Thread: Meet the super strong, invincible CHIN HAIR!

Honest to God, my chin hair needs to be sent to NASA or something for research. Either that or I'm doing something wrong.

I do the whole pre-shave drill, I shave the sides of my face without TOO much problem, I shave the sides of my neck decent enough (not perfect but getting there) but my chin and neck below my chin...wow. I shave and there's tons of hairs on the razors and on the soap, but there's tons left on my chin. It's like I didn't make a pass. So I do it again. I do it with the grain, against the grain, across the grain. My razor is full of hairy soap, but my chin hair still stands proudly.

Is this normal? My cartridge razor cuts through it no problem, but my straight edge...

Maybe I am not making my skin tight enough, maybe I am holding the razor wrong, maybe it could do with a "I love you" hone; but there has to be a reason why it's not cutting it close. The hairs on the soap are very small so I assume I'm only just cutting the ends off but it hurts to keep shaving over the spot a dozen times.

Incidentally, if any of you guys are sadists and want the new experience of pain try the Tea Tree face soap I'm using. When I rinsed my face with cold water, I was worried my face had dissolved!

I don't know if this will help but maybe... I have a very difficult spot right where my chin meets my jawline and was experiencing similar difficulties when I began straight shaving. What I noticed is:

1) be very careful first to see how your whiskers grown to shave in the right direction when making your passes
2) try WTG, XTG and then ATG
3) use a pre-shave oil (maybe a better preps will do the thing)
4) my skin usually remain peppered when I have finished (I can't feel the whiskers but I still can see dark spots... nothing can be done against this, apart from using make-up)
5) you can try to tight your skin from the lower part of your cheek to shave the skin from the beginning of your jawline and chin at the high of your cheek.

I don't know if this will help. If not, maybe somebody else here will have a better idea, or the NASA, or maybe the CDC in Atlanata

I'd say go for a really good stretch. Once you stretch the skin, do some "facial yoga" to pull it even tighter. I'd also say try to do small parts of the chin rather than tackle it all at once. I usually go with the grain, against the grain and a final water only pass where I stretch in front of the blade's cutting edge. Very dangerous, so if you try it be damned careful. When I'm in this mode I'll target a patch of 10-20 hairs and eliminate them very systematically.

Also, work on keeping the shaving cream or soap wet on the chin. It sounds like you save the chin for last, but if you're shaving right after a shower try it first to see if that makes any difference. I'm wondering if a freshly stropped razor would tackle the problem differently.

It is possible your razor could use a slight touch up. Does it pass the hanging hair test? Don't do a thumbnail test, as it will only dull a sharp razor. Do you use a paddle strop & pastes or a hone to refresh your edge?

My other concern is that you can tackle your cheeks without too much problem. Can you elaborate on what you mean?

Originally Posted by Dan

My razor is full of hairy soap, but my chin hair still stands proudly.

Is this normal? My cartridge razor cuts through it no problem, but my straight edge...

It's normal with a blade that isn't quite shave ready or with someone with really poor technique. It wouldn't shock me if it's a combination of both - start eliminating factors so you can trouble-shoot.

Its easiest to make sure your razor is sharp by letting a pro sharpen it up. Perhaps you've dulled the edge on your NASA whiskers or on your razor strap? Perhaps it was never sharp enough to begin with? Maybe your angle is off? Maybe only part of the blade is dull. I had a sharp razor that gave me fits in certain spots on my face which I later realized was due to the dull tip that I was using for those spots. Maybe your lather is drying by the time you get to your chin, maybe your cutting angle, etc etc etc etc.

The best advice I get is keep practicing (especially what sensei kyle talks about up there), and if my results remain consistent then I need to get the razor sharpened by a pro and then carefully watch for any difference during my next shave with it. There are so many factors that can cause a shave to go awry that I think the best thing you can do is keep practicing your beard prep, your strapping, and your shaving.

My first guess is a razor that is not sharp enough.

If I shave with a razor that isn't quite up to par, it will shave pretty much OK, but I will be left with stubble even after the ATG pass.

Dan,

I don't know. Too many variables.

The sharper a razor, the closer it cuts.
The less sharp an edge the more technique comes into play:
- the right cutting angle
- adding a slight scything motion to your stroke
- the right direction: precisely ATG cuts closest.
- beard prep, but I reckon that's ok in your case.

The most important advice I can offer you, is to stop going over your skin again and again. It serves no purpose. I have a very coarse beard. I know that's what everybody says, but if an electrical rotating shaving apparatus is unable to cut whiskers, then one's entitled to the title "coarse beard", imho. Anyway, my coarse beard needs two passes for total smoothness: one WTG and one ATG, plus an extra ATG-tweak here and there. If I use a badly honed razor, that same approach leaves me with the equivalent of a one day stubble. My razors pass the HHT. If they don't, I can shave with them, but I can't reach that zero stubble level. Shaving the same spots over and over again doesn't help one bit.

