I thought hot towel shaves were a gimmick until a guy in Reno fell asleep in my chair | Barbers - Freelance Forum - The Community for Independent Professionals
That line about a guy falling asleep in your chair is the whole thing right there. I've been on both sides of it, getting shaved and giving shaves, and the second a dude goes limp you know the towel was right. Here's the stuff nobody tells you starting out: get the towel hot but not so hot you cook him, wring it out good so it doesn't drip, and lay it on so it covers the whole beard area plus a little past the jaw. Leave it on a full minute, don't rush it, that's what softens the hair and opens the pores. Do a second towel after the first pass too, it feels great and it lets you check your work before you go back over anything. And keep your razor warm, cold steel on a warm face wakes them right up. Once you get the towel and the razor temp down, people will snooze on you every time and that's how you know you did it right.