Lubrication and oil

I'm up to about DE shave number 6 now. I feel I get a little bit of improvement every time still but am yet to be fully converted.

My current issue is lubrication. I like the ritual of the shaving cream but I wonder if it hampers as much as helps. Back in the Mach 3 days, I didn't use cream - just water.

I sometimes finish a first pass and am not happy so relather and do another pass and still not happy so just touch up rough spots with no cream and find it easier to control the blade. Today, after the first pass I tried olive oil instead on one half of my face and was quite impressed with the results.

I know that oil is meant to be bad for the brush so I kept the brush away from the oil. But why is it that creams and soaps are so popular but shaving oils seem to be little discussed around here? Is there a consensus on oils? I tried to search but found it hard to uncover a good thread on the subject.

For me, one of the most enjoyable aspects of DE shaving is making the lather, applying it with a great brush , making several passes WTG, XTG, ATG with lathering in between. Anything that significantly reduces this "ritual" would detract from my overall experience. That being said YMMV and if it works for you then by all means do what feels good and right.

I was very skeptical about using a pre-shave oil at first. To me it seemed to complicate the DE shaving process. Plus the price of some of the commercial brand pre-shave oils were ridiculously high.

However after reading some B&B post on using EVOO I gave it a try. I've been very happy with the results. My skin doesn't feel raw after a shave, none or very few nicks weepers etc and my razor glides thru my beard and soap.

It works for me.

David

In the old days, I had used disposables with just water, and it was OK. I would suggest making your lather a bit thinner, as in more water. I think that might be a happy medium and still give you better protection that just water. I play with my lather consistency depending on my razor of choice for the day. Thicker for str8 or open comb or SE, a bit thinner for solid safety bar razors. Never tried oil, sorry. I've found enough other ways to spend money in this adventure!

I'm glad someone brought it up. I have just started myself and have also tried EVOO. It's far better than goo out of can. But some of the factors I found were:

1. The glide wasn't as good. i.e. the blade felt like it was gripping the skin.
2. It felt like the blade was being lubricated so much that the hair actually became immune to being cut.
3. It was a real mess to clean up and the balde was full of gunk.
4. I also found there were less nicks and cuts, but this is probably just masking bad technique.
5. I found I had worse irrataion a day later than when i used cream.

I think a good lather should do a better job, from what I understand teh theory is that it holds the hair up better while allowing the blade to get really close; EVOO won't ahve this affect.

One method I have read and have also tried with good success is the oil pass after all the normal ones. So do a WTG XTG etc. and finish up by just doing the lone EVOO ATG pass.

Anyway I've only just started wet shaving so these are just ideas I'm still experimenting.

Shaving using anything with just water? You must have some seriously tough skin!

If you are looking for a quality oil, Zirh's Pre-Shave oil is a safe bet. It smells woody (think cedar and oak) and lubricates the skin without interfering with blade/beard contact.

Yeah, I have got tough skin - one of the reasons why I think I'm taking longer than some to be converted to this is the fact that my skin is both tough and smooth - not prone to irritations or ingrown hairs - so the benefits may be less.

The idea of doing a soap (or cream) shave followed by an oil shave is appealing as it's what I'm doing now. I will try using EVOO as "pre-shave oil" as well, though, for comparison.

I use an open-comb DE and I find that doing an ATG pass after WTG and a bit of XTG, even after re-lathering, tends to rip up my skin a little (no cuts, just roughness). So what I was doing yesterday was soap WTG, soap XTG, oil ATG touch-up.

For what it's worth, I'm using T&H luxury soap so I hope that is not the problem.

T&H makes a nice shave oil that can be used in conjunction with the soap or cream; maybe you could try that.

Clonakilty said:

Yeah, I have got tough skin - one of the reasons why I think I'm taking longer than some to be converted to this is the fact that my skin is both tough and smooth - not prone to irritations or ingrown hairs - so the benefits may be less.

The idea of doing a soap (or cream) shave followed by an oil shave is appealing as it's what I'm doing now. I will try using EVOO as "pre-shave oil" as well, though, for comparison.

I use an open-comb DE and I find that doing an ATG pass after WTG and a bit of XTG, even after re-lathering, tends to rip up my skin a little (no cuts, just roughness). So what I was doing yesterday was soap WTG, soap XTG, oil ATG touch-up.

Click to expand...

You may want to try a less aggressive razor than the open comb. You can buy used old Gillette flare tip safety razors pretty cheap, especially if you don't need a pretty one. They are nice mild shavers, which may allow you to use WTG, XTG and ATG passes using creams or soaps achieving a nice close shave without having to use a pre-shave oil. You will find what works best for you and experimenting can be half the fun. And if you end up with something that you will no longer use...you can sell it on BST.
Good Luck and enjoy!

I highly recommend trying the Shave Secret oil.

http://www.shavesecret.com/

I am able to get mine at Wal-mart and it works great. I sometimes use it as a stand alone without cream and sometimes as a preshave. I can't make up my mind which I like more!