Thread: Conflicting Information

And there you have it in a nutshell...shave on!!

If you rub your face with dry ice the hairs will freeze solid and you won't even need a razor to shave, just break them off.

Or, like the lumberjacks in Paul Bunyan's camp, who had beards so tough that the whiskers resisted all razors and most axes the only solution for them was to hammer the whiskers in and chew the stubble off from the inside.

I'm sure this is not at all germain to the original question, but I've always admired those who can find solutions to knotty problems.

My totally amateur opinion is that it's both, in a manner of speaking.

I would guess that moisture would fatten up the whiskers, and thus make them stand up a bit, presenting a better target to the blade and offering just enough resistance to make the blade cut rather than have the whisker just flop over and have the blade glide over top of it. The very same moisture would also soften the texture a bit making the blade "bite" on the hair a bit better and be generally easier to cut. I don't know if "hard" and "soft" are the exact terms to use.

But the best word on this is: just try different approaches and see what works. Barbers in bygone days seemed to think heat was best. I never heard of an old-time barber wrapping a patron's face in ice-cold towels before a shave, and bragging on "cold lather."

But what do I know. I still have nicks and cuts healing!

There's a lot of pseudoscience on these forums.

All you need is a sharp razor, a decent brush, a good strop, decent shaving soap or cream and dexterity. You'll need to find out what works for you.

Originally Posted by LawsonStone

My totally amateur opinion is that it's both, in a manner of speaking.

I would guess that moisture would fatten up the whiskers, and thus make them stand up a bit, presenting a better target to the blade and offering just enough resistance to make the blade cut rather than have the whisker just flop over and have the blade glide over top of it. The very same moisture would also soften the texture a bit making the blade "bite" on the hair a bit better and be generally easier to cut. I don't know if "hard" and "soft" are the exact terms to use.

But the best word on this is: just try different approaches and see what works. Barbers in bygone days seemed to think heat was best. I never heard of an old-time barber wrapping a patron's face in ice-cold towels before a shave, and bragging on "cold lather."

But what do I know. I still have nicks and cuts healing!

Lawson,
That's not an amateurish opinion at all...in fact, very astute observation . In fact, you are somewhat right. Human (and other similar) hair can absorb as much as 30-40% its weight in water. That's not small amounts. That's why keeping the whiskers moisturized during your shave is recommended. The facial cleaning that we hear everyone talk about is not so much for the benefit of the hair per se, but to clear out the pores and allow the skin to "breathe", which facilitates production of natural oils (or sebum) through the sebaceous glands to keep skin moisturized, after and during your shave. Keeping the beard moisturized is the lather's job...Using glycerin (which soaps/cremes have a lot of) helps draw moisture from the environment and keep it onto the beard, which in turn keeps the beard soft. The heat breaks up the H-bonds in hair and facilitate shaving/cutting. There is a fine balance between heat/moisture...too much heat and you evaporate moisture and too little heat, the less H-bonds will break...Yin and Yang. With practice, we get better in determining what this balance is.

Thanks

I don't know the answer to the question, but a couple of the theories already presented sound pretty bloody good to me. I've tried both warm and cold water shaves, and both work for me. My theory is that warm is a luxory, and cold is more practical if you don't have access to a hot water system. Minimal prep also works for me. The stubble seems to be nicely removed in both cases. 90%BBS (I have a couple of awkward angles that have defied all attempts at 100% BBS. I'll get 'em though. One day.).


Mick

Agreed, you don't even need the internet or SRP either, but we have them.

What we're doing here is having fun and sharing impressions.

Beats heck out of work...wait, I'm at work...

...gotta run!

Originally Posted by Kees

There's a lot of pseudoscience on these forums.

All you need is a sharp razor, a decent brush, a good strop, decent shaving soap or cream and dexterity. You'll need to find out what works for you.

+1 on BladeRunner.

To add to it, start straight shaving as there is no substitute for experience.

Pabster

Yeah, i started a couple months back.
Obviously there is no substitute for experience.
But theres something to be said for a deeper level of understanding.

Like how a child views a sunrise, as opposed to how an adult might view it.

Anyways, some interesting viewpoints, thanks to everyone for pitching in their two cents - even the liquid nitrogen was interesting, though impractical =P