When is the razor shave ready

Hi Gents,
I have been straight shaving for the last year and try honing my own razors. I have had two from reputable guys who supplied razors as shave ready and they did a nice job.

My razors pass the HHT and give a very close shave, I just cant get a very smooth stroke on the ATG cheek and neck passes. I have never had a razor yet where I can go ATG on the top lip as I have seen some guys perform on Utube etc. I would like a razor that goes ATG in a smooth motion, without any tugging. I get a BBS shave but it definitely requires multiple passes to achieve. I dont get any cuts or rash, but dont have a smooth shaving experience.

I have an array of hones and pastes, but cant get the razor smooth on those described passes.

Do you guys experince the same problems and am I asking the razor to do too much, are my expectations too high. Infact I am even toying with the idea of buying an Artist razor where I insert razor blades, hoping this will give me that dream shave. Has anyone else gone down this route and did they get the change that they were looking for.

All the best
London

In reality you don't have to shave against the grain to get great shave. WTG AND XTG should be good enough. You have enough experience with SR. have you tried scything motion shaving?
The real test is shave test. if you are getting good shaves then your razor's should be ok.
you stop short not to telling 2 razor you got from people who honed your razor did they shave AGT WELL or not?
you said they did nice job?
If you still insist doing AGT THEN lower the angle and you should be ok.

this is short my experience.
when i started i wasn't able to shave at all.
after 6 months i start to get hold of wtg and xtg.
Next i learned AGT AND I LOVE IT But sooner i realized after AGT I have no hair roots on my face but feeling wasn't good.
Then i learned more and get experienced. Now i get bbs only with wtg and xtg +my skin feels great.
hope this helps.

I don't think I have any advice to give but I will say I do ATG, including top lip and chin, everyday - and often with razors that are quite blunt. I can get a BBS shave from them too but the alum block sure hurts afterwards.

Hi
In all honestly the two shave ready razors I bought gave nice shaves but also struggled to go ATG on the top lip and on the tip of the chin.

I have stropped the razor on a balsa paddle with CRo2 until my arm ached to see if I could make the edge as smooth as possible but as I said, the shave is smooth but not when I try ATG. There always seems to be some tugging, not the smooth motion I was hoping for.

Possibly its a technique issue, and maybe you are right in that ATG and XTG will suffice. I can get a good close shave with a DE razor when I go against the grain and I suppose I want to match that with my straight.

Regards

Dave, I have razors honed by the best in the biz and I am a fair hand with a hone if I do say so myself. I can't do ATG on my upper lip with a brand new Feather blade in a DE let alone a straight razor and it ain't for lack of trying.

I would suspect it is the 'asking too much' option that you mentioned. From your description it sounds like the razors are truly sharp and shave ready so either it is a technique issue or it is the coarseness of your whiskers.

I will say that over a couple of years of doing it I only recently discovered new stretches that enabled me to get problem areas smooth more easily. That upper lip ATG is out of the question for me though even if some guys can do it. We all have different whiskers.

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Originally Posted by Dave12345

Hi
I can get a good close shave with a DE razor when I go against the grain and I suppose I want to match that with my straight.

Regards

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You will match this but it takes time and patience. Try scything motion see what happens. Please stretch the skin or your will slice your face.
Very important your blade should touch your face barely while you use straight razor.(Means no pressure on your skin . if blade requires pressure to cut hairs it is not shave ready)

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Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

Dave, I have razors honed by the best in the biz and I am a fair hand with a hone if I do say so myself. I can't do ATG on my upper lip with a brand new Feather blade in a DE let alone a straight razor and it ain't for lack of trying.

I would suspect it is the 'asking too much' option that you mentioned. From your description it sounds like the razors are truly sharp and shave ready so either it is a technique issue or it is the coarseness of your whiskers.

I will say that over a couple of years of doing it I only recently discovered new stretches that enabled me to get problem areas smooth more easily. That upper lip ATG is out of the question for me though even if some guys can do it. We all have different whiskers.

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That description made me chuckle. Did you ever consider the Feather Artist razor ?

Gents,
Thanks for the quick replies, I will try a little more stretching and the scything motion (ambulance on stand by).


Regards
London

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Originally Posted by Dave12345

That description made me chuckle. Did you ever consider the Feather Artist razor ?

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I did consider it but decided that I would stick with traditional straights. I enjoy the challenge of honing my own as much as the shaving. From what I've read by others who have used them they are a different kangaroo anyway and not my cup of tea.

A respected honemeister once told me that he is satisfied when a blade shaves hair WTG on his cheek, and sends it out.

In my opinion, this is not shave ready. If, on my face, I cannot shave ATG everywhere (including neck, chip, upper lip) without tugging and irritation, it is not shave ready. I go back to the hones, the pastes, whatever is needed, until it is.

Maybe there are whiskers so tough that there is no blade is sharp enough to do this with. I don't know. We all believe we have tough beards and sensitive skin. Maybe I'm blessed with babyfine whiskers and leathery skin.

I really believe that any straight shaver needs to hone his own razors, and should aim for BBS with minimal irritation, including ATG passes where necessary. Expecting someone a thousand or more miles away, who has never met you or studied your mug, to dial in your edges to produce this effect for $10 - $20, is, in my opinion, a fond notion.

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Originally Posted by pcb01

A respected honemeister once told me that he is satisfied when a blade shaves hair WTG on his cheek, and sends it out.

In my opinion, this is not shave ready. If, on my face, I cannot shave ATG everywhere (including neck, chip, upper lip) without tugging and irritation, it is not shave ready. I go back to the hones, the pastes, whatever is needed, until it is.

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if it cant shave ATG under the chin without discomfort , then its not shave ready for me.

