Classic Straight Razor Sharpening Set

Hello All,

So, I an new to honing (and straight razor shaving) and I purchased a razor and the sharpening set from ClassicShaving.com. I have sent my razor to Lynn for the initial sharpening (which I received today and can't wait to shave with it). I have also purchased a couple of razors off of ebay that I am going to use to practice honing.

After looking a lot of posts here I am trying to figure the order in which to use this set. From what I can gather is that I would should use the strop with green paste first (on a dull blade) then move to the red paste. Follow that with the 4K/8K Norton pryamid and finish with an coticule (which I still need to get).

Does this sound right? :thinking:

Gene

No, that is not correct. The pastes would come after the Norton, not before. If used properly, the Norton is all you need to get the razor "shave-ready"; however, many people including myself prefer to use a coticule and or pastes after the Norton to get the edge a little sharper and smoother. Many people use the red and green pastes to refresh a razor that was shave ready but starting to get a little dull. If you are trying to get an ebay razor shave ready you almost certainly will need to go the the stone.

Gene,
Good question. Normally I would say pastes always follow a stone until I looked closely at the description. The red and green pastes are 6 micron and 2-4 micron.
The 8K side of the Norton would be around the same as a 3 micron paste making both paste choice more coarse than the stone which makes your paddle strop first guess right on the money.

The pastes are the least expensive item in the kit. I would save them for something else and use 1.0 diamond and 0.5 chromium oxide on the paddle for refreshing a slightly dull razor and the Norton for more serious work. The red and green might be best as an alternative to the paddle.

Tony

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Tony Miller

Gene,
Good question. Normally I would say pastes always follow a stone until I looked closely at the description. The red and green pastes are 6 micron and 2-4 micron.
The 8K side of the Norton would be around the same as a 3 micron paste making both paste choice more coarse than the stone which makes your paddle strop first guess right on the money.

The pastes are the least expensive item in the kit. I would save them for something else and use 1.0 diamond and 0.5 chromium oxide on the paddle for refreshing a slightly dull razor and the Norton for more serious work. The red and green might be best as an alternative to the paddle.

Tony

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I agree with this.

I also concur with Tony.

Regards,
EL

I have the red and black pastes from the same place and I haven't managed to do anything but dull my razor with the red.

You may have better results but I just wanted to make you aware that it is a possibility.

Darn, and I already applied the paste to the strop. Can a strop be cleaned?

Pretty much. Try some waterless hand cleaner like Goop or GoJo and apply several times, then reapply dressing once its clean. It'll take some work.

Saddle soap and a toothbrush will also work. Keep the saddle soap lather thick so it lifts the paste out and doesn't soak back in, and wipe it off frequently. I've depasted several paddle strops like this with no ill effects.

I also have a tube of red paste that I don't use for sharpening anymore.
Sometimes I use it for polishing blades with a dremel and a felt wheel