Shaving passes

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Revision as of 09:50, 23 February 2009 by Deepweeds (talk | contribs) (Changed "acronym" to "abbreviation" where appropriate.)
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Facial hair growth is like a thumb print, no ones grows exactly the same. Getting to know the growth of your hair will enable you to get the best possible shave. When starting out, there is a generic ‘order’ in which you can attempt to make your passes. This helps if you’re just getting started and a bit unsure where to begin. Once you develop an understanding of the growth of your hair, you will develop what suits best for you. The numbers state which order and the arrows depict what direction to shave in.

Shaving "passes" explained

A "pass" refers to a shave that covers each bewhiskered part of the face and neck once. A shaver may make more than one pass when shaving. A pass may be with the direction that the hairs grow ("with the grain," or WTG), across the direction of hair growth ("across the grain," or XTG), or against the direction of hair growth ("against the grain," or ATG).

If only part of the face is shaved, this is a "partial pass." A shaver may, for example, make a "partial ATG pass" on a troublesome part of the neck. Of course, one may speak casually of a "pass" when a partial pass is meant: "This morning I shaved WTG and XTG, then took a ATG pass at my upper lip and got it BBS!"

WTG - The with the grain pass

"WTG" is an abbreviation that stands for "with the grain." It refers to a shaving pass in which one shaves in the same direction that the hair grows. A WTG pass can be compared with a pass that is XTG ("across the grain" or direction of hair growth) or ATG ("against the grain" or direction of hair growth).

XTG - The across the grain pass

"XTG" is an abbreviation that stands for "across the grain." It refers to a shaving pass in which one shaves in a direction perpendicular to that in which the hair grows. For example, if the hair grows "north-to-south," then an XTG pass may shave "east-to-west" or "west-to-east." An XTG pass can be compared with a pass that is WTG ("with the grain" or direction of hair growth) or ATG ("against the grain" or direction of hair growth).

Different kinds of passes are commonly combined into a multiple pass shaving technique. Shaving different kinds of passes comfortably can demand a finer understanding of cutting angles.

ATG - The against the grain pass

"ATG" is an abbeviation that stands for "against the grain." It refers to a shaving pass in which one shaves in a direction opposite that in which the hair grows. For example, if the hair grows "north-to-south," then an ATG pass will shave "south-to-north." An ATG pass can be compared with a pass that is WTG ("with the grain" or direction of hair growth) or XTG ("across the grain" or direction of hair growth).

Combining different passes

Different kinds of passes are commonly combined into a multiple pass shaving technique. Shaving different kinds of passes comfortably can demand a finer understanding of cutting angles.