Thread: I use pastes...

OK, I'll admit it. I am a paste user.

I tried to kick the habit the last few weeks, but what can I say...I'm weak

I had read all about how using pastes is considered as "using a crutch". I also had taken a look under the scope at a number of my edges (some of which can be seen in this thread...) , and I got all compulsive about having some rounding going on with my use of pastes on my beloved hand-crafted (using a nice flat Levi canvas belt from Sears $8.95) canvas pasted strops. My theory being that I should work to get a nice linear geometry to my edge for some reason or other

So I dilligently set about resetting the bevels (some of these pics are in that thread as well), and honing them up as best I could with my diamond lapping film array- 9um, 6um, 3um, 1um, 0.5um, 0.1um with a precision granite plate. I also made a balsa chrome ox paddle strop and shaved away. However, I recently realized that my shaves were pretty good, but I had to do a lot more blade buffing to get a really close BBS shave, and it wasn't quite as comfortable as it had been.

So, I said "screwit, I'm going back to the strops/pastes!". Now then, my edges off the films were pretty good, and they passed the HHT fine. But after a gave the razors a going over with my pasted hanging canvas strops: one side-Dovo red paste (rumored to be ~3um), 1um diamond paste , and the last one is the crayon style chrome ox. At this point the edge is not just HHT, but dropping the hairs without any sound or resistance.

I just finished my first shave off of the pastes in a coupe of weeks, and it was/is noticeable closer, smoother, less irritation, and required less passes than previously. Really, much, much better.

Most of the pics I post of egdes are all at a standardized 200x, but that is just for the sake of comparrision. I can zoom in all the way up to 1000x on that scope, and at 500-1000x there was a fair bit of micro-jaggedness to the lapping film/paddle strop edge that is not there at all after I go through my paste routine.

Another thing that I saw, is there is a polarizer filter I can use that is very effective at showed deformation/curvature along the edge. And if I honed the razor too much on the lapping films, the edge definitely got to be too fine. I could see the very edge start to get wavy, apparently very thin. I found that leaving it at about the 1um level was about the best balance of edge refinement vs. too fine an edge.

With the pasted strops, I can use the same filter, and it will show that yes, the edge is getting a bit rounded over, but it remains straight and smooth, and from the HHT is actually even much sharper.

The balsa paddle strop didn't get me to this place either, I had to revert to my hanging canvas strops.

So, not only am I a paste user, but I do it on hanging strops, thereby rounding my edge geometry, and all that stuff that sounds disastrous...

And it gives me a fantastic shave!

I have to admit I finish off with Peeks metal polish on 3 sheets of newspaper that I tape to my coticule box lid. Just a tiny bit of it spread very sparsly.
After I've done about 15 laps, the bevel is like a mirror. I got a closer shave last night with a Fontain 6/8+ than I have had before.
The only edges I've used that have been this good at removing hair are ones honed by Blueprinciple, a rather good UK hone pro.
I'm off to France tomorrow (Euro-Disney), I'm taking my 5/8 Kropp that I have honed with metal polish, it cuts arm hairs without moving them!
I'd love to know what grit size Peeks is, I doubt the manufacturer has even bothered to find out as it is not a lapping paste.

I have resorted, also, to using pastes with all of my hone jobs. The edges seem better. - even though my finisher is a Nakayama. I applied Chromium Oxide to a "Genuine Linen" strop of Tony Miller's and I haven't looked back. I love it, - and I love the shaves it produces. I will do anywhere from 8 to 25 laps on the pasted strop at the end of my honing process, depending on the quality of the edge. I feel if it's there (the pasted strop), and it improves the shave, so what if the edges are a bit more delicate!

If I were to hone a razor for someone else, though, and they did not live close by, then I probably wouldn't use the pasted stop as part of the honing process, but I would certainly suggest to them that they use it for their "touch ups".

Steve

I swore of pastes in that one thread of JJ's thread and never looked back.

There is a problem with using pastes???????????????When did that happen??? I feel so left out sometimes

Hmmmmm maybe there is a problem with the incorrect use of pastes ???

I don't think there is a problem. My choice is philosophical in nature.

Originally Posted by kevint

I don't think there is a problem. My choice is philosophical in nature.

No offense intended Kevin,
I was kinda joking around...
(Hmmm maybe we need to have dwesell add a emote for that)

joking around; me too-

That's great Craig!

All that matters is that you find your own preferred style, and if that's paste, then by all means paste away!

(that just leaves more stones for us archae-philes )

I personally would not be without my green paste.