Quote Originally Posted by kcarlisle View Post
As I understand it, even though the edge of a blade appears smooth, it looks more serated under a microscope. Each one of these little serations gets a little out of wack from each shave and needs to be re-aligned. Stropping is what re-aligns and polishes these little serations. I read a good article written by one of the old razor manufacturers that talked about stropping before and after each shave. Stropping before a shave polishes the edge and gets it as keen as possible. The razor's edge can get a little oxidation along the edge that can't be seen by the naked eye. Stropping after shaving helps dry the blade from the friction. For the better part of my str8 razor shaving career, I've been stropping 20 linen & 40 leather before a shave then 15 linen & 30 leather after a shave. Since I've been doing this, I have never had a water spot appear on any of my blades and my razors shave really well every time.
This is my understanding and practice as well. Although I start with 30/60, and finish with 20/20.