Thread: Against The Grain (atg)

Well I received my second razor today. I purshased a Dovo Best Quality 6/8. It came labled that it had been profesionally honed by Lynn Abrams. So I know it is properly sharp. I have gotten my best shave so far. Not quite bbs all the way but pretty close. I'm feeling good. I feel like I have really acomplished something. Yet, even with this sharp razor I am still having trouble going atg. This has been the hardest part to learn when it comes to shaving my face. wtg and xtg no problems. I guess my beard is so tough or I am not preparing corectly, or I'm not stretching right. Anyway, please share any thoughts on atg. Now I'm going to hunt down my wife and rub my face against her and see what happens. Thanks, manonengine

Take a look at the angle pics in the wiki. You want a shallower angle for the ATG stroke. I usually get virtually bbs with just a WTG and XTG stroke including a little touch up. Bart or Robin has some great pics I just saw in another post on the angles.

It should only get better from here for you.

Lynn

Keep up the good work and keep trying. Practice skin stretching and watch the blade angle because those two go hand in hand towards a BBS shave. Also, the more times shaving the better you'll become. Practice may not make perfect but it can sure get us close.

Congrats on your continued progress. My shaves improved as I continued to practice and found new ways to stretch my skin and improved my technique in general. As far as ATG, I do some passes ATG where it works for me. In some areas of my face it doesn't work at all and I do WTG and XTG in those areas. IME I don't need to do ATG in all areas to get a good close and comfortable shave.

Manonengine: as your technique continues to improve & you find what works for your face, you may find that you only really need to go ATG in a few sections. For me, it's my chin/jawline & 1 small spot on my neck. Otherwise XTG is plenty close, & this is with a boar-bristle beard.

Pay super-close attention to pressure also--the less the better or you can either cut yourself, or exfoliate yourself raw. Not pleasant when you then splash some bay rum on! (I love that smilie.)

I found that ATG was particularly difficult when I was starting out. Even now I get a little irritation over my adams apple. First I would say remind yourself to apply extremely light pressure when going ATG. Second don't be discouraged if you are having problems. Keep developing your skill WTG and XTG and you will eventually improve enough that ATG won't be a problem. It comes with time.

Using a shallower angle from my WTG pass solved this one for me. As per usual, the answer was in the wiki the whole time.

Nothing much to add here, really. One thing that really helped me was to map the direction of whiskers across my face (darling wife to the rescue), then design optimal paths of attack. Put the drawing on my shaving mirror, then took it from there.
Recommended Wiki articles (sorry, am on BlackBerry and cannot link here): "shaving passes" with Bart's images referenced by Lynn); "grips" with alternative ways to hold your razor; and "preparation" with everything you ever wanted to know about getting your whiskers soft.

Apart from that, JimmyHAD's advice to hold the razor as loosely as possible did the trick. If that doesn't help, let go. Shaving against the grain either works well, or you will get nicks, and maybe even razorburn.

mano,

I have a theory (sneaking suspicion) that one's face also adapts to being shaved with a straight razor. When I got back into shaving after many bearded years, it took a while for everything to come together: the stropping, the preparation, the lather, the razor strokes (direction, stretch, pressure, etc), and my face's willingness to be scraped with a wicked sharp blade. -- It seemed to be almost like that at first, although I was a straight shaver pre-beard, so I had most of the basics in deep memory, but that was before the more recent attacks of CRS.

Above, you've read Lynn's mentioning that he gets a pretty close shave with 2 passes and that is my routine too: one with the grain (mostly) and the second pass against the grain (mostly). I say mostly because, for the most part, I'm guessing where the grain is pointing. But when I'm done and rub the old features, I (mostly) can't feel any stubble. While the baby's butt may be smoother, it's not by much (mostly).

good shaving,

My thoughts on atg: Don't do it, it is unnecessary and irritating.