pre-shave oil/lotion - fact/fiction

Just wondering what people think about the whole pre-shave lotion idea. Not sure if it is useful or damaging to the brush.

If people do recommend it, which ones do they recommend?

Avoid the oil. It's not particularly useful or good for the brush, and it interferes with stretching. Plus you really don't want slippery hands while handling a straight razor. Hair conditioner works well, and I've heard that the proraso and feather preshaves are good. I find that just washing my face beforehand with a good soap, then lathering my face up before stropping works very well.

I agree, forget the oil. I had experimented with it a couple years ago and found it did nothing to improve the shave and made it almost impossible to stretch the skin. I agree it does the brush no good. The oil on the brush is a bitch to wash out and it affects the water holding ability.

The most popular "pre-shave OIL" I have seen is Pacific Shave Oil. And it is not really a "pre shave oil", but is designed to replace using lather. A few at the DE forums like it because it help irritation. One of the members applies it before each pass and has never had an issue with buildup on his brushes. I used a bottle of it, and agree that there is no impact upon the brush. However, I still haven't concluded whether it helps with irritation. But then, I have a light beard.

RT

I have to agree. I tried it for the first time recently and didn't like it very much. For all the mentioned reasons.

If I were a Mach3 (etc) user and didn't stretch my skin, and used stuff in a can pre-shave oil might be great. I was using e-Shave's preshave oil, and found it clogged the brush and didn't really generate great lather. eShave sells brushes, soaps & creams so one would think this would have been tested. A soak in Borax and/or a good shampooing fixes this. I also found the oil made it a little difficult to achieve a really good stretch.

What about the Truefitt & Hill pre-shave oil? I use it and like it. Does anyone else have any experience with it?

Try some vegetable glycerin (a few drops into your mug prior to lather) - works great for me and its dirt cheap. This is the ghetto version of using skin food as a pre-lather.

I use the AoS pre shave oil and once I've used this bottle, I am considering using the Coral Skin Food instead as a pre-shave or not using one at all.

I read (think it may have been a publication by AoS) that pre shave oil is good at tackling ingrown hairs (and preventing them too), esp. if you have very strange beard growth - I have a very thick and hard beard, in some places with no obvious grain direction.

Still, it may be preventing them which is why I've got less of them. If that's true, I'm hoping use of the Coral Skin Food on a more regular basis might also be just as good, if not better - after all, I am using Trumper's Rose cream/soaps along with it.