Thread: why do straight shaves last longer?

Originally Posted by Chimensch

A shave feels BBS because the hairs are cut below the normal surface of the skin. This is accomplished by stretching the skin and then cutting the hairs off with a blade that has nothing to obstruct contact with the skin. The farther below the normal surface of the skin that the razor cuts, the longer it takes the hairs to emerge above the surface and the longer the feeling of BBS lasts. Traditional straights shave closer than a DE blade because the edge is supported by thicker metal and so it resists being deflected by the hair. I know this because the god that lives in my razor came to me in a dream and explained it all. ...

That's right. the razor gods (yes I can commune with most of them ... heh) also informed me that the exfoliation (removal of surface skin) which straights also contribute to, means that for almost the first whole day, the whiskers are trying to grow back above the surface skin which is also busy regrowing.

X

Originally Posted by xman

That's right. the razor gods (yes I can commune with most of them ... heh) also informed me that the exfoliation (removal of surface skin) which straights also contribute to, means that for almost the first whole day, the whiskers are trying to grow back above the surface skin which is also busy regrowing.

X

But wouldn't that lead to more ingrown hairs? Hair cut beneath surface of skin, skin exfoliated and a layer needs to grow back, so in some cases skin grows back over hair and bam! ingrown hair?

I'm prepared to believe this because I never suffered ingrown hairs when shaving with Muck3, and only through closer shaves with a straight have I occasionally suffered them.

I would imagine that the quality of steel and refinement of the edge of a straight is keener therefore cuts closer than a regular razor. Works better for me..thats my story and ahm stickin with it

Originally Posted by majurey

But wouldn't that lead to more ingrown hairs? Hair cut beneath surface of skin, skin exfoliated and a layer needs to grow back, so in some cases skin grows back over hair and bam! ingrown hair?

I'm prepared to believe this because I never suffered ingrown hairs when shaving with Muck3, and only through closer shaves with a straight have I occasionally suffered them.

i have had significantly less ingrown hairs then with my mach3 when i use my straight. i attribute this to less irritation. my guess is that ingrown hairs happen because of a close shave combined with irritation which inflames the skin and causes it to attempt to heal itself over the hair. hense, no irritation = no ingrowns. this is just my theory but i stand by my hatred of mach3s and higher, they turn me into a redneck, literally.

Originally Posted by majurey

But wouldn't that lead to more ingrown hairs? Hair cut beneath surface of skin, skin exfoliated and a layer needs to grow back, so in some cases skin grows back over hair and bam! ingrown hair?

Fewer actually, because straight shaving takes away the layers of skin which would catch the hairs and cause ingrowns.

X

i think all the extra prep and conditioning with do to our face and beard just make it seem like the shave last longer with maybe a small caveat to the angle that the hair shaft is cut at. perhaps the straight cuts the hair at a large enough angle so that they are softer at the ends.

i know this i can shave everyday to no ill effects and if i skip a day it does not look all that bad... just grey.. which is why i shave

I would say when i shave with de blade it is certanly close but when stubble starts to make a come back my stubble don't half feel sharp for some reason. With my straight razors which i always use now days the growth comes back a lot softer and with only a good well honed razor you will always have a great smooth velvety shave which feels good and close but in all onesty i think it does'nt last much longer. The best thing you could do is shave one side with a straight and the other side with normal pack of blades and test your face next day.

I find that the open blade of a straight razor, when used with the proper technique that took time for me to learn, can get at my whiskers in ways that modern, enclosed safety razors cannot, and give me a closer shave. Closer shaves last longer.

When I began using a straight razor my technique left a lot to be desired, and my closest shaves were not much shorter than a 5 O' Clock shadow, so the 5 PM shadow would show up around 10 AM.

Originally Posted by xman

Fewer actually, because straight shaving takes away the layers of skin which would catch the hairs and cause ingrowns.

X

That's certainly conventional wisdom, but I never even knew what an ingrown hair was until I started shaving with a straight.

That said, since I returned to honing on a coticule the shaves have been a lot smoother and the bumps and occasional ingrowns have disappeared, so maybe there's something in chee16's skin irritation theory? Either that or I'm a freak.

Well, maybe a bit of both...

Originally Posted by gssixgun

I gotta +1 with the English man here....

I believe he is on the right track, they feel better because of the angle that the hair was cut, and I believe that the face prep that we do, actually makes for better skin condition, so our faces actually feel softer and smoother longer... But I do think that running 4-5 blades over ones face does give you a "closer, as in below the skin shave" it just doesn't feel as good, for as long, as the straight shave Therefore yes it is done by FM.... (don't know what FM means pm me and I'll tell ya)

I prefer the acronym PFM.

Sean