I love preparing my own straight razors.
I decided to use a bit of my evening to prepare a straight razor for good shaving. The steel is by Wostenholm and is a 4/8. In any case, I took it to my recently acquired Heirloom Combination paddle strop from Tony Miller (pasted with 3.0, 1.0, and 0.50 micron). This razor was sharp enough on arrival to cut away hair on my arm, so taking it to the pasted paddle seemed logical enough.
I started with 20 laps on 0.50-micron paste, then 20 laps on the Latigo. I shave tested my arm again and found the edge to be much sharper. I then did 10 laps on the 1.0-micron paste and 10 laps on the Latigo, and finished with 10 laps on the 0.50 and 20 laps on the Latigo.
Took the razor to my arm once more and it just plowed through. Hairs were jumping off the edge and landing on the blade. I figured it was time to shave.
I went to the bathroom, prepped my face with a warm, wet towel and some Proraso pre/post cream. Then came the marvelous Truefitt & Hill Trafalgar shaving cream applied by my trusty Simpson Special brush. I put the razor to my face and began. The edge zipped through the stubble without much effort. I gave myself a nice, comfortable three-pass shave and am really happy with the results!
Sure, I think I could have gotten the edge a bit sharper, and I will strive to do so next time. But my next order of business is to pick up a Norton 4K/8K stone for the more challenging edges.
This is great!!! :D