Thread: Help With My Chin

As I've said in other posts, I declared my goatee area off-limits for one week. Well, today is the start of week two.

First, the good news. I did my whole face without the help of the cartridge!

Now the rest of the story...I have three racing stripes on the left side of my chin. My razor is sharp. It's a week old, came from SRD, and slides effortlessly over the rest of my face. But when it gets to my chin, it catches and jumps and just won't cut correctly. In the of full disclosure, I did not shave yesterday.

Any ideas? Is it a stretching issue? My chin skin does seem to move more when I'm shaving it. Maybe it's angle. Should I be a little more firm with my grip in this area? What works for you guys?

What about shaving my chin first with a freshly stropped razor?

The rest of my face is near BBS with no irritation. So I must be doing something right one week in.

Any help appreciated.

--David

There is a few things you can try. This is one of the tougher areas of the face for most people as the beard grows very dense here. Im a Barber so along with shaving myself every morning, I shave a variety for faces at work. We offer hot shaves for our customers. Here are a few pointers:

-take note of the direction of your hair growth on your chin. Not all faces
grow in the same direction. Go with the grain first.

-try really working in your chin later with your fingers after you apply it with
the brush. Massage it in good.

-Really stretch the skin. Curl your bottom lip up, stick your chin out, and
put your index finger and thumb on opposite sides of your chin and stretch
toward your ears.

-Remember that your chin is for the most part is not flat. So as you do shave your chin you will have to adjust the angle of the razor.

Hope this helps and good luck

Thanks, jpm. I'll give these tips a try tomorrow.

I'm thinking I may not be able to skip a day and do my chon with the straight. At least not for several more weeks.

--David

Hello, Raneday:

Our good friend JMP7676 speaks poetry. His advice is sound and I concur. My acrobatics around my chin are similar. It works. Give it a try. Still, be extremely careful. Keep the strokes short, and if you need to, throw in a little buffing.

Regards,
Obie

Nuff said...The previous posts by JMP7676 and Obie say it all.

Originally Posted by Obie

Hello, Raneday:
Still, be extremely careful. Keep the strokes short, and if you need to, throw in a little buffing.

Regards,
Obie

What exactly do you mean by "buffing" in this case? I too have some trouble with the chin.

Originally Posted by ThreeDog

What exactly do you mean by "buffing" in this case? I too have some trouble with the chin.

Hello, ThreeDog:

Thanks for your note.

Buffing with the straight razor entails going back and forth over a tiny patch of stubborn stubble. The strokes are miniature and must be performed with extreme care. The razor remains almost flat on the skin. Each shaver will have his own variation, of course, but the general action is just about the same. The motion is much like, say, buffing a tiny spot off your watch with a little bit of spit and the thumb or forefinger rubbing it off in miniature movements.

Regards,
Obie

Originally Posted by jpm7676

-Really stretch the skin. Curl your bottom lip up, stick your chin out, and
put your index finger and thumb on opposite sides of your chin and stretch
toward your ears.

Emphasis mine.
Thanks jpm,
This might help me out, i've got the same issues!

Originally Posted by wdwrx

i've got the same issues!

Please post here what you try and the results. If I can fix this and learn some patience, I'll be a real live straight razor shaver.

--David

You've got a lot of good advice so far, Dave. What I've been doing for my chin is trying lots of different ways to stretch the skin, lots of different strokes and angles with my blade. Some of the combinations make for a very "sweet" spot. Instead of trying to remember the "best" combinations, I'm just letting my brain work on the muscle memory so I won't have to think about it.

Just keep telling yourself "This is something I can do."
Namaste,
Morty -_-