I posted a reply to an old thread in another area of the forum, but thought I would post here as well. I have a few straight razors, and just ordered a set of Shapton hones from SRD. If anyone in the area (I live near Princeton, but am willing to drive a bit) is willing to show me the ropes with my new hones, it would be greatly appreciated.

In addition, I am sure I could use some instruction with both my paddle and hanging stops as well. I have been shaving with straights off and on for about a year, and in the last two months, have solely used the straights. I am getting better, but have a long way to go. I am sure I make some mistakes with the strop and my shaving technique, but it seems that my razors lose that freshly honed feeling after about 10-15 shaves, and even with the paddle strop refreshing, I can't get it back.

I may be being harder on myself than I should, but someone with more experience might be able to shed light on what I am doing. I have watched countless hours of youtube videos, but never seen an experienced person use a strop, hone, or even a straight razor in general.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Rob