Ok - I'm not fully versed enough to set up an actual poll here, but I am curious to here a bit on how people handle blade maintenance. Now, I know that there is a big variance and "your mileage may vary" here with all sorts of variables to play into. But, here's what I'm curious about.


  1. Average number of shaves with a razor before stropping isn't good enough? Or, do you have a system (once a month or something)?
  2. Feel is very subjective, but is there any guide you use to say "this edge needs to be refreshed!"
  3. Refresh cycle, equipment (i.e., what do you use to refresh a blade, how long does that work, when do you actually pull out stones, etc.)


Part of my curiosity here is also based on what I need to get next. I've been going straight for 7 shaves so far, and have been getting great results. So, I haven't lost my honed edge yet and I've had one bad stropping session and could sort of tell that it didn't quite feel right, but the day after I settled in my stropping routine and seemed to work. I'm thinking about picking up a 4-sided paddle strop (Whipped Dog) to use for the abrasives when that time comes, but just looking to hear how other people approach it and get some feedback so I can plan out next steps.

My initial thoughts would be paddle strop with abrasives would be the first level when the blade needs to be refreshed, and then maybe a high grit stone when the abrasives don't quite work, and then resetting the blade/bevel totally with a complete job?