Busting myths and legends

[luvmysuper]

I honestly don't get the alum as an aftershave thing.
Some people find alum soothing after a shave, and it can be helpful with minor scrapes or weepers - it's an astringent.
Use it, if you are so inclined, after you shave, then rinse it off.
Do people walk around with alum scum on their face all day? If you're rinsing it off, then it's not an aftershave.
I apply aftershave, but I certainly don't rinse it off after I have applied it.
Just because you use something after you are done shaving doesn't make that thing an aftershave.
My grandfather used to put bits of toilet paper on his face to stop weepers after he shaved, but he removed them before he left the house. Toilet paper isn't an aftershave either.

 

[Jim in NZ]

I cold water shaved in the Army, and I hated it, so I won't ever do that again.

Ditto. I might try room temp, but field shaving with ice cold water was one of my least favourite things, and there were many bad things on the list that we had to go through. Occasionally I would skip the cold water and use baby powder, but I won't try that again either!

 

[SalS]

My favorite myth is that a very sharp blade is more difficult to shave with or causes irritation and cuts. This is senseless. Would anyone say they prefer a dull chef’s knife? Obviously people have been trained to believe something that is totally illogical.

 

[Quaznoid]

Just about everything I read about in B&B strikes me as OCD, germaphobic or lemming-like. It’s as if shaving is a sacred art, some sort of Japanese tea ceremony, requiring years of practice and training to achieve perfection. No deviations permitted!

As I sometimes say, “it’s just shavin’ man!” At its essence shaving is dragging a blade over a lubricated skin surface to remove hair. That’s it. That’s all it is.

 

[Mojo88]

I’ve been through multiple safety razors and straights. I have tried several pre-shaves and post shaves including alum. Warm not hot water after a shower works best for me. I use a cleanser as a pre-shave then lather up. What I did that used to cause irritation was lack of prep between passes. I would go over places without reapplying and that was the problem for me. This definitely is a ymmv thread.

 

[Brian H Shaves]

One of the "myths" that drive me crazy is that open comb safety razors shave through a beard more easily. I have found this to be completely false. When I did a beard off with my open comb Karve CB I had more problems with long hairs entangling in the teeth of the OC razor. Then moving to the same SB plate there was very little clogging.

My Rex Ambassador cuts through beards like a laser and cleans very very easily like this...

 

[Razrnewb]

You Nailed it- don’t leave it on very long. Alum does wonders for tightening skin, exposing irritation if you are “grading” your shave or equipment, disinfecting and stopping any small weepers but I never leave it on for more than a couple minutes max. Once rinsed off, a good balm or AS gets that moisture and more back in my skin. I would never leave alum on my face long or let it be the final step of a shave.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

Do whatever you want...

I looked at the Tatara brand. During that process I discovered they leave the alum on.

I purchased the Lea brand, and tried leaving it on. That worked fine and caused no problems.

That said, I seldom use alum. Mostly, I just use a styptic pencil when necessary (and I suppose it's a form of alum, too).

Happy shaves,

Jim