Some of you may remember my post before about my first attempt shaving with my new Dovo razor. The edge was actually slightly dull and poorly honed. The tip was actually at a rather aggressive angle as well. I went through and reset the bevel on my 6k stone I purchased when things weren't working for me. I had also bought a chinese Guangxi 12k stone at the same time but unfortunately mine fell under the category of being overly aggressive to my blade. It actually killed the polished edge. I went back to the 6K and re-honed it. The blade didn't pass the HHT but it was pretty sharp. I set it about 60 laps across my strop and tried a few passes with it on my face. MUCH better than when I first bought it, if you can believe that, but still not sharp enough for a full shave.

Now here is where my question is. I can't afford the 12K+ stones. They are way too much for my current budget. But I did some research and saw that pasted strops can come close if not equivalent, (and sometimes surpass stone for some experienced users) so I bought a new strop with premium cloth and a green crayon from SRD. OK well here is my question. Is it better to paste leather or cloth, and how exactly do I use the green paste crayon? I figure these are things I should know before they arrive so I have a decent idea of what needs to be done. I still have my leather and I will have a new one that I plan on using as my final strop. (black Latigo i believe... can't remember right now)

Also, storing your blade: does baby oil work well for protecting the blade? Or should I use the WD-40 or something else? Baby oil seems to be working thus far.

(note: I did read the sticky in stropping section about pasting your strop so I do know less is more.)