Thread: Go to pass

Hey guys after my three passes wtg atg and xtg sometimes I add another wtg but I need another pass that will get close enough for a bbs feel.

Thanks guys.

I'm not exactly sure of the question, but perhaps I could just make a comment. Far be it from me to tell anyone how to shave in the most effective way for them personally, and if 3-4 passes works for you that is great. However, to me it seems a little excessive to do that many passes and in fact is potentially fraught with razor burns and weepers etc.

Now I am not saying that it should not take 3 passes to get BBS, as one man's BBS is another man's SBS (Shark Butt Smooth) and vice-versa, but if I were you I would pay careful attention to several important things before I went adding another pass to my shaving routine. These things would include, but may not be limited to:
(i) Edge sharpness;
(ii) Stropping technique;
(iii) Shaving technique, specifically angles;
(iv) Beard growth mapping;
(v) Beard preparation;
(vi) Soap/cream lather;
(vii) Stretching.

Any of these things individually or in combination can lead to better shaves in fewer passes. Personally I never need more than 2 passes (N to S and S to N), combined with some blade-buffing on some areas, to get what I consider BBS.

Good luck!

James.

Hey jim thanks for the quick reply. I consider bbs to be no hair or for it to feel like that. I usually do 40-60 times on a leather Illinois strop. The edges of the razors are still very sharp but I am sending one of them out to et professionally honed soon just because I don't know when they were last honed by my grandfather.

BBS is a parlor trick, although I've never seen it performed as such.

How so? I can get bbs with my gillette mach 5.

I find it more beneficial to go WTG, XTG and then ATG (at least in certain areas), allowing the maximum benefit from the XTG pass. In fact, using that sequence usually means that the need for ATG is very minimal. A compromise is doing 2 XTG passes in opposite directions.

Of course if it works for you then keep at it

Originally Posted by MGNero

Hey jim thanks for the quick reply. I consider bbs to be no hair or for it to feel like that. I usually do 40-60 times on a leather Illinois strop. The edges of the razors are still very sharp but I am sending one of them out to et professionally honed soon just because I don't know when they were last honed by my grandfather.

That is an excellent idea to get them honed professionally.

The thing with BBS is that how you go about achieving it depends on where you are talking about on the face - cheeks are usually easy, for example, whereas chins, upper lips, and neck-ish areas are slightly more problematic. Myself, I have no chance, not one whit, of ever achieving BBS on my neck maelstroms either side of the Adam's apple. I have tried and failed, or tried and bled, so often that I have left the field of BBS battle in those there parts. I can get it acceptably close and that is good enough for me.

James.

Thanks Ryan and Jim I have the easiest time getting my chin bbs but my sideburns are hit or miss. I have a barber hone I might try freshening up the edge before I send it out see if that helps.