|
Post by fram773 on Dec 27, 2018 22:34:26 GMT -6
Just get an injector 🤣
|
|
Flintstone
Lather Catcher
Scraper Blade Shaver...
Posts: 908
|
Post by Flintstone on Dec 27, 2018 22:45:32 GMT -6
Just a couple of thoughts/tips that have also helped me: choking up on the handle (finger tips right under the cap/head) which for me forces a lighter touch and seems to also force the "ride the cap" angle; and secondly, not going ATG on sensitive areas until at least the last past. That last one is probably well-known to many folks, but going ATG with an unmentionable (even on a first pass) never seemed to be an issue for me, but with injectors and SEs my lower neck would light up with irritation if I attacked it without a WTG and/or a XTG pass. I'll also echo the shorter strokes, light (although I'd say "no") pressure, and all of the other great advice here. I treat the Micromatic (and it's brethren) like a straight or the oldest unmentionable you can think of. Once muscle memory kicks in, you can fly around your face at lightspeed; but until then, I would make it a super-slow shave. Good luck and keep us posted. That's where all my trouble is. ATG on the neck and jawline tear me up. Ill do fine for the 1st 2 passes and the last always is a bad one. Cant even consider ATG on the moustache with these. I refuse to do a 4th pass though. Yep, I can totally relate. I stayed with 2 WTG passes on my neck and jawline for the longest time (probably 3-4 shaves, but felt like a long time), then on the 5th and 6th shave I felt like muscle memory was kicking in, and I've been able to do XTG/ATG passes in the sensitive areas on the 3rd pass and/or on touch-ups. The only other thing I can say is that I use practically negative pressure (if that's even possible) when I'm shaving those areas -- any pressure at all and I'm looking at some serious irritation.
|
|
RobinK
Lather Catcher
Posts: 505
|
Post by RobinK on Dec 28, 2018 3:02:44 GMT -6
Critiques welcome. I like the razor, but always end up either cut or irritated. Yeah, well, where to begin? - No skin stretching. Never do this. Never. I compiled this mostly for cutthroat razors, but the tips about skin stretching are very relevant here: shavelibrary.com/w/Shaving_passes
- Long shaving passes. That is a big no-no with any SE I know. Short, confident strokes. Maybe even some buffing. The shorter the better.
- Related to 2. above: Unless your beard really, really grows in one direction all the way, chances are you are shaving across, or even against, the grain most of the time. Use this tool: www.pbjsite.com/shave/whiskarmap/ I promise you will find the results meaningful.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Dec 28, 2018 4:42:01 GMT -6
Ha! Yes! The injector is my favorite SE razor. Always gives easy smooth shaves without all the technique needed. only the Gem MM's give me grief.
|
|
|
Post by ordinaryshaver on Dec 28, 2018 7:40:36 GMT -6
Critiques welcome. I like the razor, but always end up either cut or irritated. Yeah, well, where to begin? - No skin stretching. Never do this. Never. I compiled this mostly for cutthroat razors, but the tips about skin stretching are very relevant here: shavelibrary.com/w/Shaving_passes
- Long shaving passes. That is a big no-no with any SE I know. Short, confident strokes. Maybe even some buffing. The shorter the better.
- Related to 2. above: Unless your beard really, really grows in one direction all the way, chances are you are shaving across, or even against, the grain most of the time. Use this tool: www.pbjsite.com/shave/whiskarmap/ I promise you will find the results meaningful.
This right here is gospel folks . Maybe I should "sticky" this.
|
|
RobinK
Lather Catcher
Posts: 505
|
Post by RobinK on Dec 28, 2018 7:50:16 GMT -6
|
|
|
Post by wchnu on Dec 28, 2018 8:19:16 GMT -6
If you want to cork something get a wine bottle..sheeshhhh. Short strokes with the head mostly flat on the face. No need for pressure. Carbon steel blades rock too. With the grain across the grain and a touchup works for me. Light buffing can do the trick also.
Corking the blade...hog wash..bull feathers...
