Thread: Strop til ya drop Beginner

Thus far the most difficult and yet most rewarding element of the open blade experience for this beginner has been stropping.
Being the last attention the blade gets before touching skin it is a subtle even casual appearing but critical component to a great shave.
Watching someone's accomplished technique can be deceiving and makes the process seem more style and pinache than precise.
I learned this week it takes at least 60 passes for me to develop the best edge where before I had been stopping about 40. I haven't yet found a limit where the edge degrades but I suspect there must be one. Most rewarding, with practice, my speed has risen to the point 60 passes aren't a tedious exercise full of strop slicing and nicking punctuated with a few final miscued moves dubbing the edge and forcing me start all over.

I currently do 70 on a small stropping board up from 50 and felt a huge difference... also some improvement in technique doesn't hurt.

Hold tight.
Strop light.

And, I don't know if there is a practical limit to how long you can strop. Personally, I think much more "harm" is done by newbies understropping than overstropping. As long as you hold the strop reasonable tight and straight, you will do fine.

Great advice Larry! I'll remember that little saying forever.

Apparently I've been understropping. I've noticed the edge gets a little more grabby after each shave. Back to the strop I go!

Take your time, dont strop whit a rush.

I was understropping. More strokes made a big difference in my shaves. Just my $.02 worth.

Ed

I've been doing 30 on the linen and 60 on the leather before the shave, then after shaving another 30 on the linen, smear a drop of oil on both sides of the blade and I'm done. I haven't started to use any paste on the strop.

I did buy a barber's hone off ebay, haven't tried it yet. I have to watch some videos of how that's done.