Thread: Resting razor edges?

Hello, I know a lot of shavers rotate razors. I had figured this was to reduce wear on any one razor, lengthen the time between hones, etc. I was browsing wikipedia, and on it's straights page it says:

"Experienced straight razor aficionados often advocate stropping after each shave and allowing the blade to recover its edge for several days before reuse. Historically this necessitated a collection of several razors sometimes sold in a sets for a week's use."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Straight_razor

This makes a little sense to me, as I recall that steels has a metal memory, and I think that if this is a legitimate reason then perhaps stropping before and letting the edge "set" might have some merit.

I had just been stropping before the shave, so does anyone have any insight on whether or not stropping then resting an edge could have any benefit?

-Baran

Some of us believe this is true , and some of us don't . As for myself , I don't know and I don't really care . I currently have 6 razors in my rotation , and I shave every other day , so it's a non-issue for me . I only strop my razor right before I shave , stropping after shaving doesn't make sense to me . If I only had 1 razor I would simply strop it before each shave .

I believe the reference was mis-transcribed. I believe you either can strop or simply allow the razor to rest. That has been my experience. I find stropping more effective than simply resting the razor. I prefer atleast 48 hours if I don't plan to strop.

I have no problem with people that don't believe it though. It wouldn't be worth arguing about.

Damn! this is a great thread. What if you have over thirty on rotation?
Help me... I cant' seem to get enough. My rotation means I get back to razor about once a month. Can I be saved?

Fire, start shaving twice a day

yea this is one of those things people always like to discuss but there is no consensus either way. I've used the same razor day in and day out for months without resting and I didn't notice anything bad going on.

You shouldn't trust the wikipedia articles on shaving and shaving related things. It's a horrible mix of "I'm sure I've heard someone say this once"-bits (and don't give the whole discussion behind something).

havent been shaving with one of these long enough to see a difference, but ive been working with metal for a long time. just putting the blade into hot water during the shave will change the blade from when it was resting in a room at a much lower temp and i read that thats done all the time here by several members. so if changing the temperature of the blade which will change all sorts of things dimension wise, flatness wise, and probably sharpness wise, and its still not a problem, then i cant see how just resting it is going to change things that much either. also an older blade would be in a much more relaxed state than a new one so that would change the outcomes however so minor as well

Originally Posted by Firebox

Damn! this is a great thread. What if you have over thirty on rotation?
Help me... I cant' seem to get enough. My rotation means I get back to razor about once a month. Can I be saved?

I had over thirty razors in my rotation, too. - and still aquiring more... It got confusing for me, so I have selected seven of my best for my new rotation and put the rest away, and out of sight. I'll probably eventually sell most of these that I have put away. Got to stay away from Ebay!!

I'm not sure, either, in regard to letting the razor rest or not. I have shaved several days in a row with the same blade that I've really liked, and I have'nt noticed any deteriation in the quality of the shaves. I suppose if you have enough razors for rotation, yes, let them rest. - but if I only had one razor to shave with, I don't think it would make any difference, although, that could depend on the characteristics of each individual razor - the type of steel and the type of edge it has. Some edges, especially those taken care of by pasted strops, may need a 48 hour rest due to the more delicate nature of the edge. Who knows? Whatever you're comforitable with.....

Steve

I absolutely do not buy into the concept of the need to let an edge "rest" for a certain period of time before using it again. My thought is that it was the "marketing scheme" of razor manufacturers in the past to get people to purchase more razors. After all, how are you going to sell more razors to a saturated market when your customers only need one razor for several lifetimes of use? If a razor needs to be rested for a day or two before it is at its optimal condition then how could you explain the fact that barbers in the past could shave MANY different customers in the same day with the same razor? If you want to have several or many razors in your collection then by all means go for it. It is very fun to collect and shave with different razors. I just don't think that you should base your decision on the "need to let the edge rest" myth because I don't think that it is true.