Thread: Burly chin wiskers or dull razor?

My razor is struggling to get the job done on my chin where my facial hair is thickest. On my cheeks & neck it gets the job done pretty good but as soon as I hit the thick stuff on my chin it's a struggle with the blade pulling like crazy. Time for a rehone you think?

How many shaves have you done. The chin is a hard area to get your angle right so it may just be time. I still go into my chin steep every once in a while and there is some pulling. Since it shaves good on your cheeks I would try and adjust your angle and pressure a little before you rehone. Good luck!!

It is possible that your razor needs a honing, but noticing your join date, I have to wonder if technique may be a contributing factor. The chin can really be tough to learn to shave when you start using straights...

Has it always pulled on the chin area or is this a recent development?

I've been shaving with a straight for maybe three weeks now? So my 9th or 10th shave (not counting that time I shaved SWMBO's legs for her, but we won't go into all that).

Originally Posted by richmondesi

It is possible that your razor needs a honing, but noticing your join date, I have to wonder if technique may be a contributing factor. The chin can really be tough to learn to shave when you start using straights...

Has it always pulled on the chin area or is this a recent development?

It's always been a problem area but I really noticed it more than usual this evening.

Originally Posted by freeman

It's always been a problem area but I really noticed it more than usual this evening.

I'd say technique is the most likely culprit. If anything, I'd say maybe touch up the edge on chrom ox or diamond pastes depending on what you have access to. However, 50-75 strokes on linen followed by 75-100 on horsehide will probably be enough to bring it back to life... Work on that technique, friend!

Since you only have 9 or 10 shaves I would bet the reason is:
C) Your technique is not up to par yet.

Take it easy, have fun. Don't try to hone the razor yet. The technique will come you just have to practice.

+1 on what the others have been saying about angle and general technique. Sorting out the area into a series of small, flat planes and stretching accordingly helped me a lot. I'd add that this includes stropping and lathering technique, took me a while to get stropping right and even now, nearly two years in, I've just recently taken a jump forward in this respect. More time spent working the lather into the chin helped too.

You've been given good advice already. The muzzle always has a longer learning curve than the rest of your face, from the nose to the chin requires practice, patience and technique. You will eventually develop a pattern that works for you depending on the direction of your particular hair growth and density.

Personally, the hair on my chinny chin chin is 3 times as thick as the rest of my face and is the acid test when it comes to testing my latest razor hone job. Like you, my razor slows when it comes to my chin and requires a little more force to push it through. I am aware of it and I make a couple of extra passes there to get it right.

It's part of getting to know your face.

Regards,
Marc

After some long conversations with other more experienced straight users, and after a lot of searching of threads, I have concluded that some of us experience "pulling" even when using sharp blades. You will sometimes read others suggest that you think of shaving these tough areas as beard reduction instead of beard shaving.

When I shave my chin my razor typically slices thru my beard relatively easily, but requiring some pressure. My blade is almost flat on my skin. And, the pressure required might be interpreted as pulling by some. This first pass usually does not shave down to skin level; close, but not there. My next WTG pass is performed with less pressure, and slices off less beard. It gets me closer to the skin; almost there. And, it has less "pulling." The last WTG pass is usually free of pull, the remainder of the beard slices off easily and cleanly at skin level.

I don't know if this is typical. But, this is my pattern, and was the pattern even the first shave with a razor sharpened by Lynn. The main point being that the first pass or two reduced the beard, while the last pass could be more accurately be termed "shaving."

Is there any chance that the pulling you described is similar?