Thread: pasted paddle strop that does not do its job

I have a paddle strop that one side is green pasted the other side is red pasted. I try using it after I feel the razor passes the thumbnail test and by the end of my stropping session on eithier of the sides paddle the razor feels as if it is back to square one. Without a doubt I feel I must be doing somthing incorrect. Any suggestions to what I could do to correct this would be most appreciated?

You say you use the paddle after it passes the thumbnail test. What are you using before it passes the thumbnail test? I'm not a heavy user of pasted strops however the green paste should be able to get your razor very keen as long as its close to shave ready. General advice for stropping is use very little or no pressure especially with a pasted strop. Do you have a plain leather and linen strop to use after the pasted strops? What kind of strokes are you using on the paddle? Are you X stropping?

after honing on the 8000 side of the Norton it easily passes the thumbnail test, then I go to the green side of the paddle. And yes I apply nearly no pressure, spine pointed away (spine first) in your typical X pattern . I also have your typical hanging strop one side leather one side linen (although I never use the linen side) to use after I use the paddle strop.

How much paste is there? If it's thick, it'll dull your edge like nobody's business.

I ended up wiping down my paddle so that it's just faint green on the chrome oxide side, and faint brown on the BC side.

Wouldn't you stay under the 8K until passing the TNT? Can the TNT damage an edge that is so close to shave ready?

Jordan

Are you using the 6 micron green paste after 8K or the .5 green paste after 8K? There is more than one green paste.

Originally Posted by AFDavis11

Are you using the 6 micron green paste after 8K or the .5 green paste after 8K? There is more than one green paste.

Not all green pastes are alike. Some are quite coarse. What is the red paste as well? I thought that was also fairly coarse. Dovo makes a red, Jemico has a brownish one and both seem fairly coarse to me.

Tony

Thanks for all the information. The pastes that I am using are the Dovo pastes, they simply come in a brown paste and a green paste. Brown being the fine and green being the corse. I do belive that maybe I did use a wee bit too much on the paddle. Just bear with me, this is all a learning experince for me.