Thread: keeping it keen

Eventually a pasted strop will round out the bevel (IMO) causing the razor to need honing more frequently. I will use a pasted strop to bring out the best in an edge, once that is accomplished, the pasted strop is no longer necessary. Good stropping will maintain the edge until a barber hone is needed, I may use the pasted strop after using the barber hone. IMO there may be a lot of people using pasted strops unnecessarily or to cover up poor technique, or just for the fun of it. Now if youll excuse me Im going to run and hide before the stone throwing begins.

Originally Posted by nun2sharp

IMO there may be a lot of people using pasted strops unnecessarily or to cover up poor technique, or just for the fun of it.

A big +1 to that. I can testify from my personal experience that you can maintain a shave-ready razor with a barbers hone or coticule. I've had less success with a Chinese 12K and I even tried pastes for a while. I gave up the pastes because, IMO, the edge doesn't last as long and I could get just as good results from a coticule (or barbers hone) that last longer.

Originally Posted by Chimensch

A big +1 to that. I can testify from my personal experience that you can maintain a shave-ready razor with a barbers hone or coticule. I've had less success with a Chinese 12K and I even tried pastes for a while. I gave up the pastes because, IMO, the edge doesn't last as long and I could get just as good results from a coticule (or barbers hone) that last longer.

+1 on that, you have my respect.

As we are finding out, it seems that you really can maintain your razor on a lot of stones including, Norton, Naniwa, Shapton, Coticule, Escher, Thuringen, Nakayama, Chinese, Barber Hones and possibly a few others.

It will really boil down to personal preference. Nothing wrong with using pastes to refresh a razor and prolong the need for honing. Again a personal preference thing. I have had great success with the .5 diamond spray, paste and chromium oxide. I have also enjoyed using a black boron oxide too followed by chromium oxide on razors that were close to bring them to poifect.

Lynn