Thick facial hair.

I have been blessed and cursed with thick facial hair. It does allow me to grow some pretty epic beards, but also makes for a frustrating experience shaving. This is partially why i was turned onto straight razor shaving in the first place. I initially got a base of the line Dovo and honed it myself. It does really well except under my nose where my eyes always water. I thought it may be due to my inexperience so I bought a Tuckman razor from Obie to compare. His razor is certainly superior to my first one but it still tugs at those under nose hairs. I am wondering if it may be the type of razor I am using both are near or are full hollow ground. Would a wedge or a higher weight razor be any better for me? Any advice on the matter would be appreciated. I currently use madame Scodioli shave soap, and Cirmes aftershave and pre-shave oil.

I would say, based on what you've said, that the razor that you honed yourself doesn't have the best edge that it could have. Try sending it out to a pro and you'll probably have an easier time on those tough areas :)

I would guess, based on your info, that at least one of your razors are in fact shave ready.
It also sounds as though your prep is decent.
That said, keep practicing both your technique and your prep-routine.

As to the hard/thick beards, a shave ready straight will cut it.
Given prep and technique is up to snuff, most any grind and size will do the job.

I have razors that are full, and even singing, hollows that is even marked "for heavy beards"
Keep at it, I'm sure you'll get that upper lip eventually, with the tools you presently have.

I had always been left with an irritated lip and chin areas, until I tried something. I stopped trying so hard. I kept the razor firm in my hand but at the same time just barely touching the skin. It feels like I'm taking the hair down a piece at a time until there isn't that tell tale "Velcro" scratchy sound. Maybe mine isn't as sharp as it could be but at the same time my upper lip and chin areas are not irritated anymore.

Funny timing on this question. There is at least one recent thread with the question of is a heavier grind better for new shavers with heavy beards. I have a son that claims it makes all the difference in the world. His big issue is on his neck. If you don't mind spending money on more razors I say try it. If you want to try it with out much of an outlay there are imperfect razors that you can get cheap that are shave ready and a lot of really nice razors that go for very little in the classifieds. I must admit that inexpensive 1/2 and 1/4 hallow razors are a little more rare in the classifieds. You might try asking for a loaner from a member. I guess the conclusion from my perspective is try it, just make sure it is shave ready.

what do you do to prep your beard?

Shaving under the nose prompts the wrong angle. Try to approach the area so you can flatten the angle. A smaller razor eg 4/8 makes that even easier. It must be properly honed.

The razor must be SHARP. I come in @ nearly a 90 angle under the nose, simply 'cause I don't know any other way to do it, and I have never cut myself there, and the razor doesn't tug n pull. I don't do a stroke, but a wrist rotation...kinda hard to explain without a visual reference.

Thanks everyone for the advice. It could certainly be that my technique is not up to snuff. I also think I may just go a head and try a full wedge, if not just to say that I have. As of now my beard prep is not to have one so that I can get the full experience why learning. Normally I do keep a beard so any prep advice you have would be welcomed.

There are a couple of good videos on the "coup de maitre." Search that, if you haven't already.

I had no idea there was a special term for shaving the under nose area. Strangely enough that is not the area I have trouble with but just to the right and left of this center area. Both razors seems to shave smoothly on all other place but tend to tug at these locations.

You may already be doing this, but I think it helps to attack the sensitive areas first- when you know your razor is at its sharpest. I always do under the nose first bc that's a sensitive area on me too. Also be sure you're getting a good stopping on the toe (since you're likely using lots of toe for under the nose). With stops 2.5" or under it can be easy to neglect the toe a bit if you're not careful.

I've been on a beard prep kick the last few weeks and have been pretty pleased with the results. I tend to give little thought to prepping my moustache area, and always have a little more stinging there with the aftershave than the rest of my face. Now that I'm thinking about it, my advice to both of us is to really focus on massaging water into that area. Try a shave oil or hot-towel over lather treatment for your moustache. Massage in the lather with your fingers for a bit before attacking.

Just some things I would try for the same issues (which aren't bad for me, but I do experience less-than-perfect results there as well, so I will be trying these things myself over the next few days).

Also, make sure you're stretching your lip down over your top teeth to get the best flat surface possible for the blade to slide over. Do that, with some good beard prep getting lots of moisture and steam into the whiskers before shaving, you'll see a marked improvement over your current results.

I don't know what it's like to shave a normal beard with a straight razor, but I do know that the thicker and harder the whiskers are, the more difficult they are to shave. I experience this every day as I progress from my cheeks to my chin to my mustache. There are three things that help; softer whiskers, sharper blades, and better technique. I need all three of these to shave my mustache.

I probably shaved 100 times before I developed sufficient skill to shave my mustache. For the first few months, I started my shave with a DE razor on the mustache and chin and then finished with the straight. In my experience the challenge is to maintain a steady stroke through the thick whiskers and the momentum of a heavy razor is very helpful in this regard. Although I still prefer heavy grinds, I can't say notice that advantage anymore.

I swear by proraso green pre-shave. I have a tough beard and it definitely helps. In addition, try pulling your skin taught when shaving and using short buffing strokes and or a scything motion on those areas where the hair is toughest.

beard prep imo is as important as shaving technique a beard not prepped right could cut short the life of your razors edge my prep is a shower no less then 20 mins. my beard is soft by then and off to my scuttle with warm shaving cream

I have definitely noticed that showering pre-shave helps. Also the pre-shave oil I use also helps tremendously. I am gratefully for this wealth of information and can't wait to try out the new techniques.

Honestly, I use to do a lot of prep with oil and proraso pre/post etc but now find it unnecessary.

All I do is wet my beard periodically while preparing my shave....ie wet face, wet brush and let it soak, wet face, get bowl and whatever soap or cream, wet your face some more etc...wetting your beard a bunch of times ensures that your entire beard absorbs as much water as it can. This, and a really well made lather will keep my whiskers as soft as they're going to get. Other than that, it's technique and edge.