Thread: Beginner ATG shaving

Hey guys.

I've shaved about 20 times or so with a straight now, and the experience has generally been better every time. When i shave with the grain, i have hardly any problems and i think i'm starting to get the hang of it.

However, when i try to shave against the grain, it's a different story. I find ATG shaving on my neck and upper lip very uncomfortable and slightly painful. I get lots of red blotches and irritation. This is only on my neck and lip, when i shave ATG on my cheeks and sideburns it's completely fine.

What am I doing wrong ? I'm pretty sure my razor is sharp enough, and i use a very shallow angle when shaving ATG ( nearly pinning back or blade on skin) and using light pressure. I also stretch the skin, and this doesn't seem to help.

Some say it takes time for your skin to adjust to shaving ATG. Personally I have done it a few times and end up with razor burn most of the time and the razor skipping up my neck sometimes. It is not an easy technique to get right the first few times. Keep with it and just be cautious, if it pulls any or starts to hurt just STOP.

Personally I just don't do it and am working on my stretching and XTG shaving. I may try it again later when I feel my stretching is good enough to try.

I never had irritation but it was less comfortable than wtg passes the first couple times tried atg.

It takes your skin some time to get used to a straight,(not to mention you getting used to using it) during which time going ATG can be very uncomfortable.

I waited about a month before going ATG. I found that skin stretching was more vital there than before, and restropping helped a lot as well.

I noticed(with the above) that the angle of the blade on ATG is really important. The wiki explains this nicely.

+1 on the angle. I also like to use light buffing strokes on tough areas like my upper lip.

Buffing
This is a technique, mainly to be used during the ATG pass. The blade is moved back and forth in short strokes over the skin, without lifting it. Pressure needs to be extremely low. The first part of the stroke cuts the hairs and the second, withdrawing part of the stroke smears an amount of lather back on the skin, preparing for the next stroke that will cut the hair even closer. This is only useful on dense parts of the beard where thick whiskers require more than one stroke to be gradually cut till the "zero"-level. The sound produced by the razor (if it’s a hollow ground one) will guide you through the process, steadily moving ahead while making short overlapping strokes. It is best reserved as a last resort, to achieve ultimate smoothness on renitent spots.

I hope you don't mind me hijacking your topic, but I had a question.

When I try going ATG, I keep the angle very low, but the razor feels like it's getting stuck in place. I feel as if the razor is being glued onto my face. I've never had this feeling while using a DE and I don't know what to do.

Any idea what I'm doing wrong?

Originally Posted by gull

I hope you don't mind me hijacking your topic, but I had a question.

When I try going ATG, I keep the angle very low, but the razor feels like it's getting stuck in place. I feel as if the razor is being glued onto my face. I've never had this feeling while using a DE and I don't know what to do.

Any idea what I'm doing wrong?

It sounds like you're laying the blade too flat and it's sticking to your skin, this happened to me a couple of times when I was starting out. I found that I had more success when I learned to adjust the angle by feel, rather than visually in the mirror. Remember that evryone's face is different, and the goal is a comfortable shave, not a text book perfect shave-- I generally have to use greater angles than those suggested in the wiki. Hope this helps.

Originally Posted by CreativeBass

Hey guys.

I've shaved about 20 times or so with a straight now, and the experience has generally been better every time. When i shave with the grain, i have hardly any problems and i think i'm starting to get the hang of it.

However, when i try to shave against the grain, it's a different story. I find ATG shaving on my neck and upper lip very uncomfortable and slightly painful. I get lots of red blotches and irritation. This is only on my neck and lip, when i shave ATG on my cheeks and sideburns it's completely fine.

What am I doing wrong ? ....

Bass, you're making ATG passes on your upper lip? I doubt if I will ever try ATG on my upper lip! Just the thought of it makes the hairs on my neck stand on end. Or am I just being chicken?

Haha, well i always used to make ATG passes on my lip with safety razors, and it's the only way i can get a smooth finish there for the minute.

I have the same problem as gull too, the blade seems to get stuck under the hairs, and the only way to overcome this is to increase the speed of the pass, which is pretty painful