Thread: Weight of Components to Get a Great Shave (Vote)

Hello guys,

I was thinking earlier of what are the criteria or components that biuld up to get a great shave without irritation. I came to the conclusion, there are 3 general components:

1. Face Prep (Includes anything performed before the shave to hydrate the beard and soften the hairs, including shower before shave, hot towel, etc)

2. Technique (this involes a user that utilizes proper technique, including proper pressure and angle and face mapping)

3. Equipment (This relate to having good quality tools that perform the respective tasks as expected from each product).  I didnt want to dissagregate this between item classifications, since I believe this a broader term.  In this case it includes: Soap (or Cream), Razor, Brush, Blades, etc).  It also does not mean a need to have expensive equipment either, but proper equipment, regardless of price (slick soap, etc)

I would like for you guys to present your assesment on the importance each of these 3 components has on a great shave.

In my case, I attribute my great shaves based on this weight:

1. Face Prep - 35%  

2. Technique - 40%

3. Equipment - 25%


My assessment summary:  I gave 35% weight to face prep since on my experience, even if I use the best soap, razor etc and my technique is great, I will never achieve a great shave without irritation, if no adequate face prep was performed.  Technique received 40% since it really has great weight on the overall quality of the shave and even sometimes can mitigate the effects of using an inferior product.  And finally, equipment received 25% weight.  While its great to have quality equipment, it definitely has a lesser degree of impact than face prep and technique, in my opinion.

Please chime in with your weight distributions!  It will be interesting to see everyone's responses!

I think you have it right. When I finally learned good technique I don't have to work hard to get BBS with anything.

Shawn, you sound like you would benefit immensely from cold water shaving. Everything you just said I have experienced. CWS made a huge difference for me on most of those things you mentioned.

I've tried it a few times and I very much enjoy it, and it does make a difference. But for some reason I either don't think of it, or am treating it like something special, Shaving Gods know why But ya, I'll make more of an effort to do a cold water shave for a while and see if over a longer period of time that makes a large difference

I remember when I first started experimenting with cold water shaving. I immediately noticed a difference but the real improvement showed up after I did about a week straight with the cold water. I couldn't believe not only how much better my skin felt, but also how much better my skin looked. It was at this time that my wife finally commented that my new shaving hobby was finally starting to improve the condition of my neck.

Shawn, you sound like you would benefit immensely from cold water shaving. Everything you just said I have experienced. CWS made a huge difference for me on most of those things you mentioned.

I've tried it a few times and I very much enjoy it, and it does make a difference.  But for some reason I either don't think of it, or am treating it like something special, Shaving Gods know why    But ya, I'll make more of an effort to do a cold water shave for a while and see if over a longer period of time that makes a large difference

I remember when I first started experimenting with cold water shaving. I immediately noticed a difference but the real improvement showed up after I did about a week straight with the cold water. I couldn't believe not only how much better my skin felt, but also how much better my skin looked. It was at this time that my wife finally commented that my new shaving hobby was finally starting to improve the condition of my neck.

Then I will certainly cold water shave from now and see how it goes. I'll admit, I'll miss the nice warm lather, but I can live with that if it means improving my over all shave quality. Thanks

I use cold water for rinses but I soak my brush in warm water. I find cold works better for my skin.

I think face/leg prep is very important and there are some factor that go along with that. Is your skin naturally dry? What type of climate do you live in? How many nasty chemicals are in your water?
Living in Toledo, we have a lot of chemicals and ones that really dry your skin out. So, I believe in proper hydration and using my husbands La Toya foam as a conditioner because I think it's a lousy foam. I just rub it into my legs and then apply my soap lather.

Technique is important but at the same time, also knowing your face/legs and which way the hairs grow on any given part is very important.


I also believe, at least for me, using a heavy razor with the proper blade for that razor is very important. I just let the razor glide upon the surface of my legs and let most of the weight do it's job and don't be afraid to add more water if needed. These things happen from time to time. A great shave makes me feel like a million bucks. Why sacrifice that feeling for skipping a couple of steps.

Nice thread herbert7890. If I had to segment importance, I would say:

5% Prep
60% Technique
35% Equipment

Although I have a barbed wire beard, I don't have particularly sensitive skin so the pre-shave routine for 10+ years has essentially been limited to a very hot shower. No ill effect in my case.

Technique I would include lather building. Getting this dialed in, regardless of soap and water, probably made the greatest impact to the quality of shaves. Blade angle, etc. once you get the feel was fairly straightforward but important.

Equipment I can coax a decent shave out of most if not all soaps that I have tried. Some better than others but generally speaking. Blades make a huge difference for me and are critical and the razor itself comes into play too. The brush probably makes the least bit of difference.

I am fortunate that I have no skin problems other than a slight age droop.

I have tried pre shave stuff and do not like the greasy feeling they impart. A hot shower will do it for me.

I enjoy building the lather and my feel for the correct consistency has improved considerably in the four years since I started wet shaving. Different products require slightly different adaptations. I do not go for massive lathers that only get washed down the drain. Yes. I'm cheap.

Aah! the razors. The real joy of wet shaving. I now almost exclusively use ancient single edge razors.
They all give excellent shaves and will achieve BBS with a very little effort.
I use Rolls Razors, GEM.s various models, Valet and Schicks. They all put most of today's razors of which I have tried a number, to shame.

I am no good at math so I will just say:
Pre shave - nil except for the shower.
Technique - easy with single edge. Lather - a great deal.
Equipment - On par with technique/lather.

Thanks for this interesting topic, NFA.

I wont try to put percentages onto each of these criteria, but will agree that they are all important. With a straight razor I would say equipment is more than 25%, and I will say that with any hardware, the right equipment will make the shave easier and/or more enjoyable. Also I'd say sub categories driving technique are hand eye coordination, confidence, knowledge, experience.

Hmmm. Herbert7890, this is gonna take a little effort for me. In fact, I don't know that have enough experience to truly validate my thoughts. I've been so focused on doing things correctly, I don't know how to weight them.
I shave after I shower and use the bloom water on my face while I load and lather. I've not done anything else.
I would say I had comfortable, DFS+ shaves with beginner technique, sub-par lather, and poor blades; but, it takes the proper technique AND good lather, AND a blade that is well suited to ones razor and face to get a really comfortable BBS. Let's be honest, we love cool gear; but , crappy technique delivers irritation and crappy shaves. Equipment cannot overcome that.
I say:
Technique - 70%
Equipment - 20% 10 lather 10 blade
Prep - 10%