Thread: Shaved without stropping after honing.

So I finally made time to hone up a couple if my best razors. They were way over due. I've been using my Feather AC DX a lot, but have missed the straights. Also resetting my bevels with tape as I get to them.

A Robeson ShurEdge and a Boker Red Injun honed up to 12k on the Super Stones. I decided to try shaving without stropping first. I used the Boker on about a weeks worth of growth(is this bad for the edge on a hollow ground?)
I did my typical four pass shave which resulted in a bit of mild to moderate irritation when using the alum block around the crease in my neck and some barely perceptible irritation around my lips.

I feel pretty good about the result and next time I hone I think I'll try this after the 8k. Maybe eventually I'll try the 1k shave test. It felt great to shave with a straight again. I hope I'll be able to use the Robeson tomorrow. That is one if my favorite razors.

The irritation is most likely from not stropping. I have forgotten to strop because I was so excited to get a razor I was having trouble getting shave ready. It worked but got MUCH smoother after stropping.

Love those Robesons. Easy to hone. Smooth great shavers...

I shave straight off the hone when I am trying out a new hone from a new spot rockhounding. I do a simple prep, and lather with the same soap. It is to feel what the hone does to the edge and not how smooth it gets after stropping. It always gets better with stropping.

Originally Posted by RezDog

It always gets better with stropping.

And for that reason, and because stropping is a normal part of the shaving routine, I never skip stropping after honing.

Just wanted to see how it felt coming straight off the 12k. The irritation on my face was not really worth mentioning. Just trying to be completely honest. The neck irritation was noticable , but I've certainly had much worse.

IMO an unstropped edge isnt finished! The strop comes with the hone. I do 80 on vintage linen and 80 leather after a hone. I sometimes do that daily as well.

Originally Posted by tedh75

So I finally made time to hone up a couple if my best razors. They were way over due. I've been using my Feather AC DX a lot, but have missed the straights. Also resetting my bevels with tape as I get to them.

A Robeson ShurEdge and a Boker Red Injun honed up to 12k on the Super Stones. I decided to try shaving without stropping first. I used the Boker on about a weeks worth of growth(is this bad for the edge on a hollow ground?)
I did my typical four pass shave which resulted in a bit of mild to moderate irritation when using the alum block around the crease in my neck and some barely perceptible irritation around my lips.

I feel pretty good about the result and next time I hone I think I'll try this after the 8k. Maybe eventually I'll try the 1k shave test. It felt great to shave with a straight again. I hope I'll be able to use the Robeson tomorrow. That is one if my favorite razors.

Way to experiment! Nicely done.

Thanks for the responses guys. Sorry if I got my hackles up a little bit. I did this for a couple if reasons, but the biggest reason was that I just wanted to know what it would feel like.

I got curious when rezdog said this has come up before. Here is one post I found if anyone is interested.

http://straightrazorpalace.com/shavi...stropping.html

Some of the comments were pretty similar. Obie said that shaving without stropping was like walking around with one sock.

On many stones it is. Whether you can shave straight from a stone has a lot more to do with the individual stone than it does how good a job you do honing. Some stones, the razor just will not shave well until you strop, and others will give a fine shave and not change a lot after stropping. It all depends on how much remnant burr/wire there is. Some stones leave barely any, some stones leave a bit but it is very fragile and just the act of shaving may remove it, and some stones leave a fairly substantial one - those absolutely need to be stropped before shaving.