Thread: I dropped my razor...

Well, I've been shaving with a straight razor since May 2009 and I dropped my straight in October 2009. I dropped my straight while I was stropping it one early morning. After a few cuss words I finished stropping it. When I shaved with it I was very careful to not scratch my face with the nick. It also left a few scratch marks on my strop.

The reason I dropped is was because it just simply slipped out of my hands while I was in the middle of a stroke on the strop. My hands are so dry in the morning; it is just so hard to grip anything with them.

So I was wondering if anybody had any tips on getting more grip on the razor. I have tried licking my hands before handling the razor, but this loses its "gripping power" pretty fast. I have been thinking that maybe some moisturizing lotion would help with the gripping of the straight razor. But I am afraid that the lotion might gum up the razor. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Also, is my razor ruined forever? I can barely see the nick, I wouldn't have noticed the nick if I hadn't specifically looked for it. It is located on the toe of the edge. I am almost sure that Lynn will be able to repair it. And does repairing a razor cost more than the $20 standard for just sharpening it?

Thanks much.

It doesn't sound like it's destroyed just a little nick. Send it to someone like Lynn or any other reputable person and they can fix something like that straight away.

As for the dry hands lotion will probably make your hands slick, something you don't want for sure. Go buy some disposable latex gloves for awhile.

To cure the dry hands here's the trick. Go to Target and get cotton "Moisturizing" gloves in the womens cosmetic department. Before you go to bed slap as much quality lotion on as you can imagine then put the gloves on over them. It take take three / four days of this to cure your hands. I work for the US Post Office and used to do this when I carried mail outdoors.

That's interesting, I need to check out those gloves. Thanks DistortedPenguin.

Use the TPT all over your hands to create traction maybe?

Really I can't imagine how dry your hands must be to not be able to grip something like a razor. I mean even if your hand had one of the lowest friction ratio's on earth the amount of pressure the hand can exert versus the weight of a razor should make gripping one easy. Are you trying to do some overly complex flip when you change direction where you aren't able to maintain pressure? That's the only scenario I can see dropping a razor during stropping. I'd suggest you slow down and just do a simple flip, even if you have to pause every time to do it.

If that isn't the problem, then maybe try some of the "cheating" grip improvers that Pro Football players (American Football) are banned from using? Not sure if those would damage a razor. I think they're mostly just thinned down saps and synthetic compounds similar to saps.

As mentioned, get it honed. It doesn't sound major, but needs attention.
Be careful putting anything on your hands that might make them slippery. Gumming up the razor would be the least of your worries. It might be that you have to slow down a little to ensure you don't let it slip again.

If you can separate the blade from the handle I would try 3M rubberized undercoating, that is if you are not worried about looks and if it is not an ivory handle or something of that sort. I use this stuff on alot of the tools in my garage to avoid the same problem pretty much. I will say that if you have a quality wood or ivory handle this will absolutely ruin it. Hope this helps

Ben gave you good advice. SLOW DOWN! Stropping does not have to be fast. Make sure your hands, and the razor, are dry.

Ray

Yes, I guess slowing down would help. I had always noticed that I was getting less and less grip for every time I switched directions. Thank you so much for all the tips. By the way, what is "TPT"?

TPT is the Thumb Pad Test - for testing sharpness. Details here.

Not sure if it would damage the metal, or scales for that matter, but you might try "Tacky Finger" that tellers and people sorting papers use to make their fingers less slippery. If you are concerned about damage to the blade or scales you might try those little finger tip covers with the little bumps on them that are used for a "Tacky Finger" substitute. You can get either from office supply stores.