Gents, I could use some help.
I'm trying to remedy ongoing irritation on my lower neck, and I'm thinking of shifting my AD focus to razors for the first time as a way to do it. My question: Would a "milder" razor help, and if so, which would you recommend? I'm considering a Tech or a Superspeed, both of which I understand are milder than an HD? The reviews suggest these razors greatly reduce irritation. Can I still get BBS, too? Is there a compelling reason to choose one over the other? I've made it almost a year and half without really getting into razors, so I'm embarrassingly slow in the area. I'd sure appreciate any guidance!
(I'm also open to encouragement to redouble my focus on technique, but I'd also like your help on the razor option, too.)
If more background would help, my work environment encourages a fairly clean-shaven appearance, and my facial hair grows pretty quickly; so, I really need to end up if not at BBS, at least very, very close to it. Happily, I've been getting a BBS shave for a while now, but always at the cost of some visible razor burn/irritation on my lower neck.
I've been using a Merkur HD for the last year, and so far, Israelis work the best for me as a blade. My beard appears to be fairly heavy and, while it follows a general grain pattern overall, it has several exception areas where the grain switches. As a consequence, to get BBS, I need to do at least 4 passes + a touch-up (5 is often better). The passes are the typical WTG, XTG, XTG, ATG, with often a chevron thrown in.
That number of passes seems to be relatively independent of the major blades (I've tried Merkurs, Dorcos, Derbys, Israelis, and Feathers). Given that number of passes seems to be a "must", I'm thinking that leads to greater irritation all else equal than, say, a 3-pass shave? And since it looks like I'm a more-than-fewer pass guy, that leads me to consider a milder razor.
Again, I'm very willing to reconsider/refocus on my technique, so feel free to point me in that direction. But, if a milder razor would help, I'd like your help in that vein, too.
Thanks!
I'm trying to remedy ongoing irritation on my lower neck, and I'm thinking of shifting my AD focus to razors for the first time as a way to do it. My question: Would a "milder" razor help, and if so, which would you recommend? I'm considering a Tech or a Superspeed, both of which I understand are milder than an HD? The reviews suggest these razors greatly reduce irritation. Can I still get BBS, too? Is there a compelling reason to choose one over the other? I've made it almost a year and half without really getting into razors, so I'm embarrassingly slow in the area. I'd sure appreciate any guidance!
(I'm also open to encouragement to redouble my focus on technique, but I'd also like your help on the razor option, too.)
If more background would help, my work environment encourages a fairly clean-shaven appearance, and my facial hair grows pretty quickly; so, I really need to end up if not at BBS, at least very, very close to it. Happily, I've been getting a BBS shave for a while now, but always at the cost of some visible razor burn/irritation on my lower neck.
I've been using a Merkur HD for the last year, and so far, Israelis work the best for me as a blade. My beard appears to be fairly heavy and, while it follows a general grain pattern overall, it has several exception areas where the grain switches. As a consequence, to get BBS, I need to do at least 4 passes + a touch-up (5 is often better). The passes are the typical WTG, XTG, XTG, ATG, with often a chevron thrown in.
That number of passes seems to be relatively independent of the major blades (I've tried Merkurs, Dorcos, Derbys, Israelis, and Feathers). Given that number of passes seems to be a "must", I'm thinking that leads to greater irritation all else equal than, say, a 3-pass shave? And since it looks like I'm a more-than-fewer pass guy, that leads me to consider a milder razor.
Again, I'm very willing to reconsider/refocus on my technique, so feel free to point me in that direction. But, if a milder razor would help, I'd like your help in that vein, too.
Thanks!