I was just wondering...

1.) Why do you need WTG or XTG at all if your beard isn't too long? Forgive the reaching analogy, but if my lawn isn't too tall, I don't have to do any "grass reduction" before the blade can handle it. So is it just the time and lather from the first passes that preps the whiskers for the ATG pass, or is there another reason for the WTG and XTG? Maybe just the zen of it? With my, now retired, Mach 3, I had to reduce with multiple passes because the blades would quickly clog, which obviously is not an issue for a SR.

This morning, I was short on time, so out of the shower, I massaged the lather in by hand, stropped, applied more lather with the brush, and then went directly for ATG. It worked fine, but I only had a day of growth. I did do WTG to straighten up my sideburns, but that's it. It saved me some time and was still a CCS. Thoughts?

2.) Why would the method of shaving make the whiskers grow back any faster or slower? I have read the theory that each SR pass cuts a different angle, so the beard doesn't actually grow slower, but it feels softer. This doesn't make sense to me because it seems that the tip of the whisker should have the angle from the last stroke that reduced it to size. I imagine taking a paint brush and cutting it with scissors three times from three different directions. I would be left with all the bristles having the same cut angle from the last cut. Then again, maybe it is an inadequate analogy.

Could it be the prep that somehow affects the growth rate? Is it all a load of bunk? The only time I remember actually significantly increasing the time between shaves was with a lift-and-pull type of razor, leaving the hair below the skin's surface. I don't believe this changed the growth rate, just made it take longer for the hair to reach the point where I needed to shave again.

-ADAM