Thread: First 2 weeks of stropping

I've been with this new endeavor now two weeks and here are the tolls of my noobness. I am curious how many others have done the same with theirs?

Plenty Of Us Have Done That!

Thats not even that bad. I've seen worse. The other issue that tends to be the bigger one as far as comfort goes, is what is your shaving edge like. Along with nicking our strops many of us have also rolled the edge on our razors. Don't hesitate to get it honed.

Yep that sucks, that's the primary reason so many people advise against getting a nice strop as your first one. But it can be repaired with a little mineral oil and some sandy paper. Oh and BTW, I've done it plenty too........ in fact as much as i would not like to admit it, i did it last week for the first time in over a year.

Yea, don't worry you have plenty of company and I still manage to get the odd small nick still. There is a reason that there is more than one thread on here dealing with strop repair.

Bob

Funnily enough I was taking a picture of some nicks in my strop that I repaired this morning, when lo and behold, I found a new one. Character I call it.

Yes, mine have nicks too, mostly on the bottom right, towards the handle. Tells you a lot about your stropping technique and what you're doing wrong though But yeah, it's very common and everyone has done it at some point or another.

The way I look at it is a strop is a tool. It's meant to be used, not a museum piece that hangs above your fireplace. And use means there's going to be some wear and tear - nicks, scratches, scuff marks etc. Yes, it sucks if you pay $300+ for a strop and after awhile it doesn't look like a showroom piece anymore, but at the end of the day it is still a tool and that's the risk you run when buying an expensive strop.

Just my two cents....

So you are right handed then? All my nicks are bottom left, (i am a lefty). My strop cost about $40 to make, couldn't bring myself to spend $300. But you are right its there to be used, like a brand new work van, no point getting all precious, as long as you don't completely disable it a few scars will remind you of your journey.

Originally Posted by edhewitt

So you are right handed then? All my nicks are bottom left, (i am a lefty). My strop cost about $40 to make, couldn't bring myself to spend $300. But you are right its there to be used, like a brand new work van, no point getting all precious, as long as you don't completely disable it a few scars will remind you of your journey.

Yup, right handed. Those nicks can best be avoided by keeping your elbow level or slightly elevated relative to the strop, assuming your strop mount is roughly waist height. Though in the last couple years the only times I've caused a nick is when using a razor with loose scales. It tends to get away from you when stropping fast....

Just got my scales tightened a bit actually