I personally use/like pre-shave oils. I have tried Truefitt & Hill, the Art of Shaving- lavender, Caswell-Massey- Sandlewood, and Almond, and plain old glycerin oil which imho is the cheapest and works best for me. It seem when I don't use them, I don't get a BBS shave, for some reason. I like them, and yes you have to wash your hands and dry them before you use your straight.