Chin shaving problems

Hello everybody. I recently started shaving with a straight razor and so far it has been mostly good except for my chin area.
I have done a lot of research beforehand about beard prepping, stropping, lather etc. and I've come across quite a lot of threads about problems with the chin area, but I've found no solutions that helped me.
My cheeks are getting a pretty good shave, but I just cant get the chin hairs.
The problem is not only with the wrinkly part of my chin but also with the flat area just under the lower lip, assumingly because the hairs there are thicker than my cheek hairs.
I have tried shaving with varying angles between my skin and the razor, as well as doing WTF, XTG and even ATG (always reapplying lather between passes), but nothing works. This morning I ended up shaving my chin with my electric shaver.
Is there any technique I haven't tried that might work?

Additional question:
My lather seems to dry very quickly. I use Taylor of Old Bond Street shaving cream and even when I get a lather that is too watery so I have to keep "stirring" it to get a good lather, it doesn't cover my face nicely and it dries up on my face pretty quickly.

Thanks for the help.

One thing you might try is instead of lather,wet your chin area good with cool water and apply some alum block to get the hairs standing and then stretch the chin area good and taught and shave using light pressure. I usually do this technique all over my face as a sort of finishing pass. The Alum as you know gets everything tightened up good but,your face still has to be wet.Hope maybe that helps?:)

Also try another soap.Different soaps react to your water quality or hardness/softness .

The chin can be a tricky area because the hair is usually coarse there and it grows in different directions. The best advise I got a few years ago was to do short, buffing type strokes on the chin area. It takes a little while to get the hang of it but that worked for me.

I believe the chin is one on the most difficult areas to stretch, especially for the older members. Actually for the older members as gravity begins to work its magic on your face stretching becomes something similar to what Gumby does....but back to your point, even with a cleft in my chin I have found XTG with off hand stretching is helpful. I hope more experienced members will give you some more tips but most of them are already in the database to be had with a search. Drying lather could mean 2 things: one your lather is not moist enough to start or two, you are taking a long time to shave...or a combination of both. Back to stretching your skin....use alum on your off hand (one not holding the razor) for a better grip. Finally, if it looks ok but feels a little stubbly....just go with that for awhile and don't worry about the Baby Butt stuff. Good Luck

This video did wonders for me a few years back.Watch his techniques carefully. very good watch. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4oVituE1gNg

I just put in a better and longer link of that vid. Better info toward the end that the first copy didn't have.

Chins also have tight-radius contours, making it tough to get a good flattish area to shave. What works for me is a lot of moving my lower lip over my teeth with face contortions. That gives me little flat spots to shave with short strokes.

Not sure about the video for a beginner....a 'one pass' shave which was all over the place. Plus a one handed shaver and a lot of bare face scraping. I would look for a more conventional video to start with.....

I have found the short buffing strokes with a lot of stretching to work best for me.
It took me about a year to be able to shave the chin area well -- just have patience and a lot of practice.

Nothing wrong with touching up with a weedeater until you are able to get the hairs with a blade ;)

The chin area is definitely one of the most challenging areas. Skin stretching has been the key for me along with blade angle. Keep trying different techniques and you will eventually get there. My suggestion would be to use a safety razor for the clean up. Pay attention to the blade angle when using the safety razor and try to duplicate that with the straight on the next shave.

Peter,

Welcome to the forum!! :)

Here's another video that might help. He touches on prep, lather and shows blade angles and following the contour on the chin.

Also on the area just under the lower lip, something I do is place my tongue between my lower lip and teeth & gums. You can press outward to kind of even up the surface and also gives a little stretch.

:gl:

Best Regards,

Howard :)

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=

It takes about 100 shaves to get good with a straight and then improvements are made ever so often to your technique and you keep getting better at shaving.

For me around shave 300 I got really good at my chin. Don't get hung up on it. I am sure your pace is moving faster than mine and if not, you will still become the master of your chin. Mine requires strokes across and down from both directions (2 passes) then individual spots need there own angles thanks to wild hair patterns. Try shaving normally. Finish the shave and figure out which direction, when you rub you hand on your chin, feels the roughest. That is the direction the razor needs to go to get it smooth.

I stick my tongue between my teeth and lower lip and use my tongue to push that area flat. For the round part of my chin, I choke up on the blade and hold it by the middle of the blade. Then I do scything strokes. It's pretty much the same motion used to carve a wooden ball.

