Quote Originally Posted by Bruce View Post
I have to admit a great curiosity about these pre-shave oils. To me it would seem counterproductive to annoit the face with oils which would tend to interfere with water uptake in the whiskers, as it's (to my understanding) the moisture which softens the hairs. I also don't like anything even slightly slippery on my fingers, as oils -even lather- would be, that would compromise my grip on the razor.

My pre-shave preps with a hot water rinse, wash with soap, and hot water rinse at the sink, or a shower with the same routine followed with lathering and shaving are all I use. Perhaps I'm missing something, but it does seem to work OK.

I used the olive very lightly just to give my skin a little extra protection. I have since switched to jojoba because I've found it to be less oily after application. When I first tried olive oil I clearly used a bit much and the razor did skip which scared the bejeezus out of me so I promptly washed my face and started over.

Always wash your hands after applying any oil because, as you noted, you don't want those holding the razor.

Now I'm actually trying out the Robeson booklet suggestion to use bay rum as a preshave. Still need a few shaves to see if I notice a difference from jojoba, but it's done well thus far.