|
|
RobinK
Lather Catcher
Posts: 505
|
Post by RobinK on Dec 28, 2018 9:56:45 GMT -6
|
|
rayr
Blade King
Posts: 427
|
Post by rayr on Dec 28, 2018 11:43:09 GMT -6
Just a couple of thoughts/tips that have also helped me: choking up on the handle (finger tips right under the cap/head) which for me forces a lighter touch and seems to also force the "ride the cap" angle; and secondly, not going ATG on sensitive areas until at least the last past. That last one is probably well-known to many folks, but going ATG with an unmentionable (even on a first pass) never seemed to be an issue for me, but with injectors and SEs my lower neck would light up with irritation if I attacked it without a WTG and/or a XTG pass. I'll also echo the shorter strokes, light (although I'd say "no") pressure, and all of the other great advice here. I treat the Micromatic (and it's brethren) like a straight or the oldest unmentionable you can think of. Once muscle memory kicks in, you can fly around your face at lightspeed; but until then, I would make it a super-slow shave. Good luck and keep us posted. That's where all my trouble is. ATG on the neck and jawline tear me up. Ill do fine for the 1st 2 passes and the last always is a bad one. Cant even consider ATG on the moustache with these. I refuse to do a 4th pass though. I pretty much settled on 2 passes (WTG & ATG) with any razor and just a touch-up pass after. Over-shaving is just going to get you into irritation and a greater chance of nicks or cuts. I used to attempt doing ATG on the moustache area, but that didn't work well, I can do a very effective job with just and XTG and a diagonal WTG starting from the nostril area. Everybody is different, but using no pressure and reducing the number of times a blade scrapes against your skin can eliminate irritation.
|
|
|
Post by Petrvs on Dec 28, 2018 13:54:16 GMT -6
With the grain across the grain and a touchup works for me. Light buffing can do the trick also. That's how I found it works better for me as well: with the grain, across and touchups. Perfect balance between closeness and no-stressed skin. @vintagelife , it's barely visible in the video, but I see you have a vintage proraso ad on your wall... bravo!!!
|
|
ShadowsDad
Gem Star
None boring shaver!!
"It's not the bow, it's the Indian"
Posts: 4,534
|
Post by ShadowsDad on Dec 28, 2018 13:54:43 GMT -6
I didn't mention this earlier in hopes that someone else would bring it up. Sometimes I have all the subtlety of a train wreck.
I was reluctant to mention this, but lots of newbie shavers like to test themselves after having convinced themselves that they are the hottest thing with a razor because they know the basics. I think that's where the reputation of the MMs comes from. Vintagelife, I don't know your experience level and that's exactly why I'm tiptoeing around this. Another thing to consider is lather. The more aggressive the razor the better the lather needs to be. It needs to be very "fine grained" and almost "stiff" to protect the skin from the blade.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Dec 28, 2018 14:46:11 GMT -6
I didn't mention this earlier in hopes that someone else would bring it up. Sometimes I have all the subtlety of a train wreck. I was reluctant to mention this, but lots of newbie shavers like to test themselves after having convinced themselves that they are the hottest thing with a razor because they know the basics. I think that's where the reputation of the MMs comes from. Vintagelife, I don't know your experience level and that's exactly why I'm tiptoeing around this. Another thing to consider is lather. The more aggressive the razor the better the lather needs to be. It needs to be very "fine grained" and almost "stiff" to protect the skin from the blade. That's why I posted the question. To see if there was something Im missing. Youre welcome to look at the posted vid and see if you can spot any problems. That's a good point about the lather. I will for sure do that next time.
|
|
RobinK
Lather Catcher
Posts: 505
|
Post by RobinK on Dec 28, 2018 23:50:16 GMT -6
The more aggressive the razor the better the lather needs to be. It needs to be very "fine grained" and almost "stiff" to protect the skin from the blade. That's why I posted the question. To see if there was something Im missing. Youre welcome to look at the posted vid and see if you can spot any problems. That's a good point about the lather. I will for sure do that next time. Counterargument: The stiffer the lather is, the higher the likelihood of one's applying too much pressure. Some people refer to stiffness as "cushion", and I have never quite understood its use. I want that blade on my skin. I do not want to have to cut through any additional resistance. Case in point: cutthroat razors are the most aggressive type of razor you can get, not least because the cutting angle is operated by the user alone. I use lather that is similar in texture to yoghurt (the French, not the Greek variety) rather than meringue. In fact, I used shaving oil (with some food colour in it so I could see where I had shaved already) for a week, and that really made me appreciate keeping the razor flat on the skin without applying pressure. It also looked super stupid, but, eh!, science and all that... So, map that beard (and avoid ATG passes until you have your cutting angles and pressure fully under control), stretch the skin, keep the strokes short and confident. Also, you might want to try Avène Dermo K. It is the best pre-shave I know (but comparatively pricey). Speaking of which, thoroughly washing your face with a proper soap (not one of these newfangled liquid contraptions) will help.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Dec 29, 2018 17:23:11 GMT -6
I did a test today on the recommendations you all gave. Didn't see much of an improvement. The problem is always the same area. The neck and jawline. I cannot go ATG on this area with any sort of angle, pressure, or length of stroke. Seems the micromatics wont give a very smooth shave. I do fine for 2 passes. That 3rd ATG is the one that's the problem. As long as I don't do that pass all is well.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Dec 29, 2018 17:24:13 GMT -6
My next test will be to re-use that blade and see if it mellows out with use.
|
|