This will come with time and practice, most of my cuts were in this area. I've found short strokes really help, as already mentioned pull your bottom lip over your teeth to stretch the bit from lips to chin. Try thinking off your chin in two parts lips to bottom of chin as part of your face and if you then lift your head the next bit as part of your neck. I always do an XTG both ways on the point of my chin. Finally feel where there's still some stubble put the fingers of your free hand right next to it and stretch that bit whilst using buffing strokes. Hope that helps but don't be too fussy to start with otherwise you'll end up with cuts and razor burn.

Thanks for all the tips, I will definitely try them out the next time. :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Nightblade

This video did wonders for me a few years back.Watch his techniques carefully. very good watch. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4oVituE1gNg

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This guy is fast. LOL. He is faster with a straight razor than I am with a disposable.

Hi,

I'm in a similar boat, I've come from using a safety razor to straight. Finally on shave 8 & 9, I made it through without nicks. Here are some things that are helping me...

- I've tried the "buffing" stroke under the lip and that seems to work well.
- as others have said short strokes work better.
- For now, I'm not looking for baby butt smooth on the chin.
- I will often do two passes, both downward, from the lip to mid-chin, and down and sideways on the other parts.
- If I try to manipulate my chin, it wrinkles and is harder, instead, I use my other hand to stretch skin, especially upward, so I don't have as shave on the pointy edge of jawbone.

I use TOBS cream too, and it was drying. I think mostly because I take so long. I've found three things that help immensely. First, I will add drops of water to the lather to keep it wet, and re-stir. Second, I apply Poraso preshave cream to my entire face, and only lather a section at a time. After a complete pass, I rinse my face, reapply Poraso everywhere, and then apply lather in sections a time. Third, I shower before I shave, and in the shower, I apply hair conditioner on my beard, and leave it on, until I'm ready to shave. These last two steps I think are softening my beard better and really helping.

I've heard others use Noxema and glycerine. I got some, but haven't tried it yet, as i have some Poraso left.

Good luck and let us know how you do. I'm still learning too, so all these pointers are great. Maybe if I get better, I'll be brave enough to post a video for critique.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dngrspapercut

This guy is fast. LOL. He is faster with a straight razor than I am with a disposable.

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He has self confidence. That will come with practice. If your soap becomes dry you are taking to long.

I have a pointed chin with a lot of scar tissue from my youth. What I've found works is to divide your chin into segments: Mine are the lower lip to my chin ball, either side and the underside. Working short strokes I work down from the lip to the ball, moving my chin and lip over my lower teeth to stretch the skin and provide a flat angles. I work each area the same way, always WTG or XTG. I can get it close enough this way. Not comfortable going a ATG, too many cuts that way. For some time I used my safety razor for my chin.
Go slow and if it doesn't feel right, stop.
I have also had TOBS dry out on me. Lather one side at a time until your can speed up your routine or re-rather frequently, which I do.
I started 7 months ago; it gets better.
Good luck.

Wow! Thank you guys so so very much!
This morning I had the second best shaving experience of my life (second after a professional barber shave).
My lather was the best yet, and after my first pass WTG it was already near perfect. I did a second pass XTG and now almost my entire face is baby smooth.
If I feel with my finger on my chin, I can feel a little bit of stubble but it can't be seen, so it's fine for now. The rest of my face is litterally baby smooth!

What worked for me was really, and I mean really, paying attention to the angle, as well as doing buffing strokes and learning to navigate around my chin area.
Also "shave the lather not the beard" is a great tip!
I did not finish up with my electric shaver. :)

Finally I will say that shaving with a straight razor demands more concentration than rifle shooting and that is saying quite a lot!

Peter,

Congrats on the success. It only gets better and easier as you continue. However, there is that interim period where confidence and skill collide. The newly acquired confidence is challenged by the still developing skill. I had more cuts at that stage than at any other level of the learning process. So, don't be surprised if/when it happens!! :) Just slow down and go back to the basics and you'll be on the road to shaving bliss.

Howard :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by SirStropalot

The newly acquired confidence is challenged by the still developing skill.

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That kinda happened on my second pass. Thing went so well on my first pass that I went ahead and cut myself on the second go. :)