Pre-shave Face Prep - An Experiment

rbscebu

rbscebu

Member
Joined
Sep 10, 2020
Location
Atherton Tablelands, Queensland, Australia
Most traditional wet shavers believe that pre-shave face preparation can make or break a shave's quality. I am in the same camp. Over the past 4½ years I have developed my pre-shave face prep to what I thinks works for me. This development has only been based on theory with no practical comparison. My current pre-shave face prep consists of:
  1. Wet face and apply Pears transparent soap.
  2. Wet hands and work the soap well into my whiskers for about ½ to 1 minute.
  3. Rinse hands and start rinsing soap off face. This is done repeatedly for about 2 minutes until there is no slickness felt on the face and the face is truly squeaky clean.
  4. With the face still wet, I then start to face-lather and shave.
My thoughts are, what would a shave be like without any pre-shave face prep? There is only one way to fin d out - try it.

Next Monday and Tuesday I am going to shave with only half my face normally preped on Monday and then swap side for Tuesday's shave. For these two shaves, I have a matching boxed pair of pre-1924 T.R. Cadman "Bengall" 6/8 straight razors that have been finished and maintained on diamond pasted balsa. For shaving soap, I will use a Tabac (tallow) stick and face lather.

N71tvCI.jpg

I will report the results of this little "experiment" here in this thread.
 
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Very similar for me, but I do the proceses twice - the first time I don't rinse as long though...
 
Day 1 of 2
This morning I preped the right-hand side of my face as normal. The left-hand side was untouched, not even wetted. The Tabac (tallow) stick was applied to both sides of my face and then face lathered as normal. I did have a preconceived opinion of what this shave would be like. I expected that the whiskers on the non-preped side would be noticeably harder to cut. I was surprised with what I actually discovered.

1st Pass (N-S)
The forced needed to cut my whiskers was about the same on both sides of my face. What was most noticeable was that the blade's edge was very "sticky" on the non-preped side of my face, almost like I had no lather applied. When rinsing at the end of this pass, I noticed no difference in shave closeness.​
​
2nd Pass (nose to ear + fool's pass)
Again no difference in required whisker-cutting force or closeness. The lack of slickness over the skin was still there on the non-preped side but not as pronounced.​
​
3rd pass (ear to nose)
Still no difference in required whisker-cutting force or closeness. The lack of slickness over the skin was basically not noticeable between both sides.​

Overall I have so far found that my normal pre-shave preparation does not appear the noticeably make the whiskers easy to cut. It does however, provide for a smoother shave.

Tomorrow I will try the same but prep the left-hand side of my face rather than the right.
 
On Tuesday 09 April I repeated this experiment but swapped the LH side of my face for the RH side. The results were the same..

In conclusive results were that my pre-shave routine does not make the cutting of whiskers any easier or the shave closer. The only difference that i found was that the edge's glide over my skin was smoother with my pre-shave routine.

I would be interested in hearing of anyone else trying this and the results that they observed.
 
rbscebu said:
On Tuesday 09 April I repeated this experiment but swapped the LH side of my face for the RH side. The results were the same..

In conclusive results were that my pre-shave routine does not make the cutting of whiskers any easier or the shave closer. The only difference that i found was that the edge's glide over my skin was smoother with my pre-shave routine.

I would be interested in hearing of anyone else trying this and the results that they observed.
Click to expand...
Interesting results.
With this information will you continue to prepare or not?

Although I still have your straight from your first PIF, the below is in regards to DE.
I prepare via a warm shower. I feel this makes a considerable difference to no preparation at all. If I do no prep I feel considerable tugging and will end up with some cuts.
 
Yes, many variants and ways at the end of the day it's what suits you!! At 68 my routine since I began DE shaving and now Kamisori "daily" has always been pre shower, warm water wash with Pears, while brush soaking in warm water, lather and enjoy :)
 
My pre-shave preparation is designed for maximum efficiency with minimal effort. I start by filling the sink with hot water and splashing my face a few times until it’s thoroughly wet. This helps to soften the hair and prepare the skin for shaving.

Next, I apply the shaving cream. I’ve found that the properties of the shaving cream can mimic those of a regular soap wash, effectively cleaning the skin. However, it’s important to note that both soap and shaving cream can strip the skin of its natural oils. This can leave the skin feeling dry and tight after shaving.

To counteract this, I always make sure to moisturize post-shave. This helps to replenish any lost moisture and leaves my skin feeling soft and smooth. Remember, a good shave is not just about the act itself, but also about how you care for your skin afterwards
 
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