Hi, I just became a member here in hopes of learning more about SR shaving. I stumbled into straight razors looking to improve my woodworking tools with leather strops. After reading about straight razors and strops I was instantly intrigued by it all and I soon spent lots of time researching razors, shaving ect. on you tube and this website. After taking advice from these forums I bought a Dovo (5/8 full hollow carbon) razor and Illinois strop w/linen from classicshaving.com. Everyone seems to say that new razors are not shave ready so I bought the one that said "professionally honed" thinking that it would be shave ready over the "factory honed" option at a lesser cost.

When I got my new razor and strop I could hardly wait, I shaved and not too bad for a first time shave. Hardly a nick but not perfect around my neck and jaw bone (little scary in there but I'll get better My flat areas were great, best shave for sure and I'm loving the fact that I'm getting into this.

My problem started on my second shave. I watched and read a lot on stropping before doing it. Some said focus on the spine and let the edge follow so as not to roll the edge over. 30-60 laps or so. Some say to use the linen first 10 or more laps to heat the blade before the leather. I though my stropping was fine but it obviously wasn't. My blade began catching the hairs, though I did get a full shave it was not that comfortable. By my third shave I was really catching my hairs to the point that I feared something was really wrong with the edge and I shouldn't have to push the blade though the hairs or for sure I would be cutting my self (as a dull edge is more dangerous than a sharp one on all things)

So in order to understand how to correct my problem, could someone explain what causes the blade to catch? Did I roll the edge over by stropping too hard or did I not strop with enough pressure and the edge never straightened out? Or, did the professionally honed option not really mean shave ready and it needs to be honed?

My opinion last weekend was that maybe it wasn't shave ready. Here I may have gone and done it. As a finish carpenter I spend a bit of time sharpening tools and feel comfortable with honing. I went out and bought a King water stone kit 800-4000-6000 w/nagura. I tried just a few laps on the 4000, then the 6000 with the nagura. Then to the strop and to the face. It still catches, probably worse yet. I just watched Lynn from SRP's you tube clip on honing to a pyramid from 4000-8000 back and forth from 15 laps down to one. Before I go any further I need to know why blades catches and if I'm just screwing things up. I know I should probably buy a used razor from someone here but I need to learn and the only way that I learn is from asking others then practice. Any help would be greatly appreciated as I really want to get back to shaving soon!