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You Can Only Have Two

Blade-meister

Blade-meister

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Ok, so those following my journal know I've had to shift back to a 2 pass shave because of some irritation and redness issues related to my newness to wet shaving. I've tried a WTG/ATG and a WTG/XTG two pass shaves. So far, for me the WTG/XTG with limited buffing XTG has supplied the best 2 pass shave yet at DFS+ in some areas (where buffed) and CCS consistently elsewhere. To get BBS it takes me at least 3 passes w/ a clean-up lather.

If you could only have two passes, what would be your choice and why?
 
My standard has evolved into WTG/modified ATG/ATG. So it would for a 2 pass shave be WTG/ATG because i could get the smoothest possible shave from that.
 
I normally only do two passes, WTG and XTG. I was getting lots of irritation with 3, and still can on those days that I do a third pass. Two is just less irritating and has the side benefit of saving me a little bit of time in the mornings. It also helps with blade longevity.
 
WTG & XTG is my standard Shave. + some touchup.

ATG is the biggest source of irritation, so that’s the first pass I eliminated.

To try try to get a better Shave without AGT, try a 3 pass Shave, with WTG and 2 XTG passes (one in each direction).
 
If the goal is to reduce irritation for a shave, WTG and XTG passes are definitely the ones I am going to stick with while learning technique. ATG is the one that usually causes problems for folks, though if you learn to do a hybrid XTG/ATG pass, it might be just as close a shave with way less irritation.
 
Spider said:
WTG & XTG is my standard Shave. + some touchup.

ATG is the biggest source of irritation, so that’s the first pass I eliminated.

To try try to get a better Shave without AGT, try a 3 pass Shave, with WTG and 2 XTG passes (one in each direction).
Click to expand...
But your clean-up is pretty much a whole pass itself.
 
NurseDave said:
But your clean-up is pretty much a whole pass itself.
Click to expand...

Lately it is, but that is an evolution from doing videos, and trying to get a good solid review of post shave slickness. Before I was doing videos, touch up was just a few swipes, usually just on the jawline.
 
Good feedback everyone! I'm also finding that the WTG / XTG is a good 2 pass shave for me. As I noted in my shaving journal today, beard mapping will help you truly find the XTG pass. What I thought was XTG for my neck was actually ATG once I took a careful look at my beard growth.
 
I would go N-S, then a hybrid pass about 45 degrees from ATG. But, I can only do that with my Shovelhead or a straight. Everything else would give me irritation.
 
I have a GEM to try someday when I get around to trying SE's. I'm wondering if the SE would be kinder to my neck than the DE I'm using?
 
What he said! I avoid GEMs like the plague myself. At this point it's all about pressure and angles. It's one thing to read about trusting the razor to do the work and totally another to overcome your subconscious desire to add a little more pressure at certain times. For me it's when I hear it cutting a lot of hair. I know that I'm thinking I hear all that hair there and want to get more aggressive to get rid of it. And I'm sure if I wasn't thinking about it every single day, I'd probably do it from time to time without even knowing I did it.
 
I agree that GEMs are definitely not for everyone. They are my go to for most shaves, but they are very persnickety. I got lucky and found a method that works for me.
 
GEMs can be brutal, but the later models are quite mild. They are not for everyone, but everyone should give them a try.
 
I must be fortunate, the GEM Jr, that Dave from the KY factory sent over, and I have been getting along decently.
 
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