Originally Posted by
jmercer
I used a terry cloth style hand towel for a long time and then last year I found some ribbed bar towels I like better.
I tried various towel preps but ended up with leaning over sink with a dripping hot wet towel using sink filled with 140F tap water. A bit on the messy side but only way I've been able to get results. When I've done it right there is almost no plinking sound as blade cuts hair.
I can't find it now but somewhere back there I read it takes about 4 minutes to fully hydrate whiskers. After a shower it's about 2 or so minutes for me. Sound and razor tug are my indicators.