Older guys who grew up before the manscaping era: do you shave or trim now, and why?

[Janvier75]

I’m curious to hear from older men who grew up in the pre-manscaping days, before trimming or shaving pubes became a thing. Do you shave or trim now? If so, what made you start? Especially since we came from a time when guys just let it all grow naturally.

I’ll share a bit about myself: I was born in the early ’70s, a teenager in the late ’80s, and spent my 20s mostly in the ’90s. Back then, pubes were king—full bushes were the norm. Honestly, I never thought about shaving or trimming because no one did. Getting pubes was like a rite of passage. Every young guy looked forward to them, and once you got them, you just kept them. It wasn’t even a topic of conversation; it was just how it was.

Then suddenly, in the late ’90s and 2000s, this idea started creeping in that being hairy down there wasn’t “right” or that it looked bad. And once people started shaving or trimming, it’s like the expectation shifted. It seems like you couldn’t appreciate the full bush anymore because it wasn’t what most people wanted to see.

So I’m wondering: for those of us who grew up in that era, what made some of us start trimming or shaving? Was it to look cool? To look younger? To make your dick look bigger? Did sexual partners start expecting it? Or did you find it was more comfortable or better in some way? I’d love to hear your thoughts and experiences.

 

[cockydude2018]

I would guess it had to start with the Neanderthal who decided his dick looked bigger when he trimmed around his shaft. But seriously, I think that’s how it began (except without the Neanderthal )

There was a straight guy in the office (Atlanta) who shared all kinds of personal and sexy stuff with me, and he out of the blue said he shaved his balls because they felt better smooth. This was in the 90s, and def before manscaping was a thing.

 

[art]

I had a girlfriend who wondered what I'd look like shaved. (I'm moderately hairy). I was willing. She shaved me, and gave me a buzzcut on my head. Then she decided she preferred me with a bit of hair. It took a few months to grow back.

 

[dikje1]

I get my back waxed and occasionally trim my balls. I do it for me...I just like the way my back looks, and the way my balls feel. The rest is all natural.

 

[Tony56]

"I’ll share a bit about myself: I was born in the early ’70s, a teenager in the late ’80s, and spent my 20s mostly in the ’90s. Back then, pubes were king—full bushes were the norm. Honestly, I never thought about shaving or trimming because no one did. Getting pubes was like a rite of passage. Every young guy looked forward to them, and once you got them, you just kept them. It wasn’t even a topic of conversation; it was just how it was."

Twenty years older than you but it was the same way back in my day. Getting pubic hair was a rite of passage and shaving them was not even a thought. We showered at the YMCA and showered after PE in school and it would have been quite odd to see someone with shaved pubic hair.

 

[JTNZ]

I wax my balls. Can't remember why I did it the first time - possibly just out of curiosity. But OMG, what a feeling! They are so soft, supple, sensitive with no hair under the skin! Shaving is good but waxing is better!
I wax or sometimes shave/trim the rest. The regrowth hair around the base of my cock is very prickly so I tend to keep that trimmed only just long enough to avoid the prickles.
I love the look and the sensitivity.
My wife has no interest in that part of my body so I do it all for my own satisfaction.

 

[fuzzyis]

I too am basically twenty years older, and looked forward to puberty and hair. But when I became really sexually active, condoms were expected for birth control. And it was extremely painful rolling a condom over the hairs on my shaft....Both on and off.
Then when AIDS first became a concern, you weren't getting anything without a condom, so I made it a regular part of my grooming to keep my shaft hair free, with a little extra trimming. Because my partners liked it. Fellatio was a lot more enjoyable to them with less hair in the way, and trimming my balls seemed to invite more attention.
My pubic hair grows quite long, and it seems that it was cooler and less prone to rashes if I kept it trimmed some back then, I was also wearing tighty whities all the time then...Which didn't help much either...Not trimmed too short, just more like what I assumed an average bush looked like.
My hairs can get a little prickly as they grow out too, and I find that when I'm able to go balls deep, that some women enjoy a little extra stimulation from those hairs brushing their clitoris.....But then again, I've recently learned that the effect of balls deep might be from size...Not external stimulation...
I always considered myself average sized at best. But that's not the description I receive here.

