Average shaves between honings: 127 +/- 130
James.
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Average shaves between honings: 127 +/- 130
James.
If you are only getting 3-5 shaves between honings, no matter what excuse you throw into the mix, like a tough beard, or whatever, you aren't really stropping.
Practice a little and you'll get the same number of shaves without stropping at all.
There is something fundamentally wrong with the strop, or the stropping.
If you can get one good shave then your honing is good.
Now I'm getting curious as well. I'm also cursed w/ a perpetual "5 o'clock shadow when shaved absolutely BBS" beard, so anything I can do to improve stropping, I tend to investigate. :) When you say soap, I assume you mean lather, right?
How supple is your strop? Do you find leather stiffness plays a role or not really? And do you vary your pressure @ all as you go?
This is really interesting!
10 to 15 shaves' depending on the razor, then I will touch up on barbers hone[Franz Swaty, of course] and then another dozen or so shaves before I will either touch up again or go to the rocks.
Stropping does mater, on some of my strops and with some of my Str8's I noticed I needed less tension on the strop and a slower more deliberate stroke to maximize "Keenness" of the edge.
Any way, that's my Universe for the moment,
tinkersd