Thread: "Pulling" Explained

Pulling! Gentlemen~ The sensation you feel from "pulling" or that bizarre catchy-ness you feel when you first start straight shaving comes from pressure applied against the skin.

It has nothing what-so-ever to do with sharpness. In fact, the sharper the blade the more pulling it can cause.

When it gets explained as bad, poor, inexperienced "technique" it is literally the application of too much pressure (any at all) against the skin.

A hydrated whisker, shaved alone, will be removed with no effort at all. The whisker will be obliterated. BUT, if you use that same exact razor with the application of pressure against the skin, you'll get "pulling". A nasty drawing sensation against the skin.

This problem is compounded with an against the grain pass because your shaving into the skins pore.

It is the objective of the straight razor shaver to shave the whiskers without touching the blade to the face!

Impossible you say? Well, yes, it kind of is, but keep this in mind when you shave. Look for some individual hairs close up and shave them without touching the blade to the skin and you shall see. Be careful if you get too close to the mirror. If the scale hits the mirror your in trouble.

THIS IS WHY A DE RAZOR SEEMS TO HAVE LESS DRAG!!

This gentlemen, is the answer to why you feel less drag with a Double Edge. It is because the saftey bar prevents heavy contact of the blade with the skin. It's the safety bar that runs down your skin and the DE blade only makes controlled light contact.

I would list the proper angle and proper pressure applied while shaving as the most important tenant of the straight shaver.

Thank you for this post. Im really learning how important the no pressure thing is. Im about 30 shaves in and at first I would try and squeegie the whiskers of my face and got some good burn. Its much better now as Im getting better with the pressure. I also have done the close up with my cheaters on to try and get a couple whiskers around the corners of my mouth and would just try and nip them off and would miss it and miss it then get it and be surprised because I did not feel it just suddenly saw it on the blade. I dont know about shaving without touching my skin at all but just trying to do that has really helped with the comfort of my shaves as well as no more razor burn or at least none if i dont make any mistakes which it not all the time yet.
Glenn

Very well said! That is by far the best definition of pulling I have heard. I think your thread will help a ton of people get better results.

Thank you for this. It really clarifies what people mean by a "problem with technique" and "use a light touch."

This explanation is so good and seems so fundamental that perhaps at deserves a sticky or being added to the wiki, or both.

Originally Posted by KingOscar

Thank you for this. It really clarifies what people mean by a "problem with technique" and "use a light touch. This explanation is so good and seems so fundamental that perhaps at deserves a sticky or being added to the wiki, or both.

That's a good idea. It should be added to the Wiki.

Great post! I know from my own experience, I assumed that you had to apply SOME pressure to the straight razor against the face because after all, this is what I've been doing for years with a disposable razor. So it's almost counter-intuitive for a beginner to apply NO pressure and still imagine that it will shave nice and close. But as they say, LESS is MORE!

Keep up the great posts, AFDavis11!

Very well put sir. You've explained the pulling effect perfectly. JimmyHAD once put it something like this: "The less you try to get a great shave, the better shave you end up with." Makes sense now. Thanks- J

Thanks! I too have been trying to squeegie the whiskers off my face. Gotta give this a try when I shave tomorrow.

Sorry AF but your wrong about the DE. Those of you who have a DE take it and put it against you finger. if you do it with no angle yes the bar prevents contact however you use the proper angle with a DE and then press toward your finger and the blade will come in contact with your finger and the harder you press the greater the contact. If this was not the case pressure would not matter much with a DE but it does the same as with a straight.

However you're correct about the straight and pulling.

Thank you for your accurate explanation! Down to earth explanations of common problems are tremendously helpful for beginners such as myself.

Keep em' coming!