 

[JayPR]

I was around when pubes were the norm too. I started college in ‘98, and the first guy I remember shaving down there was my roommate at the time. He did it cuz he thought it was cool, and according to him, it was influenced by porn, since in the late 90s, you started seeing more guys shaved in those movies. But in real life, the majority of guys were still rocking the bush. I guess porn, along with grooming product marketing, really pushed the trend. Do you remember the whole metrosexual thing? Yep, every grooming expert was telling us to get rid of body hair.

I tried it once in my 20s, mostly because it was becoming the cool thing to do, and honestly, I hated it. Rash and itchy skin, plus my shaved groin area looked odd. But it was trendy and there was some social pressure. I still remember a guy I dated apologizing for not trimming his pubes the first time we had sex, which says a lot about how the expectation shifted. Plus, you started seeing more and more guys shaved or trimmed in locker rooms, and it felt like something you had to do too.

In conclusion, I don’t shave now, but I trim once in a while. I leave enough hair to keep it looking natural, just controlled. I also shave my shaft and sometimes my balls. At least pubes seem to be making a comeback, and more guys are embracing them again. There’s hope!

 

[nygreenmachine]

I was around when pubes were the norm too. I started college in ‘98, and the first guy I remember shaving down there was my roommate at the time. He did it cuz he thought it was cool, and according to him, it was influenced by porn, since in the late 90s, you started seeing more guys shaved in those movies. But in real life, the majority of guys were still rocking the bush. I guess porn, along with grooming product marketing, really pushed the trend. Do you remember the whole metrosexual thing? Yep, every grooming expert was telling us to get rid of body hair.

I tried it once in my 20s, mostly because it was becoming the cool thing to do, and honestly, I hated it. Rash and itchy skin, plus my shaved groin area looked odd. But it was trendy and there was some social pressure. I still remember a guy I dated apologizing for not trimming his pubes the first time we had sex, which says a lot about how the expectation shifted. Plus, you started seeing more and more guys shaved or trimmed in locker rooms, and it felt like something you had to do too.

In conclusion, I don’t shave now, but I trim once in a while. I leave enough hair to keep it looking natural, just controlled. I also shave my shaft and sometimes my balls. At least pubes seem to be making a comeback, and more guys are embracing them again. There’s hope!

similar to me. Started shaving in early 2000s when my friend told me he did and it made him look bigger.

Shaved everything bald for like 15 years. Then stopped for a bit during pandemic because I got lazy and kept letting it grow to see how long it would get. I trimmed up like 2 years ago, but haven't trimmed or shaved since so my bush is huge and my balls are so hairy.

 

[sminty2000]

Trimmed in my early 20s (late 90s/early 2000s), but haven’t in over 20 years, no trim, no shaving. I’m curious about these manscaping products but just basically been rocking full bush. I’m 45 btw.

 

[Nick56]

I keep my ass, balls and cock clean shaved except for a small trimmed landing strip. I love the way it feels and looks, it's great for cock and ball rings great for fallacious, wife loves it too. Started shaving 30+ years ago it was really unusual in those days currently 68

 

[Janvier75]

Trimmed in my early 20s (late 90s/early 2000s), but haven’t in over 20 years, no trim, no shaving. I’m curious about these manscaping products but just basically been rocking full bush. I’m 45 btw.

I feel you. It feels good not to worry about shaving or trimming. I tried trimming back in the day, but it wasn’t for me. I always liked my bush and loved how other men looked naturally. Over time, with this trend, men just added another grooming routine to the list. For me, shaving my face and trimming my nose and ears is enough work. Maybe I am just lazy.

We were so free back then. I miss the days when having pubes was the standard look, something we were all proud of, without feeling odd or guilty about it. Nobody complained during sex, neither the ladies nor the guys. Honestly, I also liked it when women had pubic hair.

 

[sminty2000]

I feel you. It feels good not to worry about shaving or trimming. I tried trimming back in the day, but it wasn’t for me. I always liked my bush and loved how other men looked naturally. Over time, with this trend, men just added another grooming routine to the list. For me, shaving my face and trimming my nose and ears is enough work. Maybe I am just lazy.

We were so free back then. I miss the days when having pubes was the standard look, something we were all proud of, without feeling odd or guilty about it. Nobody complained during sex, neither the ladies nor the guys. Honestly, I also liked it when women had pubic hair.

