Let me start by saying I just completed one of the better shaves I've ever done.

I pulled my bowden's wedge out last night and decided to run it on a balsa strop .3 and .1 to see if I could make it shave ready. surprisingly enough it came off the balsa and then leather feeling exactly like my boker with the thumb test. Which while not as sharp as my lion auctioneer is definitely shave ready. so I figured I'd shave with it tonight to see what happened. It went fantastic besides a couple weepers until halfway through the last pass and then started becoming like it was before I put it on the balsa. It's like the edge won't hold up for a full three passes.

my strop progression was 15 passes on each side of the balsa (I tried seven on the .3 and didn't get much so I doubled it) I then wiped it and proceeded to linen and then 50 on leather.

so after the blade seemed to be failing I gave it the thumb test and it seemed to not be grabbing at all. I threw it on the leather strop for 20 passes and now it's back to feeling shave ready. which seems weird to me because a strop doesn't sharpen it aligns the fin.