I can get BBS all over without a true ATG stroke in a lot of places. I only go ATG on my cheeks and the bottom of my neck. The rest get some form of xtg. At the end of the day, the shave is what matters. If you get an irritation free BBS shave, you win.

It's good to have a reference blade. One that you just know and feel is really sharp. The sharpest blade I ever received was a Wade and Butcher 5/8th, with a little humpback and smile. My hat is off to Sham for that one! I work to try to replicate that level of sharp. For me, first pass WTG, second pass XTG. ATG is just for chin and jawline. ATG is where I can really feel if my razor is truly sharp. If my blade skips or really drags/pulls here, the blade is ready for touch up or back to the stones.

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Originally Posted by pcb01

In my opinion, this is not shave ready. If, on my face, I cannot shave ATG everywhere (including neck, chip, upper lip) without tugging and irritation, it is not shave ready.

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I respectfully have to disagree with You.
In fact In straight razor shaving You should never shave AGT.
WTG +XTG
Should satisfy shaver.
If you are not getting great shave with WTG+XTG then your blade is not shave ready statement? i would be agree .
hope this helps.

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Originally Posted by hi_bud_gl

I respectfully have to disagree with You.
In fact In straight razor shaving You should never shave AGT.
WTG +XTG
Should satisfy shaver.
If you are not getting great shave with WTG+XTG then your blade is not shave ready statement? i would be agree .
hope this helps.

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My beard growth pattern swirls around in curliques (what we call "cowlicks" here in Texas), which means that there is no "WTG" "XTG" or "ATG" - any stroke I take is a mixture of all three. So ATG isn't something I do to get a good shave - it's a requirement in order for me to get any shave at all. (I guess I could use a narrow blade like a DE and painstakingly shave around in circles on my face)

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Originally Posted by mparker762

My beard growth pattern swirls around in curliques (what we call "cowlicks" here in Texas), which means that there is no "WTG" "XTG" or "ATG" - any stroke I take is a mixture of all three. So ATG isn't something I do to get a good shave - it's a requirement in order for me to get any shave at all. (I guess I could use a narrow blade like a DE and painstakingly shave around in circles on my face)

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We here on the tundra have similar swirls which we call cariboulicks or Rudolph's revenge. To deal with the phenomenon, many tundrites have taken to tattooing these swirled areas with unique colors - each color representing a specific shaving direction which hopefully gives the shaver the information he needs to find the BBS Grail.

The face having been given this colorful, art-like treatment can look a bit disconcerting to the uninformed, but as we all know the seeking-out of the BBS is among the most important treks the modern shaver can make and his mapped face is a testament to all he encounters of the strength of his faith and dedication to Brush, Blade, and Strop.

Or did I lose an acronym somewhere along the way between dusty rose and sea green?

i have to say i mostly shave wtg then axtg this gives aclose comfortable shave. Not every one can shave against the grain as it tears the skin for some fokes shaving agtg is the like plaining wood agtg it does'nt work as it taers the would its the same with your beard agtg under the lip is a defanat no no for me and most men. I find i can shave agtg but it takes a differant angle and technique i use a flat er angle and like bud says shiefing strokes

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Originally Posted by mainaman

if it cant shave ATG under the chin without discomfort , then its not shave ready for me.

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I think the above quote describes the reason many shavers
gravitate to str8 razors. i.e. you get to decide how sharp
and how polished your blade is.

For me ATG is flat out a problem. My whiskers grow too
flat in places and the blade gets under the whisker and when
the hair parts the blade sees a bit of skin to slice off and gives
me a burn.

As a result I do not think of three basic strokes: WTG, XTG, ATG.
I think more in terms of lines crossing the clock. My WTG
is more like a line from 1 to 7 on a clock face (whiskers point
down to six). My XTG is close to 9-3 and rare ATG is about 4 to 10
stroke.

This way the blade can see the whisker at a non ramp angle
and not slide off WTG or grab under ATG. This applies to
a BiC, DE or str8 equally.

I also have some nasty swirly spots that I use the braille method on.
After a single 1-7 pass and perhaps a light XTG stroke I use
my free hand and feel for stubble and on those areas I
add more lather and lightly retouch with very short strokes.

Of interest with my face a less sharp polished blade lets me
get away with a near ATG 7-1 angled stroke but nothing
lets me shave my neck ATG with impunity.

As always good face prep and lather is a requirement.

Like I said control and the ability to match an individual face....

i find that a razor is ready when i can dry shave my jaws with out any pulling and it is smooth. that is when it is ready to send out.

I cant do ATG passes, the razor snags on the hairs and it rips my face to bits so I just stick with the WTG and XTG passes and stretching the skin to get all the stubble. Even with razors I've had from SRD, I still cant go ATG.

Not to be sarcastic here, but basically the razor is shave ready when it gives a good shave! All the tests (HHT, TNT, TPT...) are just rough guidance and the real test is the shave test. If you can get a smooth pass on the skin, with no pulling or scraping, and it removes the stubble then you have a good edge.

I do an XTG pass only on my cheeks, starting from my mouth and moving back towards my ears and I can get BBS in one pass using that method. I have to use a bit more stretching and pulling, plus a few more passes of WTG, then pseudo-XTG passes to get BBS on my neck. What you really have to do is work out the hair growth direction on your face and think what passes will work best for you. Some of the youtube vids may use all three passes, but that may not be best for your face. The vids represent one way, but definately not the only way..!

It sounds to me like you are getting good shaves, just having problems with the ATG pass. I'd concentrate on getting a smooth shave with the WTG and XTG passes plus skin stretching, using directions that you work out for your beard.

Good luck!

I get 95-99% BBS using WTG and XTG with a little ATG under the jawbone and chin. If a blade starts to pull, it needs work. I judge the true keen-ness of the blade by how long the BBS lasts.