Thread: Gearing up for my first shave :D stroping question

Later today I will be ordering my strop, brush, bowl, cream, and soap bowl. i already have my two razors, shave soap, balm, and nick stick.
But i would like to know how often i need to strop and if strop paste is needed each time.

I will be getting the stuff to make
This guy is really informative and has been helpful.

I will also be sending out my blades to get sharpened (i will probably contact Lynn for his services). Hopefully i can get ahold of the stones needed to do this on my own one day.

Sadly most of my gear is amazon products because i dont want to go balls out for my training period in the chance that its not something i can handle. But i will be using The Art Of Shaving brand cream.

I understand that i should not shave my whole face until i get a hang of what im doing so i dont run into any problems

But my main question is when should i strop... i have found answers ranging from each time to every 6 times even up to 60 shaves. Even answers such as every 6 shaves i need to resharpen (seems a little excessive ). On top of this question, do i need strop paste and what kind?

Thanks for your help.

If you are getting your razor sharpened by someone that knows what they are doing you should not need to strop before the first shave.

I do 40 laps on a leather strop before I shave and then another 10 after to make sure the edge is cleaned off. Every other shave I do about 10 laps on my felt strop and then the 40 on leather. I have not been shaving with a straight long and tried to get by without stropping and there was a lot more irritation.

As far as having it honed every six shaves I think that is excessive. As long as you are stropping properly and not rolling the edge you should get a lot more shaves than that between honings.

Good luck and remember there is a learning curve involved and your shaves will get better each time. If you have any questions all you have to do is ask and the kind people on this site will steer you in the right direction.

Stop before every shave. dependig on the person, you may even strop during the shave. Usually between passes i.e after the WTG before commencing an XTG/ATG pass. It's also recommended practice to give it a quick strop after shaving to clean the edge of any micro moisture/soap scum.
Honing varies from person to person. Some users touch up on a really fine hone like a 12 or 16k once a week. Personally I touch up on an 8k followed by a 12k about every 6 weeks to 2 months as I rotate to the next razor. It's what suits me, and may not suit your own face.
What brand of razors did you purchase?


Mick

Well, YMMV, but I strop 30 on webbing and 60 on leather before each shave, and later that day 15 on webbing/30 on leather before I oil the blade and put it away. I've got 7 razors in rotation, so that post-shave stropping is important to get any micro-gunk off, since I won't be using that razor for another week.

I have a pasted balsa strop (FeO on one side, CrO on the other) that I got from LarryAndro. I use that (15-20 laps on each side, CrO first) when a razor starts to feel like it's getting a bit uncomfortable to shave with. Some of my razors have only gone 4 months or so between trips to the pasted strop, while others have gone 6-8 months. I think it must depend on the steel.

With a 7-day set and the pasted strop, I've been able to go about a year between honings in most cases. But like I say, YMMV. Good luck!

So I don't need the paste for a while? Well I have 2 vintage razors that I plan on rotating. Plus I won't be shaving my whole face because of a goatee I plan on keeping.

You don't need paste at all, but it is another tool in the box if you choose to have it. I use stone and leather for all my honing needs. Nothing else.


Mick

well the 2 stones that i have are for hunting and pocket knives. so the grit is in the low hundreds (far from what i need for a razor). so its not important but if i want to extend the time between sharpenings it would be helpful?

well the 2 stones that i have are for hunting and pocket knives. so the grit is in the low hundreds (far from what i need for a razor). so its not important but if i want to extend the time between sharpenings it would be helpful?

One way to handle the "sharpening cycle" is:

. . . Strop before every shave on cloth and plain leather;

. . . . . When the razor doesn't feel keen enough, strop on a pasted strop (CrOxide for many of us, diamonds for some), then plain leather;

. . . . . .When the razor can't be brought back to "sharp" with a pasted strop, either send it out for honing or learn to do it yourself.

You want to use pasted strops and hones as little as possible. Pastes and hones remove metal from the blade, and shorten its life.

Along with many others, I strop seriously (40 laps or more) on plain leather _before every shave_.

Charles

Originally Posted by FlounderDTD

well the 2 stones that i have are for hunting and pocket knives. so the grit is in the low hundreds (far from what i need for a razor). so its not important but if i want to extend the time between sharpenings it would be helpful?

Short answer is yes, but the long answer is you're either going to need to send out for honing or get yourself a 4k/8k combo stone for your razors, at the least.

Originally Posted by MickR

Short answer is yes, but the long answer is you're either going to need to send out for honing or get yourself a 4k/8k combo stone for your razors, at the least.

yea i would like to get them, but being a college student i dont have $70 to drop on one