Second, I always use a very thin, translucent coat of lather for my ATG pass. It helps to see what's going on at the edge of a razor.
I recommend for going ATG, the use of very small "scooping" strokes. Make them scythe a bit, or otherwise use the razor in an oblique fashion (guillotine-style). Try a low cutting angle first (the spine lifted only a small amount above the skin), the lowest angle that cuts the whiskers is the gentlest for your skin ànd the edge of your razor. You should not feel any pulling, nor should the razor hang up or skip certain hairs. If that happens, your razor is not shaveready.

Good luck,
Keep us posted,

Bart.

Thanks for the replies. Allow me:

1) be very careful first to see how your whiskers grown to shave in the right direction when making your passes
2) try WTG, XTG and then ATG
3) use a pre-shave oil (maybe a better preps will do the thing)
4) my skin usually remain peppered when I have finished (I can't feel the whiskers but I still can see dark spots... nothing can be done against this, apart from using make-up)
5) you can try to tight your skin from the lower part of your cheek to shave the skin from the beginning of your jawline and chin at the high of your cheek.

1 - I admit I do get a bit lazy sometimes and just shave in a North to South pattern. I should pay more attention but it's hard work having to keep adjusting the blade just at the exact point the direction changes. I am a lot more comfortable with it than I used to be though.

2 - Will do!

3 - Will do!

4 - Yeah, I sometimes get that, but with my chin is actually hair because I can feel it and see the strands.

5 - Do you mean diagonally across? I've not tried that.

I'd say go for a really good stretch. Once you stretch the skin, do some "facial yoga" to pull it even tighter. I'd also say try to do small parts of the chin rather than tackle it all at once. I usually go with the grain, against the grain and a final water only pass where I stretch in front of the blade's cutting edge. Very dangerous, so if you try it be damned careful. When I'm in this mode I'll target a patch of 10-20 hairs and eliminate them very systematically.

Also, work on keeping the shaving cream or soap wet on the chin. It sounds like you save the chin for last, but if you're shaving right after a shower try it first to see if that makes any difference. I'm wondering if a freshly stropped razor would tackle the problem differently.

It is possible your razor could use a slight touch up. Does it pass the hanging hair test? Don't do a thumbnail test, as it will only dull a sharp razor. Do you use a paddle strop & pastes or a hone to refresh your edge?

My other concern is that you can tackle your cheeks without too much problem. Can you elaborate on what you mean?

I do generally leave the chin till last. I'll try shaving it first. When I talk about my cheek area I mean I can shave the sides of my side with little problem. I get a smooth, comfortable, enjoyable shave. It's just the chin area and the neck below the chin that cause me problems.

It's normal with a blade that isn't quite shave ready or with someone with really poor technique. It wouldn't shock me if it's a combination of both - start eliminating factors so you can trouble-shoot.

Its easiest to make sure your razor is sharp by letting a pro sharpen it up. Perhaps you've dulled the edge on your NASA whiskers or on your razor strap? Perhaps it was never sharp enough to begin with? Maybe your angle is off? Maybe only part of the blade is dull. I had a sharp razor that gave me fits in certain spots on my face which I later realized was due to the dull tip that I was using for those spots. Maybe your lather is drying by the time you get to your chin, maybe your cutting angle, etc etc etc etc.

I suspect it's a mixture of both my technique and my blade. My blade came to be via Kenrup and came in top notch condition and shave ready, but obviously being new to shaving and stropping I might have "rollled the edge" when stropping. I could send it to someone, but given at some point I should learn about honing, I might buy a hone and learn myself. Though if it is a rolled edge and requires extra care to get back to its condition then I will send it to a pro.

My technique is a problem in the chin area. It's a difficult area to shave because I have a small chin so it's difficult to keep the angle of the blade correct while following my chin. If that makes any sense.

Mo sharp, mo Betta

Originally Posted by geoffreyt

Mo sharp, mo Betta

<--- enough said

Very good advice from all the guys but - on the lighter side - I have just the thing for your problem. It's a 'Wider Butcher' 22/8 battlefield assault razor, with proteum-coated edge (one molecule thick!!) and saw-tooth spine for having a good scratch when you feel like it. The scales are Tyrannosaur femur (whole) and when you use it believe you me you fear neither god nor old nick. The shaving technique to use with this monster is the well-known 'advanced murdering' grade 4, with removable ears and nasal tip optional passes.

Only problem is you'll probably cut your head off but at least the chin hairs woill have been defeated (after a fashion anyway).

Keep up the good work!