Thread: ATG is too technical for me yet

I've decided to exercise more patience and restraint (always good qualities with a razor at your neck...) and just do the simple things as well as possible until it becomes a habit to get good results that way.

Sure, go with patience and restraint and improve your technique gradually. But technique tends to improve through experimentation, so slip in a small ATG pass on the cheek every now and then. You may find that it just seems harder at first than it really is. Good luck!

hey sinclsw007

Don't know if you and I have the exact same problem or not but I have been having a lot of trouble with ATG passes too, particularly on my neck because my hair grows side to side. When I posted my problem some of the mentors suggested that I don't actually need an ATG pass on my neck to get BBS. They suggested I go XTG top to bottom and bottom to top (or vice versa), and then later on with (much) more experience adding in a scything motion. I've been working on it and it really started working for me yesterday, thought you might benefit from it too.

Hope that helps and good luck!

Originally Posted by Howard

ATG doesn't work for everyone. It all demands on your beard. Consider the possibility that you're doing things right but your beard is telling you how to shave it.

This is what I came here to say. Everyone has hair that grows in different directions, at different angles, and at different thickness' and consistencies. Sometimes finding the right grind and size of razor can help with those types of problems, but I have always been a firm believer that technique will always prevail over the tools. I recommend spending a good deal of time studying how your hair grows in the mirror, and practice different methods of stretching your skin to pull the hair upwards (thus making it easier to achieve optimum shave angles). Once you are comfortable in doing that, and do it almost instinctively when you shave, you will find that you will get much better shaves as a result, regardless of the razor. That's how it went for me. Then when I finally did get a new razor, shave ready from the classifieds here, my technique was there to back up the great razor, and, for the first time in 3 months, I got a great shave.

The long and the short of it: a great razor with an immaculate edge isn't even half the battle of shaving with a straight razor. Focus more on YOU than the razor.

The long and the short of it: a great razor with an immaculate edge isn't even half the battle of shaving with a straight razor. Focus more on YOU than the razor.

+1 on this. I was wondering why my shaves were going down hill and getting some razorburn, even though the razor could've been sharper, it was still sharp enough so I concentrated on my lather and it made such a difference.

a nice thick lather and keen edge will save you from razorburn and give you a really good shave after XTG.

you'll be surprised how much the lather contributes to a close shave.

regards alex

I can do ATG everywhere, but it gives me trouble on my upper lip. Yes, yes, I know I shouldn't, but I learned that way, and done it for a long time.

Anywhoo, since it has been giving me trouble, I decided to skip it until the skills come back to my tired hands, and I do WTG and two XTG there and I get the same results I get elsewhere with a WTG and ATG. That is, not BBS, but a decent shave.

This 18 year hiatus really sucked the skill out of me.

Originally Posted by jmbbabson

hey sinclsw007

Don't know if you and I have the exact same problem or not but I have been having a lot of trouble with ATG passes too, particularly on my neck because my hair grows side to side. When I posted my problem some of the mentors suggested that I don't actually need an ATG pass on my neck to get BBS. They suggested I go XTG top to bottom and bottom to top (or vice versa), and then later on with (much) more experience adding in a scything motion. I've been working on it and it really started working for me yesterday, thought you might benefit from it too.

Hope that helps and good luck!

I was just about to post a thread asking for advice on shaving the hair on my neck which also grows side to side. I'll have to give this a shot!

ATG isn't needed to get a close shave, I actually stopped using it two months ago and haven't looked back.

Sham is right.
All you need to do is find the correct angle for your areas of face and adjust and then add a slicing motion to your strokes. I still do three passes, WTG, XTG with scything motion, WTG again and that's all.

Do that for about two months and don't try ATG at all during this time, you'll see what happens. Old Barbers didn't allow ATG for their clients and there's good reason, try and see.

I have only been at this a few months and planned to try ATG after I got comfortable. Now that I am getting better shaves than the M3 with just two passes WTG I am probably going to forgo the ATG altogether. That said, I have very light facial hair, so I can go every other day, and I am not dealing with a beard. It would seem that the volume of hair growth, and thickness, would have an impact on the need for ATG to get a good shave. Maybe someone can speak to that...

Shaving ATG isn't "too technical" at all really. Just remember, ultra sharp razor, low angle and no pressure. The biggest problem with ATG is that most folks will save it for the third and final pass, when your skin has already been abraded twice before. It does indeed court irritation. Good prep and no pressure will really help here, but at the end of the day we are shaving our own faces, not someone elses.

BTW - I fall into the "you don't have to go ATG to get a great shave" camp....