new guy intro and a question about the art of shaving strop paste.

hey now, im brand new on here but ive been lurking for a few days. ive read a lot of the wiki on here and ive done a lot of researching straight razors(atleast the dovo ones) and what all im going to need to make this all happen. so far i just ordered up the razor and strop kit from SRD, "dovo best quality, 5/8", with a 3" black latigo strop", and i picked up the wally world special shave brush kit(boars hair brush, shaving cup, and soap) for $9 because i didnt want to invest too much more than $150 for something that i might not even like/get the hang of/enjoy, in which my wife says i better like it :). i have a question though, i know that eventually i will need to get some stropping paste, and i have a "the art of shaving" store nearby(towson town center mall, MD). on their websiter they have a theirs issard stropping paste for $10...what im asking is, is this stuff any good and is it worth $10, or is there better for my money. lets face it, TAOS, sells the same razor i got for $100, not shave ready, opposed to $70 at SRD.com, shave ready from a master honemiester...TAOS can keep their logo off my blade for $30 cheaper....are they selling a $5 product with a $10 price tag? thanks

I would say you got enough to get you going . Razor (real shave ready), strop, soap, brush, encouraging wife. Once you get going you can decide what you want/need from there.

I am betting you will like the shave almost as much as your wife. Welcome to SRP and nice to meet ya :<0).

hot damn, that was fast and encouraging, lol. i enjoy things like a straight razor, no body i know uses them, so its interesting to me. i like to be a little different than everyone else, so i probably will enjoy shaving, and the first few accidental cuts i get(they'll be battle wounds from vietnam), thanks for the response

I would do some research on the pastes before you buy. Different people like different pastes and there are different grits for different things. For simply maintaining a razor a lot of people go with Chromium Oxide or diamond paste. Others go with jewelers compound or the Dovo pastes. You shouldn't need to paste for a long while anyway if you strop correctly without rolling your edge. SRD sells a bunch of different pastes. I have the Dovo black red and green and also Chromium Oxide. I like the chromium oxide the best. A lot of people never use paste at all. Sounds like you have a good setup to get started. You have everything you need, the rest from here is lagniappe.

Here is a very interesting and informative thread by Gssixgun that I really liked

http://straightrazorpalace.com/strop...xperiment.html

Oh yea, you may want to get a styptic pencil or swabs from the drug store. I found swabs for like a buck at my local grocery store. They come in handy for those battle scars.

Styptic pencil, check...bought one like a year ago. Thanks for link

You won't need paste at all if you don't want to use them. Since the razor will be shave ready, you will need to learn the strop so you don't roll the edge. Be careful when you start stropping, go slow, take notice of the tension on the strop and make sure the blade is flat. If you are careful, you won't need to have the edge "refreshed" for sometime. I only use Chromium oxide or .25 diamond spray to get one or two more shaves from an edge when I am too lazy to hone.
You should post where you are from as well. This would allow folks who are so inclined and live close to help you out a bit.

If you can get a good edge from stones, pastes are optional. I never use them.

Welcome to the forum and congratulations on your choices in good quality shaving gear.
The above is good advice.
I would only like to add that most all of us have put several nicks in a strop while learning to strop.
A local business that sews tents, automotive upholstery, makes trampolines, etc. will have nylon strapping similar to what is used for seatbelts. It is very inexpensive, ($1 per yard here) and 2 inches wide or more, and works quite well as a strop. They might have canvas strapping too.
Anyway, putting cuts in these cheapos rather than your super nice SRD strop is something you and the wife will appreciate.
While learning to strop be sure to keep the spine of the razor in full contact with the strop and try to do the stropping using a light pressure. Start out slow and as your coordination improves so can the speed.
Good luck and great shaves to you.

Welcome,
you have got some good advice so far especially the practice (beginner) strop. as mentioned you should be able to last a good long while without pastes. when and if you decide on using pastes you will need another strop, paddle or bench strop to apply it too. once treated with a cutting paste the strop is always treated as the grit gets embedded in the leather.
for the occasional touch-up many use a finishing stone 10k grit or finer or a barber's hone.
for right now work on a light touch and proper blade angle (around 2 spine thicknesses off the face) and let a pro keep your blade sharp in several months if you still like using a real razor consider then learning to hone (less is more) and acquiring more razors. SWMBO you overlook the costs if the results are good and you are happy.

enjoy,
jim

I think i have some 2" canvas ribbon in my shed, ill definitely look for it. Thanks guys

I used Thiers Issard paste on a paddle strop I made , back when my finish hone was a Norton 8k . The paste would make the 8k edge a little smoother , but the edge didn't seem to last very long , so I gave up on the paste . After a couple of shaves the 8k edge would smooth out on it's own , and last a lot longer than if I had used the paste . Most of the paste users like the chromium oxide best . I bought a 15k hone , about 5 years ago , and a nice little J-nat (Japanese natural hone) , and these hones are so fine , I don't need to use paste .

Dave! A fellow marylander, i live in middle river/chase. Good info on the paste, i appreciate it. We have to meet up one day so you can show/ teach me some tricks of the trade.

Yeah Whitey , we can do that ! I used to live in Middle River , in the Windsor House apts. off of Martin Blvd. . I'm not working today , because of the weather . I'm a concrete form carpenter , so most of my work is outside . Shoot me a PM , I'll be happy to help you out .

Cool, im a union sprinkler fitter, get home around 2 pm. Ill pm you once i get this thing delivered.