Thread: Shaving with a Full Hollow Grind

I have a very course beard and I do a very light N-S pass then I soak my beard with a hot towel for about 20 seconds, re-lather and hit it again in earnest. My beard is so tough that a 1/4 grind razor is a "singing razor" for me! My wife can hear my beard being cut when she is in the other room when I use even a 1/4 grind. I like full hollows but for me they can not compete with a 1/4 grind for smoothness or ease of use. I have heard that it is technique, prep, sharpness and ......no never mind a full hollow is harder for me to use.


Take Care,
Richard

Make sure your hollow is super sharp. I found when using a full hollow first time I couldn't shave well at all, but I think the technique is a bit different because now it's totally fine - not sure exactly what I do different.

Did you see the recent thread on the scything stroke ? IIRC Utopian draws an analogy between shaving and cutting a tomato. If you try to shear the whiskers by attacking them with a straight cut it isn't as effective as slicing them as you would a tomato.

So if you are doing a WTG from the ear level down to the jaw line instead of moving straight down you are also moving at a slight diagonal. IOW the point or the heel won't end up being on a vertical plumb line from where you started to where you finish.

You will either move the edge forward as you go down or backward as you move down. This slices the whiskers. The bad news is that the angle has to be right and you cannot be pushing the edge into the skin as we tend to do when we are new. If you do this applying pressure you'll slice the skin. The edge skims the surface of the skin slicing the whiskers. It is not like scraping ice off of your windshield.

I consider this an advanced shaving technique and it took me a couple of years to be comfortable with it. Different people have different learning curves. I see some guys picking it up relatively quickly but I was not one of them. Eventually I got to where I could do this on about any part of my physiognomy except the knob of my chin and my upper lip. I'm still very careful on those two areas.

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

Did you see the recent thread on the scything stroke ? IIRC Utopian draws an analogy between shaving and cutting a tomato. If you try to shear the whiskers by attacking them with a straight cut it isn't as effective as slicing them as you would a tomato.

So if you are doing a WTG from the ear level down to the jaw line instead of moving straight down you are also moving at a slight diagonal. IOW the point or the heel won't end up being on a vertical plumb line from where you started to where you finish.

You will either move the edge forward as you go down or backward as you move down. This slices the whiskers. The bad news is that the angle has to be right and you cannot be pushing the edge into the skin as we tend to do when we are new. If you do this applying pressure you'll slice the skin. The edge skims the surface of the skin slicing the whiskers. It is not like scraping ice off of your windshield.

I consider this an advanced shaving technique and it took me a couple of years to be comfortable with it. Different people have different learning curves. I see some guys picking it up relatively quickly but I was not one of them. Eventually I got to where I could do this on about any part of my physiognomy except the knob of my chin and my upper lip. I'm still very careful on those two areas.

Thanks Jimmy,

That is the technique I was using. I would not have been able to get as far as I did without it. It's funny that you mention the chin, because that is where I finally had to throw in the towel - I have not learned to scythe on the chin area.

Having said that, I might still have the wrong blade angle combined with the scythe cut. Sometimes this is a little like trying to fly a helicopter. A lot of stuff to coordinate into a single simultaneous action.

David

Alembic,

Don't give up on your hollows yet. And I know you'll kick yourself if you got rid of them now in frustration.

For all of you who are getting frustrated with their hollow razors please read this: http://straightrazorpalace.com/razor...w-apology.html
Perhaps you may have some renewed interest in those razors you were about to give up on.

Best regards,

Ryan

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

Did you see the recent thread on the scything stroke ? IIRC Utopian draws an analogy between shaving and cutting a tomato. If you try to shear the whiskers by attacking them with a straight cut it isn't as effective as slicing them as you would a tomato.

So if you are doing a WTG from the ear level down to the jaw line instead of moving straight down you are also moving at a slight diagonal. IOW the point or the heel won't end up being on a vertical plumb line from where you started to where you finish.

You will either move the edge forward as you go down or backward as you move down. This slices the whiskers. The bad news is that the angle has to be right and you cannot be pushing the edge into the skin as we tend to do when we are new. If you do this applying pressure you'll slice the skin. The edge skims the surface of the skin slicing the whiskers. It is not like scraping ice off of your windshield.

I consider this an advanced shaving technique and it took me a couple of years to be comfortable with it. Different people have different learning curves. I see some guys picking it up relatively quickly but I was not one of them. Eventually I got to where I could do this on about any part of my physiognomy except the knob of my chin and my upper lip. I'm still very careful on those two areas.

+1 on scything...

I have coarse beard as well and very early on during my str8 shaving career, I found that this was the pecking order for me, as far as grinds are concerned:

Wedges > 1/4 hollow > 1/2 hollow > full hollow

So wedges worked best. Then as my technique improved, I found the grind to be more or less irrelevant. I get as good a shave with any of my hollows as I do with my wedges...I actually prefer hollows. I also quickly learned that I was more comfortable with scything than other techniques...this vastly improved the shave with hollows (as well as wedges)

I think there's a level of intuitiveness that goes into each of our individual shaves. This will be different for all of us and I think you need to experiment a bit to find the sweet spot for your hollow str8s. I also believe that having sensitive skin can work to your advantage. It will provide you with a better metric to judge the different techniques. but, that's what worked for me...YMMV

Originally Posted by deighaingeal

Alembic,

If this does not work for you I would suggest immediate disposal. As I am a disposal expert I would be happy to dispose of them if you ship me all of your full hollow razors. I am even feeling generous enough that if you wish me to dispose of these blades for you I will reimburse you the full cost of shipping.



-G

Not so fast buddy...You may be a disposal expert here, but I am the "CA state regulator" of all EPA (and other) related disposal activities . So, do remember, you are obligated under CA state law, to drop these off to my office for evaluation, which may take awhile to finish .

[QUOTE=BladeRunner001;642067
I think there's a level of intuitiveness that goes into each of our individual shaves. [/QUOTE]

Or, as I have been saying, use the natural approach and stop trying to force unatural angles, strokes and techniques.