Thread: Do you strop before ATG?

so i can do an ATG but it is sometimes a little too much and the weepers come in. so i remembered someone posting that they have a heavy beard, so they tend to strop again before doing the ATG pass. so i tried it last night and it did make a difference (not that i was all that surprised). i don't consider my beard to be heavy, but apparently i was wrong.

so....
does anyone do this?
have you tried it?
does this say anything about my honing skill as far as blade longevity?

if you did get better result that does means your blade has been sharpened as much it can be.i don't know i am clear or not.if you do this after wtg go head check the edge under microscope you will see edge has been bend and as soon as you strop it edge straights up and you are getting nicer shave again.
To me i call this edge has sharpen too much but some people loves it and it does shave's better.Edge ususally dosen't last longer.you are usually sharpen that blade 1 a months if i am not making mistakes.may be more often you know better.

I never strop mid-shave. My routine is to strop pre-shave and sometimes I strop a few passes after I am done to clean up the blade.

I have shaved without stropping, using a razor that I stropped and shaved with the day before. In essence, I guess that's like doing about 4 passes and I didn't notice too much difference. My whiskers are fairly coarse, although I wouldn't say I fall in the "steel wool" catagory, so maybe it has more to do with the steel used in the razor and the delicacy of the grind/edge?

BTW, I find that weepers tend to be more a result of too much pressure than a dull edge for me (although maybe we tend to put more pressure on a dull edge?). Mainly I get them with a really keen edge if I don't pay attention.

I never do ATG, and advise the same to others; 1) it is not necessary, you can get a good shave without it, in fact you can get a good shave once over if you know what you are doing 2) ATG is likely to cause major irritation and increases the risk of ingrown hairs substancially 3) most barbers manuals advise against ATG

I generally haven't found the need to strop before my ATG pass. When I was learning my ATG pass technique, I would strop mid-shave and it seemed to help, but since I've started to dial in my technique, or maybe just my honing has improved?, I haven't found the need. But I say if you've found something that works, stick with it

ya i guess an underlying question i had was whether there is anything i should change in my honing process that might change this. but for anyone to comment on that you would have to know my honing process
her goes:
equipement:
220/1k norton
4/8k norton
12k chinese + slurry stone
CrOx strop
linen/leather strop

i typically try not to overhone, but i'm not a minimalist. my technique is fairly consistent and i try to keep the same light pressure all the time. i do tend to do 80-100 laps on the CrOx after the initial honing. if it doesn't shave perfect then i will go back to the 12k for 50 laps and another 50 on the CrOx. before every shave i do 25 linen and 50 leather.

i won't rule out the posibility of overhoning, but i am a little doubtful, still i am very much still learning.

so i guess at this point its more about fine tuning things as i relaly do like the shaves i am getting from this razor and others i have honed. just looking for some advice.

thanks
Wes

[quote=Bill S;358984BTW, I find that weepers tend to be more a result of too much pressure than a dull edge for me (although maybe we tend to put more pressure on a dull edge?). Mainly I get them with a really keen edge if I don't pay attention.[/quote]

my technique is far from perfect, but i do tend to pay attention to the pressure i use. on the ATG it just seems like the razor pulls ever so slightly if i don't strop it and only in the really dense areas. this could well be my technique though. the weepers again are only in the dense parts like my side burns.

i think i may try leaving out the ATG for a bit and see what happens.

you said you use slurry with chinese stone?
what type slurry stone is that?
about overhoning
norton 4/8k will overhone blade. after all you done 80-100 on chro2 is kinda too much,stropping is fine.
.

Originally Posted by hi_bud_gl

you said you use slurry with chinese stone?
what type slurry stone is that?
about overhoning
norton 4/8k will overhone blade. after all you done 80-100 on chro2 is kinda too much,stropping is fine.
.

it is a 12k chinese slurry stone.
i don't really count the laps i do on the 4/8k as i more tend to go by the way the bevel looks under the 60x mag compared to what it looked like after the previous hone. i was using the TPT at first but didn't really like it, plus i was getting some messed up thumb and finger pads, since i play guitar i was not happy about this. i either use a modified HHT or the arm hair test. so overhoning could be a problem for me.

any suggestions for overhoning issues?

Originally Posted by chee16

so i can do an ATG but it is sometimes a little too much and the weepers come in. so i remembered someone posting that they have a heavy beard, so they tend to strop again before doing the ATG pass. so i tried it last night and it did make a difference (not that i was all that surprised). i don't consider my beard to be heavy, but apparently i was wrong.

It makes more of a difference with softer steels like some Sheffields have, and also if you use a very steep angle it makes a difference. I used to do this, but don't bother anymore, partly because I rarely use my Sheffields nowadays, and partly because I get better more comfortable shaves if I use a much lower angle - I usually keep the spine just off my skin, and I find the edges don't get beat up as much.