Thread: Shaving is the easy part - stropping on the other hand...

No problems shaving, getting very smooth shaves with 2 passes, WTG and XTG. Only did one BBS shave in the 2 weeks I've been shaving but that was the only time I did ATG as well. No nicks, no cuts. A very satisfied shaver.

But stropping!! Not having any trouble maintaining the edge, I haven't rolled it. Getting even pressure and smooth strokes, the edge still feels great when I shave so I must be doing it right. The problem is nicking the strop at the bottom. I'm not even sure how I'm doing it, I do a few strokes and there's another nick. If I cut myself as much as I cut my strop I'd go back to cartridges. I was doing so well the first few days so I sped up my stropping and now I'm nicking all the time. The past 3 days have been the worst, I'm getting worse rather then better it seems. Guess I have to slow it down again.

Two things come to mind:

-Be VERY careful when flipping the razor that the edge hits the leather while in motion; if you hesitate you tend to nick the strop.

-Elevate your wrist and/or elbow, so your wrist is level or slightly higher than the strop. We have a tendency to drop the wrist somewhat, which usually results in the heel nicking the strop. Notice how some nicks tend to be on the bottom of your strop, closest to the heel?

If you have to slow down a bit to avoid cuts by all means do it. That could be another problem, trying to go too fast before you're ready.

Originally Posted by Ryan82

-Be VERY careful when flipping the razor that the edge hits the leather while in motion; if you hesitate you tend to nick the strop.

That's what I'm doing wrong, at the bottom I tend to stop, not for long, but long enough to nick it.

My advice,,,,,SLOW DOWN I found that when I was picking up speed is when I nicked the strop....YMMV

I used to put little nicks in my strop at the hand held portion towards my body. I fasten my strop at door knob height and I'm 5'9" with a 30" inseam to give you an idea of those logistics. IOW, at my height it is about waist high. I used to hold the tang between the thumb pad and the first joint of my fore finger where the bend is. Reading threads and barber manuals I changed my hold to between the thumb pad and the tip/pad of my fore finger. Once I got that hold/flip down the little cuts/nicks in the strop went away. I also kind of cradle the scales with my middle, ring, and little finger. Almost no pressure, just barely supporting the scales while I'm doing the flip. This may help you as it did me ...... or maybe it won't but either way .....

Slow is smooth, and smooth is fast.

First learn to do it slow and smooth. One smooth motion and make sure you have reversed your direction before you are finished flipping.

Once you are smooth, practice and keep that muscle memory and you'll get faster.

I think many are also afraid to put any pressure. Yes you don't want too much, but then not too little as well.

Enjoy!

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

I used to put little nicks in my strop at the hand held portion towards my body. I fasten my strop at door knob height and I'm 5'9" with a 30" inseam to give you an idea of those logistics. IOW, at my height it is about waist high. I used to hold the tang between the thumb pad and the first joint of my fore finger where the bend is. Reading threads and barber manuals I changed my hold to between the thumb pad and the tip/pad of my fore finger. Once I got that hold/flip down the little cuts/nicks in the strop went away. I also kind of cradle the scales with my middle, ring, and little finger. Almost no pressure, just barely supporting the scales while I'm doing the flip. This may help you as it did me ...... or maybe it won't but either way .....

I can identify a lot with what you're saying. Ironically I fasten my strop at door knob height and I'm 5'9". Ironically my stropping has improved the last couple of times as a result of reading this thread. One reason why I think stropping is a pain is because it is a forgotten technique in the learning curve. For the past couple of years I've asked like crazy for help on other aspects of shaving but before this thread don't recall ever asking anyone for help with stropping.

Probably as a result of studying this thread I have held the razor more securely by the scales so that the scales are closer to the palm of my hand. That has enabled me to flip the razor with authority without fear of dropping the thing. I am still extremely slow. Another thing is that I had the notion that you had to strop fast to get the benefits of stropping and for that reason I tried to rush it. Unfortunately the only way I can rush is to bend the wrist like crazy. So I'm feeling a lot better about it, although it's hard to picture me doing it quickly. But it is probably like learning the straight shaving in that you can't do something you want to do for a long time and then all of a sudden one day you can.

Originally Posted by Ryan82

Two things come to mind:

-Be VERY careful when flipping the razor that the edge hits the leather while in motion; if you hesitate you tend to nick the strop.

-Elevate your wrist and/or elbow, so your wrist is level or slightly higher than the strop. We have a tendency to drop the wrist somewhat, which usually results in the heel nicking the strop. Notice how some nicks tend to be on the bottom of your strop, closest to the heel?

If you have to slow down a bit to avoid cuts by all means do it. That could be another problem, trying to go too fast before you're ready.

I just ran across your suggestion about elevating your wrist and elbow. I didn't retain it during my first read and during the watching of the video. Thanks in advance for your suggestion. I will notice what I do next time.

Talking about paddle strops. I have a couple bench strops which are really just big paddles and they are easier to use than a hanging. They don't flex or move as you use them and you can put them on a table or counter and better set them up for customized use. The hanger is the classic way of course and I use my bench strops as pasted strops only.

Originally Posted by thuktunflishithy

No problems shaving, getting very smooth shaves with 2 passes, WTG and XTG. Only did one BBS shave in the 2 weeks I've been shaving but that was the only time I did ATG as well. No nicks, no cuts. A very satisfied shaver.

But stropping!! Not having any trouble maintaining the edge, I haven't rolled it. Getting even pressure and smooth strokes, the edge still feels great when I shave so I must be doing it right. The problem is nicking the strop at the bottom. I'm not even sure how I'm doing it, I do a few strokes and there's another nick. If I cut myself as much as I cut my strop I'd go back to cartridges. I was doing so well the first few days so I sped up my stropping and now I'm nicking all the time. The past 3 days have been the worst, I'm getting worse rather then better it seems. Guess I have to slow it down again.

Been there, done that, still doing that. I'm still using the old cut up strop until I master it. I have a new one but won't use it until I can do it right on the old one. The problem for me is keeping the wrist from bending. That's been the hardest part for me to get. I still ask myself, how can you possibly use only the thumb and forefinger, keep the wrist from bending, and not drop it or cut the strop? It's just as hard for me to do it as when I started, while I have improved light years on all other facets of straight shaving.

My suggestion to you is the same as I'm doing. I downloaded Jimbo's stropping video and plan to study it over and over.