Thread: Guillotine Scything Combo Stroke

I haven't seen any documentation on this style of stroke so i was going to just toss it out there to see if anyone else uses this stroke.

When i am doing a standard NS pass, instead of holding the razor perpendicular to the stroke I hold it with the heel leading slightly like i am going to do a scything stroke, but then i just draw the razor straight north and south.

Because i lead with the heel, i can use scything stroke to get myself out of trouble if i start to feel any kind of pulling or resistance.

Intuitively, this seems natural for me, but i haven't figured out how to translate this to other passes...

With the exception of the sides of my face pretty much the rest I do with one or the other end leading since it easier to get into certain areas that way.

There are some documented strokes w/ nice images in the wiki under Shaving passes -- Advanced shaving techniques:
Shaving passes - Straight Razor Place Wiki

These are particularly beneficial when going across the grain. I follow a similar guillotine/scything motion when shaving as well.

Originally Posted by thecornerbooth

Intuitively, this seems natural for me....

Congratulations, you have discovered the true secret to a great shave.

I use a toe leading guillotine stroke pretty much everywhere. Every now and then I will do a scything stroke if I am tring to get extra close.