From Skin Fins to Pearl Necklace Polymers
Many of us take for granted how close our razor shaves without tearing our skin to shreds – but a huge amount of engineering and technology goes on behind the scenes.
From the angle of the blades to their increasing number, and so-called ‘skin fins’ designed to pull the skin taut, there is a lot of hidden science inside your daily routine.
Now a principal scientist from Gillette has told MailOnline why they are shaped the way they are, why the number of blades is so important and what the lubricants bars, or ‘lubebars’ are really made of.
Dr Kristina Vanoosthuyze has worked in the Gillette Shaving Technology area at the Innovation Centre in Reading for the past ten years.
She told MailOnline the size and shape of a razor’s cartridge, and each of its components undergoes shave tests by thousands of men to make the blades, fins, and lubrication bar work perfectly together.
The ‘fins’ are found in the front area of the razor cartridge, also known as the guard.
‘These elastomeric fins gently stretch the skin before the blade, for better shaving comfort, by causing a gentle form of tension or friction with the skin,’ Dr Vanoosthuyze said.
Beard hairs are, on average, a tenth of a millimetre in diameter. When dry, the hair is around 130 microns but when hydrated it expands to almost 150 microns.
Moistening increases the surface area that the blades can cut through, and when hydrated, skin is plumper, which reveals more of the hair.
When hydrated, skin is also tighter.
This exposes more of the hair’s surface area to the blade and as a result, Dr Vanoosthuyze recommends showering before shaving – and not the other way round.
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