Serious question about that 'cold razor' technique I kept ignoring

I spent six months telling this older barber at my shop his cold razor method was just hype. Then last week I tried it on a walk-in with really coarse hair and the result was actually smoother than anything I'd done with hot lather. He said 'the heat seals the hair, cold opens it up' and I thought he was messing with me. But now I'm wondering how many other old school tricks I've been writing off without trying. Any of you guys have a technique you dismissed that turned out to be real?

3 comments

3 Comments

adam_baker2d ago

Man I was the exact same way with a barber named Sal at my shop. He kept telling me to use witch hazel after a shave and I laughed it off for like a year. Finally tried it on a guy with sensitive skin and the redness was gone in minutes. Now I keep a bottle on my station every day. The cold razor thing though... I've been using warm water my whole career and never thought twice about it. Gonna give it a shot on my next coarse hair client and see if it's really that different.

murray.robert2d ago

Hold on, you're really telling me cold water on the razor makes a difference? I've been doing this for close to fifteen years now and I've always been team hot water. I figure the heat opens everything up and softens the hair, makes the blade glide easier. If I used a cold blade on a guy with a thick beard, I'd be worried it'd just pull and tug and make things worse. I've heard a few people swear by it but I've never seen the science, seems like one of those old barber tales to me.

jenny_lane122d ago

Friend of mine runs a shop in Austin, he swore by the cold razor method for years. He told me about this one guy with a thick beard who always left his place red and irritated. My friend finally talked him into letting him use cold water instead of hot on the razor. Said the guy almost jumped out of the chair when he felt the cold blade, but after the shave his skin looked way calmer than usual. @adam_baker is right to try it, the difference can be pretty big with the right client. My friend still uses warm water for himself but keeps a cold rinse ready for customers with sensitive spots.