I have been DE shaving for 4 months after having used electric razors for the last 30 years or so. After reading all the great information on the forum, I decided to break out my Dad’s King straight and give it a try. I sent it off to a reputable company for restoration, scale replacement, and honing. It came back better than I had expected.


I watched all the videos, tutorials, and Lynn’s DVD (multiple times) so I thought it was about time. So this morning I gave it a try on my cheeks only. This was also my first time using Tabac soap, which turns out to be the slickest product I have used to date. Having read the advice to not strop the first time a razor came back from honing so I could know what a sharp razor is, I did not strop. However, even using the Tabac, the razor seemed to really tug. I got a very close shave (WTG only) with no nicks or cuts, but it tugged on both cheeks. I was very careful to keep the blade within on spine’s with of my skin. I was pretty slow with the blade and used short strokes with almost no pressure. After the shave, I dried the blade and scales; stropped 20 passes on linen and 30 on leather. I will strop 50 passes on leather prior to next use.


My question; have I destroyed the honing job or can I strop prior to the next shave and bring it back; or is it just my technique? Or...is there really a problem and I am just getting a lot of feedback from the razor? I did have two days growth.