Thread: "Gillette slide" with a straight razor?

I don't know if this has been treated in another thread here (I tried doing a search and looking through this section of the forums), so here goes:

I have been having problems getting my neck smooth with a straight. Granted, I have only shaved about a dozen times with a straight now, so I still have a lot of learning to do, but I'm still frustrated about this. I realise the neck area is a difficult part to shave for most people, so I'm not alone in this.

The hair on my neck grows diagonally downwards from my chin and diagonally upwards towards my ears, in no apparent pattern. Feeling my neck from the back and up towards my chin or from my ear and down towards my adams apple after a shave will feel very rough, and both these directions appear to be "against the grain" on my neck.

I've had lots of trouble contorting myself into various positions to get the razor to cut against the grain on my neck and never felt like I managed to get a "safe" and efficient position.

Anyway, last time I shaved with a straight, I tried using a technique normally used with a DE razor, called the "Gillette slide". I kept the blade horizontal and went diagonally down/up on my neck, against the grain. I guess it's the same as shaving with the heel or point leading. In any event, I managed to get the smoothest shave ever, using just the straight, on my neck. I have had smoother shaves using a DE razor, but this came pretty close.

Am I on to something here? Have any of you guys tried this technique?

/Nicholas

Sounds like a scything motion from your description. Very common with a straight. I don't typically do that on the neck or any protrusions. Just be careful, there are some important arteries in the neck.

For neck shaving I find that placing my thumb on the blade itself provides stability and produces a closer WTG shave.

I don't think you'll damage any arteries unless you're REALLY pressing down, in which case your blade needs some hone work. That area is so sensitive for me that it gets irritated if you look at it the wrong way. It can turn red for absolutely no reason. That's why I attempt what you're talking about only on rare occasions.

It's a standard toe-leading stroke with straight razors, and has likely been used for thousands of years before it was adapted and carried over to DE's. The "Gillette slide" name came because the current generation of new-DE shavers learned it from the vintage instruction manuals that came with their vintage Gillette DE razors. It's as good a name as any for the DE version of the stroke since DE's don't have heels and toes.

I would like to stress that I use very light pressure when using this technique. No more than I would use for a DE razor. It does seem to catch the stubble very well, though, whether using the technique with the straight or with a DE.

In any case, glad to hear your technique is adapting to give you straight shaves that now rival your DE performance.

This technique definately help me with my neck, however it also contributed to the worst accident that I have had so far with a straight. I was experimenting as to how the extent of sideways movement effected the closeness and was pleased to note that the more i scythed the better it got. Then it caught on my skin. It was a deep one too and took hours to stop bleeding. Oh well I now know the limits of this technique!
Nick

How on earth did you get it to catch on your skin? Didn't you stretch the skin or was the angle off, or did you go a bit too much sideways with the blade? It definitely takes a lot of concentration...

So far (touch wood!) I have only had one (very, very small) nick on the jawline once when using a straight razor. It stopped bleeding even before I finished the shave, so it was very minor. I'm quite impressed by that. I was a bit apprehensive about putting an unprotected blade to my neck, but as it turns out, it has caused me less bloodshed than the DE razor shaves. So far.

Do you mean like this? it's normal.



X

Yes, that's it. Could go the other direction too, with the heel leading.