I grew my first beard when I went to Uni at 18 - it looked pretty ratty. Shaving for a few weeks then growing it again helps thicken it up each time. I have now had one almost continously for nearly 30 years - I have shaved it off about 3 or 4 times to check there is still a face under there but as I have the shaving skills of Norman Gunston it always comes back pretty quickly. I agree there is no point in shaving some bits of it - the whole idea is to have more time in bed in the morning. I do shave for about 5mm around my nose when going diving - otherwise my mask leaks.