I agree, absolutely love women w/ full pubes!

 

[hung_8x6]

I was born in the early 70s and went through puberty in the 80s. I agree that growing pubic hair was a rite of passage and I was always looking forward to it. I have always kept my full and natural bush, no shaving or trimming ever. I keep myself clean down there. Never once have I been turned down for oral sex or anything else because of my bush. If my partner got a pube in their mouth, they simply took it out. I've never been asked to shave or trim my pubic hair, and honestly I think most of the guys I have been intimate with appreciate the masculinity of having a full bush, even if they shave or trim.

 

[dikje1]

I get my back waxed and occasionally trim my balls. I do it for me...I just like the way my back looks, and the way my balls feel. The rest is all natural.

Yesterday I got my balls waxed for the first time. Wow...they feel so freakin' awesome. It's difficult keeping my hands off them now. lol

 

[sdbg]

Hairy guy here born in 1951. Had the barber buzz cut my head since the late '70s. A lady from work began to cut my hair in the '80s. She saw how hairy my back was and asked if I ever trimmed it. I said "No, but I would like to see what it feels like." She obliged and used the clippers to get rid of all the hair. It felt great! That was 1985 when I lived in Tempe, AZ where it is very hot in the summer. My new female friend at my apartment complex saw me at the pool and told me that my back looked great. She became one of my best friends, told me to buy a pair of clippers and she would do my back. We moved to San Diego together, and to this day, she still runs the clippers over my back each month. Getting rid of the back hair eliminates the hair pulling from my shirts, and it feels much better in the summer.

Once I had my own pair of clippers, I experimented with trimming (not shaving) the excessive hair all over my body just before the hot weather. As an athletic guy, less hair was great when working out and getting sweaty. One time I used the clippers without a guard and shaved my entire crotch. I loved how it felt when I ran 10Ks. My boyfriend was surprised the next time we hooked up to see me hairless. It was a novelty, yet it took time and patience to shave without getting cut. I shaved the crotch 2 or 3 times each summer and that was all I felt like doing.

Fast forward to 2010. I began going to a dermatologist every 6 months. As hairy as I am, my female friend always trims my back prior to my full body exam. I buzz the rest of my body to allow the doctor the best view of my skin. It is tedious to run the clippers over my entire body, but it feels great to get rid of all of the hair. Last Christmas, my female friend bought me a Manscaped groomer. It works much better for the crotch than regular clippers. I have only tried it on my dick and balls one time, and it does not give me nicks or cuts.

I don't really care about the hair in my crotch so much. The hair on my back bothers me more than any other hair. I'm grateful that my friend buzzes it for me.

 

[art]

I agree, absolutely love women w/ full pubes!

I love eating out a woman with a full bush. Maybe that's because that's how I learned to do it.

 

[louparis10]

Here born end of 1958. Probably influenced by porn in early 1990's, starting in my 30's, I regularly get my arse waxed, shave my balls and trim my pubic hair, torso and legs.

 

[garcon29]

Growing up in the 60s, I, along with every other guy, rocked the bush. Mine was really thick and long. One friend asked me how long it was and I measured the longest strands of hair at about 4.5 inches. I first tried trimming when I noticed that guys who were naturally less hairy showed off more of their assets. I edited my pubes, trying to make it still look natural and liked the appearance. I also cut back to the skin right around the base of my cock so the hairs wouldn't get caught in condoms - a big turn-off!

Through the years, I have tried the shaved look, first when I had to do it for a vasectomy. I loved the feel when it was fresh, but not so much when it started to grow back and was stubbly. So I haven't made it a regular thing - more for novelty from time to time. And once in a while I would shave just my balls - also for the novelty and the increased sensation.

Most of the time, in more recent decades, I have trimmed it back to about an inch in length on a semi-regular basis. That way it avoids getting caught between my glans and what is left of my foreskin when I am soft - which pulls and hurts.

I am not influenced that much by the current fads but more by what I like in the feel and looks.

 

[rbi99]

Never gave manscaping a thought before coming on here. Now I keep my shaft, balls and crack shaved, as well as shaving my pubes back about an inch or so from the base of my dick. The rest of my pubes I leave at nearly full length, but I do trim them so that the longest hairs are the same length.