Thread: Newbie needs help

I'm no metallurgist, but aside from the aspect of ensuring that the edge is dried I can't see any logical difference between stropping pre or post shave. Then again, I try not to think about what the edge of my razor looks like under a microscope as long as the shave is good.

Originally Posted by superfly

Well, it is recommended in the Barbers Manual. I do it, anyways, just not the full stroke count. Maybe 10 on the linen, and 15 on the leather side...

Nenad

I didn't remember that so I went back and looked at page 26. The only thing I found is

"The purpose of stropping is to smooth the whetted edge, or "finish" it, preparatory to the shaving process."

Notice the use of the word "preparatory." Also, "whetted" does not mean wet, but is another way of saying honed.

Originally Posted by SharkHat

I'm no metallurgist, but aside from the aspect of ensuring that the edge is dried I can't see any logical difference between stropping pre or post shave. Then again, I try not to think about what the edge of my razor looks like under a microscope as long as the shave is good.

After the shave, the microscopic teeth are spread out and make the edge look wider (less sharp). That's not a permanent change. Those teeth have memory and will return almost to their upright (aligned) position. THe next time you strop you'll anly need to push them slightly to align them.

If you strop right after the shave, the teeth haven't had a chance to straighten on their own and yo are bending them much furhter than stropping later. You know what happens to metal when you bend it back and forth. You get fatigue, and it breaks. That fatigue depends on many things, among them the amount of bending you do. So, stropping right after the shave will move the teeth a lot instead of the slight push you give them otherwise.

In time, teeth will break off, requiring more freequent and a greater amount of honing.

I can't say I've proved any of this myself. I don't even have enough magnification to see the teeth (it takes an electron microscope- if you want to see them, I can find a site). It's based on my research over time. From an engineering point of view it also makes a lot of sense.

I just happened to notice I had a site at hand for the microscopic views http://www.furitechnics.com.au/infor...microscope.htm. This is a picture of a knife edge, which is much coarser than a razor. I have magnification up to 200x, and the razor edge has only slight unevennes, while the scratch lines look like scratches, not furrows. Because it's optical, I don't see the fin, but only a bright, shiny end on the edge.

So the 2000x shot is more relevant. The teeth we would see would be the ends of the striations (scratch lines) themselves and at 200x I would expect them to look the way the knife looks at 200x.

So, you can imagine these teeth are really fine and delicate. Shaving causes them to bend (flatten) outward, and honing stands them back up.

Here's an example of how an edge looks to me at 200x. This picture was taken by Robert Williams (papabull).http://straightrazorpalace.com/compo...145/mode,view/.

Originally Posted by Joe Lerch

I didn't remember that so I went back and looked at page 26....

I am talking about the Shaving Manual, not Honing and Stropping one. However, it doesn't mention stropping after use, only cleaning, but it mentions the standard shave requires 4 stropping sessions during the shave. I strop between passes, too... It says nothing about breaking the fins, so I would say it is safe to strop after the shave. My only concern with this is that the acids from the strop (if you use a daily rub with the palm of your hand to condition it), which are acids from your sweat, may cause edge deterioration, and they certainly leave a smearing on the very edge, visible with naked eye. That is why I pass the edge, with stropping motion, on a clean towel afterwards (on the after the shave stropping) to clean it throughly...

Nenad

Originally Posted by superfly

However, it doesn't mention stropping after use, only cleaning, but it mentions the standard shave requires 4 stropping sessions during the shave. I strop between passes, too...

I've routinely seen barbers strop mid-shave, but I've never hear of stropping 4 times in one shave. That seems very extreme. BTW, stropping mid-shave is still stroppping before shaving, as the honing chapter explains.

It says nothing about breaking the fins, so I would say it is safe to strop after the shave.

I didn't say it wasn't. All I said is it would shorten the time between honing sessions, because the edge would dull sooner. I'm sure teeth are honed of all the time in normal preparation of an edge. My approach is to touch up the razor whenever stropping doesn't restore its keenness, avoiding actual honing sessions as much as possible. So, I would want to keep the teeth on the edge as long as possible.

My only concern with this is that the acids from the strop (if you use a daily rub with the palm of your hand to condition it), which are acids from your sweat, may cause edge deterioration, and they certainly leave a smearing on the very edge, visible with naked eye. That is why I pass the edge, with stropping motion, on a clean towel afterwards (on the after the shave stropping) to clean it throughly...

That or a few light passes on the linnen might be all you need.

The only time I ever notice rapid deterioration of the blade was with my SRP razor when it was brand new. I removed the oil on it with alcohol to do the first shave, and by the time I finished and was ready to clean the razor I had black water stains. They came right off with Maas, but that was really surprizing. I haven't used alcohol on the blade since, and I always spray Clippercide on the blade when I'm done (it has a very fine, clinging lubricant), so I've never had that happen again.