Thread: learning to strop

Ummm...yes.
I would not shave with that until it has been honed. If you post your location you may be able to find someone close by to minimize time away from your new razor as well as a mentor to assist you with technique.

Everyone hear has the right advise! I have a dovo 5/8 too, and a pro hone is the way to go. I got mine honed about 6 months ago, and it still shaves great! Spend the $20 and save yourself a lot of time and pain. I also purchased a barbers hone on the classifieds here to keep my razor in check, and I'm sure it's already paid for itself. I reccomend doing the same if this is something you plan on doing for more than a few months. Good luck!

You have a great razor, but it MUST be properly honed to give you the service you deserve. As to the strop, also a great one. Practice on it with a butter knife, yes a butter knife. That way you will avoid cutting it as you learn how to properly use a strop. Hand rub your leather strop brfore you put a blade to it. The friction of your hand will raise the temperature of the leather and will increase its draw. Take your time as you strop. And have fun doing all of this.

thanks for all the advice. i called a local Art of Shaving store this afternoon in north jersey, where i'm from. they don't hone razors there, but they recommended i go to Henry Westpfal & Co in chelsea, nyc to get it professionally sharpened. i'll probably give them a call tomorrow to see how quick they can do it.
has anyone ever had their razor sharpened at Henry Westpfal?

YouTube - straight razor stropping

This vid helped me a lot!

Hi,

+1 on coldcuts' suggestion of Shams' most excellent video

One of the best videos on stropping I have ever seen.

Have fun !

Best regards

Russ

Sorry, can't help you with that honing service. I'm in Texas and I hone my own. But if AOS recommends them, they're probably good. You could check to see if they have any reviews on yelp.com

alright so i dropped off the razor at Henry Westpfal in nyc this morning, and they had a few razors out so it seems like they know what they're doing. thanks everyone for the advice and helping me figure out how to solve my dilemma.

Straight Razor Design ships their razors professionally honed. That is where I bought my Dovo. It shaves great. Factory honed razors just won't give a good shave. I also bought another razor from the classifieds on this sight. It too was honed to perfection. Until you (and I) get experienced at honing our own razors getting them professionally honed is the only way to go.

Look on the Straight Razor Design website for instructions. You can send a razor to them for honing.