Thread: Identifying a convex bevel caused by extensive pasted stropping

By practice, after a shave, I like to do about 15-20 passes on a CrOx .30 pasted felt, then about the same on a CrOx .30 pasted leather strop, before stropping anywhere between 50-100 passes.

How do I identify if and when I've created the convex bevel situation, requiring me to reset the bevel? I've been reading Bevel-setting in theory and practice - Straight Razor Place Wiki and thought at most, I'd just have to send the razor back to the 12k, at most, for semi-routine maintenance.

Please can someone shed some light on this and, if I've posted to the incorrect sub-forum, I do apologize if it need to be moved.

Regards,

Siguy

Man I would love to look at that bevel under Magnification if you have been doing this routine for awhile...

There is a ton of theory about Convexing bevels with pastes, myself I tried to create it abusing a razor on two hanging strops and Diamond pastes, and gave up after about 90 shaves..

90 Shaves w/out hitting a touchup on the hone. Wow. I hardly consider my routine abusive, though. Would you all agree?

It's a pretty run of the mill paste and strop routine as far as I've seen around here.

Also, does routine touchups with the 12k reduce the chances of convexing a bevel or would it require more cutting power(addition of a slury ontop of a 12k or even going to an 8k). Hmmmm... I've been hitting the 12k every other week on the razor I've been using consistently. After doing that, I go with Lynn's routine and hit the pasted felt and pasted strop....

I'm interested to here more... much more.

Yeah the Maintenance on the 12k would change the equation,,

If I read the post right you are pasting after every shave ?????

I would love to hear more about peoples experience in this too. From what I have read people share beliefs but I have read very little about experience except for Glen's experiments. Interesting post.

I have a 4/8 Boker that I got awhile ago and it actually had a convex bevel. Whether it got it from stropping I couldn't tell you, but I do know that it still shaved beautifully when I got it even with a convex bevel. It has been in my rotation for awhile now and has hit a couple of stones from touch ups and messing around with new stones so the bevel isn't convex anymore. The razor came from an older gentlemen that used it regularly for many years. I think a convex bevel would form alot more easily from applying different pressures when touching up a razor causing it to flex and deflex during a stroke on a stone. Hmmm might have to try that and see what happens.

Originally Posted by gssixgun

Yeah the Maintenance on the 12k would change the equation,,

If I read the post right you are pasting after every shave ?????

Yep. That sums it up. 10-20 pasted felt/ 10-20 pasted leather/ 50-100 leather only.

Do you see any issue with that?

Personally i did a test similar to Glen's on 2 razors, but with CBN, i gave up after close to a year and both razors didnt show any problems what so ever.

I dont see any issues with your routine, and certainly would not worry about a convex edge.Perhaps you could skip the paste to every other shave?

It would be interesting if there was a machine that would strop a razor 24/7 perfectly, and have someone test the edge to see how long it would last.

Originally Posted by Siguy

Yep. That sums it up. 10-20 pasted felt/ 10-20 pasted leather/ 50-100 leather only.

Do you see any issue with that?

Issue??? I can't argue with success, I would consider Martin's idea and try skipping the paste a little and watch for ill effects..

The famous saying around SRP is "Less is More" Lynn said it pertaining to honing but honestly it pretty much runs throughout the entire hobby, try a little less and see what happens

It's quite hard to get hht 5 off anything but adamantium blades and nano pastes on silk scarves wafted across the edge by a northerly gust off migratory swallow wings during the solstice.

I get good shaves off all my razors, but they only get honed once every year or so, and I don't own or use pastes. You do not need to paste your blades to get good shaves.

However, pastes are cheap and easy and there's certainly nothing wrong with that, particularly when you consider the prices of a complete stone set, and of some the finishers out there.

I don't know if there's any long term effect of daily pasting. I suspect there's decreasing returns as you abrade away the edge and have to start dealing with larger distances, but this also eventually happens with the more traditional approach. For me the question would be about rate.

James