From the Mailbag: Weishi-adjustable Settings?

A reader asked a question regarding my use of the Weishi Adjustable DE:

Doug, I finally moved up from a setting of 4 to 5. What settings do you find yourself using the most?

These days, I generally do a variation on a three-pass shave using different razor settings for each pass.

The first pass is generally done with downward strokes irrespective of beard grain. Depending on the brand of blade and its point in its overall life cycle, I generally set the razor somewhere in the 2 to 3 range.

In the second pass, I pay more attention to beard grain, and generally shave against it. For this pass I typically increment the razor up a notch, so it would be set in the 3 to 4 range. I will usually employ simple as well as more complex razor strokes including J-hooking and skewed (where the blade edge is not perpendicular to the stroke direction) techniques.

For my final full pass, I again increment the razor one unit more aggressive, and again shave against the grain. Like the second pass, I will use varied stroking technique combined with the slightly more aggressive razor setting to try to "sneak up" on a very close shave, without crossing the line, getting too aggressive, and thereby injuring my delicate dermis.

I will also usually add some water to my face after the third pass and take some clean-up strokes -- usually without further changing the razor setting, but this may vary depending on the factors and quality of the shave to this point.

Thanks for asking, and happy shaving!