Thread: Wrist ache from stropping

Hey guys,

My wrist has been acheing from stropping for the past 4-5 days. How can I prevent this, or does it just need to build up. I am pretty young so something must be wrong.

Thanks
Jared

Your wrist shouldn't be moving, so most of us wouldn't know about the problem.

My guess would be that you're tense, causing irritation to the tendons/nerves. When you strop you should be nice and relaxed so that all the joints can smoothly flow through the motion... being tense will result in discomfort and uneven stropping.

Try taking your razor to the strop and really pay attention to where you might be holding tension. When you notice a 'layer', just take a deep breathe and do *nothing* about it. The goal is not to 'stop' tension but to release the habit of tension... inhibit the process.

Good luck!

My wrist is still I think it is the flip that is causeing the problem. I am pretty tense I"ll try to relax more like you said. I actually have a swollen knot on my wrist, that I didnt notice before today. I'll let that heal up and try some more.

BKratchmer's post reminded me of my instructors when I was learning to skydive - they kept saying that you need to relax in freefall - if your muscles are tense its harder to control your body position - boy was that counter intuitive - relax your muscles in a 120 mile per hour breeze (yeh thats gunna work runs through your mind)

But it does - there will come a "click" moment where your muscles and arm\hand motion will come together.

If you have inflamed your wrist - I would suggest you wait a good few days after you "think" its okay before you start back with repetitive actions like stropping - better to let it be fully healed then chance inflaming it again too soon.

A knot in your wrist? I think BKratchmer is right. That's like super tense. I don't know what you do to relax (yoga, music, hot shower, etc.) but just before you strop would be a good time to practice it.

Wow ! Stropping requires such a light touch. I can't imagine it causing stress but maybe the action is triggering previous injuries or such.

How many laps have you done total this week? I have developed a tired wrist when I had to strop 5 razors in a row on linen, CroOx and leather, 50 laps each. In my case, it is sometimes just too much stropping in one day!

Hey there.

First of all, if your wrist hurts, do NOT strop again until the pain is entirely gone. I can tell you from experience that repetitive stress injuries are extremely unpleasant, and often not fully curable. You don't want to wind up in that position.

Second, I am curious as to how you are stropping. The proper stropping motion requires an extremely light tough. Also, the blade is flipped using mostly the thumb and the forefinger. The wrist should be doing almost no work.

I would highly recommend that while your wrist is resting, you take a look at the stropping section in the Wiki and read up on your technique. And when you feel better, try to "flip" in mid air, no strop. Watch how you're doing it. See if you can figure out ways to loosen your muscles as you flip, and do it with fewer muscles involved.

Proper stropping should be 30-60 passes, light touch, and almost no wrist involvement. It should not be aggravating your wrists. If it is, your motions are either incorrect, you are stropping way more than is needed, or you are way too tense.

Originally Posted by MistressNomad

First of all, if your wrist hurts, do NOT strop again until the pain is entirely gone. I can tell you from experience that repetitive stress injuries are extremely unpleasant, and often not fully curable. You don't want to wind up in that position.

Consult a medical professional. He/she will be advice what to do.

I agree what cassie said. If it hurts, stop straining the wrist until it heals (stropping, whipping lather, etc). I'd even go to the extent that when the pain is gone, avoid it for a while until it has healed properly. But YMMV.