Thread: After reading all the tutorials i have aa question about straight razor shaving...

You may want to consider avoiding hanging strops in the beginning and go with a paddle as there's less chance of rolling the edge from insufficient strop tension. You also can use a rolled up newspaper for practice.

I've also heard that many beginners make the mistake of stropping too fast, when they don't have the technique quite right. I plan on going slow at first, making sure I have the right pressure and that the blade is flat.

Originally Posted by cwrighta70

I've also heard that many beginners make the mistake of stropping too fast, when they don't have the technique quite right. I plan on going slow at first, making sure I have the right pressure and that the blade is flat.

I found it very useful to have an old ebay razor to practice stropping on. A bad stop gives a bad shave (and may well ruin the edge, from what I hear), but I also found that you can very much feel when you are stropping correctly (And so do not need to shave with the razor in order to know if you have done it correctly). I also knew I should go slow, but tended to speed up without noticing. It's like riding a bike. When you know how to do it, you can do it correctly, almost unconciously, but it takes a lot of concentration in the beginning.

One way to help improve your stropping technique is to concentrate on lifting the edge in the last couple of inches of the stroke rather than at the end.Then begin the reverse stroke as you're flipping the blade over so that the edge contacts the strop in the first couple of inches of travel. This can help develop a smooth back and forth motion.