in between shaves I strop, but when the blade starts to dull I do 6 laps on the chr. oxide. Is that good or should I go to the 8k first?
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in between shaves I strop, but when the blade starts to dull I do 6 laps on the chr. oxide. Is that good or should I go to the 8k first?
You shouldn't need to use the chrome that much. Practice your stropping technique. Stropping straightens the blade and does not take any metal off. The Chrome oxide is removing metal and rounding the edge. It is good right after honing to smooth the edge a bit, or even a touch up after 6 months or so.... but not every few shaves....
As long as the chrome is effective there is no need for the 8k hone. IME the effectiveness of pastes, CrOx in particular, starts to diminish after awhile and it will be necessary to go to a hone instead. I can't give you a specific timeframe as it will vary from shaver to shaver, but if you give it 10 or so laps of chrome and there's no improvement then bust out the 8k.
In general I don't agree with timeframes. You should touch up when the razor needs it, not according to a time schedule. Of course, the time between touch ups will increase as you gain experience and improve your technique. But I do agree with Jeff, if you find your razor getting dull every few shaves you may want to examine your technique to find out what you're doing wrong.