Thread: Have I already dulled my razor?

There's a couple factors at play here: newbie shaving technique and newbie stropping technique. It's almost impossible to determine which one dulled your blade (possibly both). However, premature dulling is normal for beginners.

Usually when an edge is rolled the razor becomes unshaveable. I suppose it's possible that the damage was minor enough to make it noticeably dull, but if it still shaves somewhat you can probably bring the edge back with your strop. The problem is that it takes experience to know how to use a strop for corrective purposes.

I would strop the crap out of it and see if that brings the edge back. If it doesn't then it probably needs to see a hone.

As well, what did you mean when you said "I have done 60+40 on the strop"?

You could also try one of the paste solutions- CrOx on balsa or fabric (I wouldn't recommend pasting the fabric on your only strop, though). There are threads on making your own; just do a search. Or, you could go to whipped dog and order his poor man's strop kit; it comes with a small leather strop and a piece of balsa charged with CrOx on one side and IrOx on the other. I have this kit, and while I don't really use the strop due to its small size and lack of fabric (it is quite handy for quick out-of-town trips), I find the pasted balsa to be really helpful.

I also have very thick individual beard hairs, and I've already gone through periods of wondering how much it effects the longevity of my edges. My experience seems to indicate, so far, that improved beard prep and improved stropping technique have more to do with edge longevity than beard type (except that these thick hairs may need more thorough prep- YMMV).

+1 on the advice above- try an extra long stropping session (perhaps put the strop on a counter or table to eliminate variables of pressure and strop tension). If that doesn't work, consider whipped dog's kit or a similar DIY solution; also, check out Lynn's video on blade maintenance. Good Luck!

Ymir it doesn't take much to dull the blade. A tip I picked up here is to carefully use a straight pin to see if you've rolled the edge. Use the tip of the pin and run it perpendicular to the edge in several different areas. Your light reflection seems to indicate a couple flat spots. I use a 20x loupe to inspect the edge and it's quite telling.

Stropping on linen then leather may work but I'm a big fan of the Naniwa 12K for starting the refresh. Actually there are a number of ways to refresh the edge, just depends on your preference.

Funny how this sport requires total concentration 100% of the time.

Whatever the cause, it does appear by your description that the razor is dull (tugging). This could be due to the incident you mention or it could be poor stropping in general.

When you say 60+40 are you meaning 60 canvas 40 leather? If so, I'd reverse that, i.e. 40 canvas 60 leather. I do 30/70 each and every time I shave with 10/10 after. As said above, another solution is a high grit hone or paste. Of course, another solution is to send it out for honing.

If you DO decide on honing, go very light and use only a few strokes. Depending on the hone you may need only 10 to 20; I can refresh very successfully on my 16k Shapton with ten laps. Also, try and find out if the razor was honed with or without tape. At this stage you may wish to copy that (i.e. if it was honed with tape use tape, if without use no tape). Later on, you may decide to re-set the bevel if you want to differ (i.e. use tape where none was used or vice versa).

The dark spots near the edge are probably water stains. Ensure you dry the razor very well and ensure you apply something to protect the edge, I use pure Eucalyptus oil. The 10/10 stropping post shave also cleans and dries the edge. Ensure you store the razor away from moisture, I store mine in two three-razor leather cases on the desk in my bedroom; sometimes a bathroom is the worst place to store a razor (wet and humid).

Carl