My neck is killing me

[LtBrugman70]

Now, I've been doing the wetshaving thing for a few months now, and I simply cannot do a good job on my neck. If I shave the with grain, instant razor burn. If I stretch the skin to help, instant razorburn. No matter how slow or careful I am about applying the correct shaving angle, instant razorburn. My lathers seem just fine, and work great everywhere above my jaw line. Thankfully, only 1 half of my neck gets the bad razorburn. The other half just stays pretty rough no matter how many passes I make.

I shave with my merkur classic most of the time, so it's not like I'm constantly changing razors and throwing off my game. I only shave after showering or hot towel, so the hairs should be pretty soft. I'm just going to give up this 30+ minutes it takes me to shave and go back to the old 5 minute cartridge razor pretty soon. The shaves, at least on my neck, were never any worse that this terrible razorburn.

Anyone have any suggestions before I break down and go back to my Mach3?

[gc_30286]

the neck is the last place most men master shaving. i know you said you shave with the grain,but have you checked the pattern all over your neck. most mens beard growth changes directions several times on ther neck. for instance on my neck the hair grows: N-S under the chin and jaw line, W-E on the left side, E-W on the right side, NW-SE along my throat, and a small patch next my adam's apple that grows SW-NE. if i just shaved from top to bottom i would get horrible razor burns on my neck. the fact that you only get razor burn on part of your neck suggests this is probably the problem. let the hair grow out a bit and check to see what crazy growth patters you have.

hope this helps

matthew

[LtBrugman70]

Actually, I know exactly how the hairs grow, and I do my best to go wih the grain, even as it changes direction. It's strange, because the first pass on my neck (being careful to go with the grain) will have some of the worst irritation.

[Howard]

I never had a really comfortable shave on my neck until I started using a straight razor. I found the straight gives me the ability to control the shave more than the more modern devices.

I only shave one pass, with the grain, on my neck. Other areas of my face get several passes. I'm not trying for close or smooth on my neck, just comfortable.

[gc_30286]

hmmmm you said the problem is only on one side of your neck. could it maybe be a problem with the angle since you may have problems shaving that part of your neck with the same hand? (not sure this makes sense. like you use your right hand to shave the left and right sides of your neck. maybe reaching acros or staying on the same side is causeing problems?)

im just reaching here but it could happen. im sure one of the more experinced guys will have an answer.

matthew

[rusirius]

I agree with matthew. It sounds like your possibly shaving against the grain or almost against the grain in some areas. Have you let you neck "rest"? In other words, take a day or two off from shaving your neck and let it heal completely. This will also serve to let the hair grow out a bit letting you better determine the direction the hair grows. It will likely be different. On the right side of my neck the hair grows chin to shoulder, on the left side of my neck it grows adams apple to ear, yet directly below my chin, all the way down my neck it grows directly across, right ear to left ear. Because of this each area has to be shaved differently on different passes. Make a "map" of your face/neck and detail exactly how the hair grows anywhere it's slightly different. This makes a great reference for during your shaves.

Other things you can do to reduce irritation:
1: Use a gentle clenser to wash your face/neck first. This helps remove any oil buildup on your face. Oil repels water, so it makes it easier for the beard to absorb water if it's oil free.
2: Use a good pre-shave. I like the Proraso myself. My BEST results come from the shower. I get in the shower, get a good steam going, wash my face, then rub in some proraso and go about finishing my shower. Before I get out I hit it with a bit more proraso. Dry off, leaving my face wet.
3: Then I soak my bowl/brush and while that's soaking throw a steaming towel over my face/neck for a minute.
4: Rinse off again with hot water, then I apply some coral skin food. You can use plain glycerin if you'd like (it's FAR cheaper). This helps keep the whiskers soft/moist, and in my opinon helps the razor "glide" a lot easier, especially on the cross/against passes.
5: Lather up and go to town on your first pass...

After each pass I rinse with hot water and apply more coral skin food before lathering (again, you can you glycerin).

You'll also be able to tell if your "prep" has been good. Run the back of your hand against the grain on your chin/neck... If it's softened up good it won't feel "sharp".

Also, I'm not sure about the standard classic, but my classic HD is actually somewhat agressive. It's find for my face, but can be a little irritating on my neck unless I'm SUPER careful about my angle. You may want to get a cheap less agressive (gillette superspeed comes to mind) or even an adjustable that you can dial way down, and try using those for your neck passes. When it comes to my neck I always dial my vision almost all the way down (the blade is actually ALMOST touching the guard. This makes it far less sensitive to angle and keeps things pretty irritation free.

Get all those things in check (proper prep, glycerin between passes, and knowing the exact direction of hair growth EVERYWHERE) and I think you'll find you'll never think of a cartridge razor again.

[LtBrugman70]

Well, I recently picked up a gillette adjustable, so I'll give that some more attention after a couple of days of rest.

And yes, I only shave with my right hand, but the irritation is on the right side of my neck...

And I already use proraso and glycerin.

[TraderJoe]

MBB,

Have you tried Against the Grain?

As far as my neck (all other areas get WTG).... I get my closest shaves with least amount of irritation going against the grain (South-to-North for me), while stretching skin at bottom of neck and pointing head up. All other variables remaining the same, WTG just doesn't do the trick for my neck.

Why? I'm just noticing this lately, but I just seem to be able to maintain a better razor angle going S-N on the neck.

[LtBrugman70]

*shivers* That sounds awfully painful...

[TraderJoe]

*shivers* That sounds awfully painful...

Give it a whirl, I think you'll be surprised. As long as you have a nice cushion there (good lather) you should be ok! Or, try it without a blade, and note how easy it is to maintain the proper angle.

[jduffy]

I agree with Joe. But make sure you have nice lather, good technique and you should be fine.

[bearbeard]

Try Shaving with your off hand on your neck. I don't know wether it is more focus or I do not push down as hard. but I get a better shave when I use my left hand. Go figure.

[Tito]

I too had a heck of a time with the neck area. It will take some time to get all the variables and technique perfected but it will all eventually gel. I too had to eventually switch to Gillette adj. Start out with a forgiving setting. Like 2 or 3. Remeber the aim is to reduce. How's your prep and lather? This is really a key to less irritation.

[rusirius]

Here's one more thing to ponder...

Could it be a difference in neck stretching? The reason I ask is this.. I normally switch hands to shave... Right face with right hand, Left face with left hand... This morning as a test I tried it like you say you do, right hand doing everything. With my face it really didn't seem to make any diffence, though it was harder to maintain the correct angle in some places... What I did notice though, was that when doing my neck area using different hands changed the "Stretch" of my neck. I guess maybe because of arm/shoulder movement? Anyway, this applied regardless of which hand I put the razor in. As soon as I raised it up to shave, that side of my neck would relax a bit... So perhaps since it's your right side and right hand, your neck is relaxing more then it should and causing excessive irritation???

[GeeQue]

Besides technique, have you tried a few diff brands of blades ? Merkur blades do this to me, Derby blades do not.

[PalmettoB]

Give it a whirl, I think you'll be surprised. As long as you have a nice cushion there (good lather) you should be ok! Or, try it without a blade, and note how easy it is to maintain the proper angle.

MMB:
I actually have the exact same problem on the right side of my neck. The first pass I actually do a NW-SE pass, then one AGAINST the grain. Sounds weird, but it works. Even if it seems like I am missing some, I NEVER go over the same area twice in the same pass, either. I tried changing to the left hand, as some here have suggested, but that didn't really do it for me. YMMV. But really working to stretch the skin there does. Hope this helps.