Thread: Mid Shave Stropping

Does anyone here feel the need to strop their razor in the middle of a shave? I hope I am not rehashing an old topic, but I wonder how quickly andedge deteriorates during a shave.

Originally Posted by Korndog

Does anyone here feel the need to strop their razor in the middle of a shave? I hope I am not rehashing an old topic, but I wonder how quickly andedge deteriorates during a shave.

Although I can't remember who, I have heard on the forum of seasoned straight razor shavers with extremely heavy beards claim they need to strop between passes .... I think the barber's textbook recommends stropping between passes, too, though I don't feel the need with my beard.

FWIW
I sometimes have to strop between passes, I think it depends a bit on the razor, though. I also have a really tough beard, one of those where it still looks like I have shadow, even when my face FEELS glass smooth...
(I remember once in SAR school, 5 minutes after a shave, one of the instructors "suggested" that he thought perhaps I'd shaved with a sharp rock....in fact at the time it had been a brand new M3 blade....)
different strokes I guess...
John P.

Sometimes I feel the need to strop in the middle of the night! This is an addicting hobby <g>

Tony

Tony, sometimes I do too! The honing/stropping bug can hit at any time!

I've never had to strop mid shave. I think it depends on the quality of razor you have and the heavyness of your bid. Mine is quite average, beard that is.

But talking about feeling the need to strop in the middle of the night reminds me of an old barbers tale actually a true story told to me by an old coute who had a problem sleepwalking. He would wake up doing the weirdest of things. One night he woke up standing in front of his bathroom mirror all lathered up with a straight in his hand ready to go. Good thing he woke up when he did.

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

I've never had to strop mid shave. I think it depends on the quality of razor you have and the heavyness of your bid. Mine is quite average, beard that is.
.

Do some people feel the need to strop midshave even after a good hot shower/steam, etc?

I was wondering if I should strop midshave then I tried something this morning based on info from this board that made all the difference in the world.

This a.m. while showering I decided to lather my face after washing my hair. I stepped away from the water, turned the cold off, heated the outside of the mug with the water a few minutes, worked a good lather then lathered up my face. then I readjusted the water temp to as hot as I could stand while showering, left the lather on until just before stepping out. I went to the sink, lathered up, stropped and proceeded to experience the best shave I've had yet.

I don't have a super thick beard but it generally looks like I need a shave at the end of the day even after shaving in the a.m. This has been somewhat better with the str8. Today though I think I'm going to look half decent this evening.

FUD

I'm a rank beginner at this and tried the midshave strop today between passes.
It really helped my shave compared to the previous times. What nicks I had didn't even need the styptic pencil, and like previous times the nicks happened on the second pass.

The razor I have is a Fromm 5/8, bought from and honed by Tony Miller. It's plenty sharp, and I realize my stropping and actual shaving technique still need work. So my question is this. Since my beard, especially around my upper lip and chin, is fairly tough, the individual hairs being kind of thick too from wearing facial hair for 15+ years, is this an indication that I should move up in blade size?
Or should I wait a month or so and see if the combination of technique improvement and the beard adjusting to straight shaving results in less need to strop between passes?

Also, would a larger size razor still need midshave stropping or does the larger size hold its keenness longer?

Thank you,
David G.

I one of those that goes by the old adage 'sharp is sharp". I don't think shaving with a larger razor will give you a closer shave. Many prefer the larger razors as they have more weight to them they seem to just zip through the beard very easily but on the other hand a smaller blade is more manueverable and has more feedback. So its more a matter of what you prefer. With a smaller blade you naturally compensate with the required pressure as you shave.

A blade holding its sharpness has nothing to do with its size its a function of the quality of its materials and manufacture and of course your beard type. In my opinion if you have to restrop with a small blade you'll have to do it with a larger one of equal quality.

If I were you I would give it some more time and see what happens. If things don't improve with more experience then you might try a larger blade and see if it makes a difference for you.

Originally Posted by Tony Miller

Sometimes I feel the need to strop in the middle of the night! This is an addicting hobby <g>
Tony

I have to admit that my wife sometimes catches me stropping a razor at odd times of the day or night. I tell her it's better than catching me watching internet porn.