Thread: preshave oil - yeah it works

I have for some time now been shaving using just lather made from shaving cream, but I thought I would try pre-shave oil to see what would happen.

For my first experiment, I picked up a small squeeze bottle of Shave Secret at the local Walmart. This is actually marketed as a shaving oil, but since it is made up of essential oils, and claims to be rapidly absorbed, I figured it should work well. It's also quite inexpensive, at roughly US$3.00.

Following the instructions, I used about five drops to coat my face before lathering with my regular cream. I must say, it does make a major difference. My shave (I always only do a single pass) is much closer and my skin feels much softer and less dry. I'm guessing this shave may last for two days.

I use some by Crew on my chin if honing time is drawing near. My chin still stinks to shave. By some freak of nature I have chin hair growing in every possible direction. Think swirl. I try not to use it to much just because it leave a slight clinging surface, even after a wash. Perhaps I should try a different brand. But yes it can make a difference.

You really need to try Pacific Shave Oil, its all-natural and does what it claims. When I do use oil, this is it!
As usual, YMMV.

Fred

I highly recommend using a pre-shave oil! I have AoS unscented (which actually has somewhat of a minty scent LOL) which I follow up with a hot steam towel. I does wonders for my face...talk about BBS.

I like using it too but I find it interferes with stretching in some areas. The Shavemac site says don't use it, but I haven't heard a good reason why. Maybe someone can chime in here to explain. I have to agree with your results though. The AOS stuff is pricey as is all their stuff. Someone posted a recipe for homemade preshave oil that sounds interesting.
2 parts Castor oil, 1 part olive or almond oil, a couple drops essential oil if you like. Shake and serve!

I use C&M's almond daily and sometmes switch to Somersets. My experience is that I get no irritation or reddening although I do a 3 pass shave daily. I must try mischievous's home formula.

Taking your advice, I bought some of the $3.00 pre-shave oil from Wal-Mart. Now what? Do I use this with shaving soap of by itself?

I'm not such a fan of the pre-shave oil thing. For me it was a little messy and didn't effect my shave. IMO, the only thing your beard needs is a good lathering

I used preshaving oils daily for two years , when i started wetshaving( i was still using a mach-3) i noticed is what made the most diference as for getting a comfortable shave.
I really liked at the beginning the art of shaving, it is the thickest and grisiest of them all, therefore giving you the most protection, but! the brush after a few shaves was literally useless, it wouldnt hold any water and the hairs sticked together...there wasnt a bloom anymore...so i had to shampoo the brush...but really was never the same... when swithcing to straights i really noticed handling the razor was dificult, also the stretching part that somebody mentioned early wasnt helping...so i switched to other brands....i really liked the musgo real preshaving oil, great bang for the buck and not as greasy and also i really liked cade from l'occitane,as soon as i developed a good technique i saw was no longer necessary.
So, now i dont use preshaving oil any more, i dont think i need it, i follow instead a big aftershave regime instead and my face is better than ever, after i am done shaving, i do the following:
1-rinse my face well with really cold water
2-spray all over my face a generous amount ofhome made mix of rose water and witch hazel.(i let it soak and then rub it in)
3-Apply alcohol based aftershavetaylors,musgo,floris ,floid,bay rum(whatever i am in the mood for)
4-i apply an aftershave balm, i like unscented the art of shaving the most( i think has the bestnourising properties of them all).

I follow all the steps inmediately one after the other,taking advantage of the moisture of the previous step...let me explain...the alcohol based aftershave spreads and soaks in a lot betterin the previously wet face from the rose water...and then the balm does the same, you need less amounts and all goes in simply in a better way.

I think i hijacked the thread...sorry, but since doing this i dont (i used to be a huge advocate of shaving oils) use shaving oils anymore.

So my final thought is...preshaving oils help to correct mistakes, if you are gonna have a quick careless shave, by all means use some, it will help, also if you are using a disposable blade or one that is rough....
But again, if your blade is sharp, you got good technique and time, and you have a good aftershave....skip it,it will only mess up your brush(untill you shampoo it of course...) and like the good lynn said in his video , can lead to an accident...seriously.
Hope it helped.
And if you are gonna use them, please try.
AOS sandalwood (yummy)
Musgo real , natural scent, lighter but still very protective and you get 3 times the amount than anyone else, $22 ml, a full bottle of 100ml, hands down the best qualitty.
And cade l'occitane, just very very luxirious with the best scent.

Personally, I like both T&H pre-shave oil as well as Nancy Boy PSO. The Nancy Boy is thick and offers good protection, all though it's a bit greasy. The T&H absorbs quickly but does a good job of hydrating my beard and offering protection. For me, the oils have helped improve my shaves and protect my skin and have not affected either of my brushes in an adverse way.