take one thing back. The bumps do hurt a little bit. I gotta fix this.

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hcoop111 said:

For me simple... Wtg xtg atg..i never have any problems with shaving any part on my body..unless its a faulty blade or terrible quality ...wich so far i havent found many..it just comes down to how you do it how hard you push the way you hold something etc etc

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hcoop111 said:

Ouch they look like they hurt a bit....yea as person said above go easy until its healed if i get a razor burn or anything i slow it back for about 2 days or so until its healed...may i also add i tried the astra sp this morning and didnt care much for them tbh they stand about 6/10 on my rating....average... Try some others.. I dont know about the voskhods as i havent used them not the gillettes so i cant say squat on those ....and nah wouldnt be the cream from what ive heard tobs is rlly good stuff...you say its heated up? if so maybe thats the answer heat rash+razor burn...im not really sure im just giving whatever advice i can or say whats going in my mind...maybe also try some ice water...get a ice cream tub put cold water in a d place a few cubes i side until icey cold splash around face for a bit..other than that im lost man lol gl with it i hope somebody here can help you

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doc47 said:

I must have the best neck in the world because I've never been bothered by razor burns or irritation. It does not sound like it is fun or easy to deal with. But there sure is great information being shared here.

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MntnMan62 said:

Yes. Now that the irritation has cleared up I have decided to go back to what has worked for me and my neck for the past 30 years, albeit with a Mach 3, which is to simply do a North-South pass followed by a South North pass and then touch up if necessary. I did that this morning and was treated to a decent shave. And my face, particularly my neck, was smiling afterwards. And only one weeper that went away on its own after a cold water rinse. I'm done with experimentation, at least of the drastic kind. And now I can get back to really enjoying my morning shaves.

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Jer78 said:

Hi there, I had massive neck itching and I tried all kinds of different products. Turns out I was allergic to the aluminum in my Razor (stealth slant).

.5% hydrocortisone calmed it down and was then able to discover the culprit. Good luck, hope it works out soon.

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alex2363 said:

Have you figured out the soap.?

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Many_Vices said:

I did email Catie's Bubbles to see if they could give me some insight on their ingredients to see if there was anything that might lead to this reaction, however, I never received an email back.

However, I did shave with both LPV and LTV a couple times each and I noticed that the itching/reaction wasn't as bad as times prior. My technique has gotten much better over the past few months and I'm thinking that I start getting the most irritation when I get a couple of nicks or have irritation from pushing too hard. I also noticed that when I'm brushing both of these soaps on my face and if I don't cover my lips, the soap gives some burning sensation on my lips.

There has to be something in these soaps that lend to this sensation, I just don't what yet.

I will say that I get incredibly close shaves with both of these soaps.

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GoneRetroInOH said:

I differentiate "neck" from "throat", with "throat" being the front part. Re-map the beard. There are often strangely placed parts or even swirls. If you are seeking BBS, make use of blade buffing rather than multiple passes. For the back of the neck, consider trying a shavette every few says. Brush on some excess lather from the shave to the back of the neck, and use short shavette strokes. A second mirror comes in handy.

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1959tony said:

I learned to beard map by using a light touch and listening to my razor. Another thing I found extremely important is good skin care. I shave in the morning and do skin care at night My nightly ritual consists of washing with a good quality face wash. I then apply a toner and then a moisturizer. I found that if I take care of my skin then the quality of the shave. You can get quality skin products at a reasonable price.

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