Thread: Beginners mistakes

I made the mistake of going in with the blade facing the strop the other day n made my first nick in my strop... Luckily it was on the top edge of the strop where the blade doesn't touch. Now I go in with the spine facing down.

Yeah I've done that practicing a couple of times with a butter knife and strop. My razor is off getting a hone. So, I'm keeping a butter knife in the bathroom and every time I walk by I practice a few strop swipes and a shave.
The wife thinks I'm nuts and my puppy is fascinated with it. Every time I go in she laughs and he sits/lays down and watches me. I LOVE IT!

Very good advice. Take what I say with a grain of salt...I am very new to all this. I am using a board strop and I find it helpful because it provides the backbone necessary to help me focus on keeping the blade and spine flat on the strop. I go very slow and focus on keeping the spine down and flipping the edge (slowly). So far so good.

All good advice. When I first started, I would flip the spine and use more pressure on the beginning of the new lap than in the middle of the lap. Consistent, light to moderate pressure on each lap works best for me. Like everyone says....Go slow....

Originally Posted by MedicineMan

Good afternoon all,

Just started SRing last week and I've been reading about a lot of beginners trash their strops. In your experience or in talking to others what are the common mistakes use beginners make when using the strop?

Thanks!

Jer

Beginners mistakes are getting to confident after at first taking it slow and slicing the strop!!!!!! The other is too much pressure and a slack strop then you roll the edge. I rather roll the edge and have to touch up on the hones then slice a expensive strop!!!!!

It happens to us all my friend and you will not be the last to make a mistake or if you have not yet I assure you, you will.

I am new to straight razors and bought a cheap $10 Gold Dollar and a $12 strop just to practice the motions and technique. This was a good thing because I sliced the practice strop near the top and put several nicks near the bottom while practicing.

Stop, before you flip.

try different angles of holding the strop , i found that a small inclination(holding the strop lower than the attachment point) gives me a bit more control , but i know some prefer a downward angle or horizontal .
what i am trying to say is that take your experimenting with different positions until you find what is best for you and as long as you keep the razor flat on the strop you should be good to go.
listen to the strop!!! and i am not joking you can tell allot by the sound the strop makes with each stroke , you need to hear a consistent sound in all strokes , an inconsistent sound(ie different when the blade is going away from you) usually means something is off in your technique .
another point i would add is try to experiment with your thumb positioning when holding the razor , you will notice it feels completely different with every position and you need to find what feels most natural .

all the luck to you

I guess a lot of people feel the need for speed when stripping. They see a lot of videos on YouTube where an expert does a demo of stropping where he goes really fast and newbies like me try that and knick of cut their $200 strop..

Speed and everything else such as precise wrist movement comes with time and experience. It's best for less experienced to take it slow at first

Originally Posted by Str8Up

I guess a lot of people feel the need for speed when stripping. They see a lot of videos on YouTube where an expert does a demo of stropping where he goes really fast and newbies like me try that and knick of cut their $200 strop..

Speed and everything else such as precise wrist movement comes with time and experience. It's best for less experienced to take it slow at first

Something I learned these past three weeks: go slow but not too slow when stropping.

I first got a Dovo Bismarck that simply wouldn't shave. It tugged a lot and left behind too much hair.

Then I got a shave ready, restored razor, honed by a reputable seller. Some improvement, but not much.

Stropping seemed ineffective, even though I was taking my time to make sure the razors were properly positioned and flat against the strip.

I was doing 30 laps on the rough side and 60 on the fine side. It didn't seem it was doing anything to the edge.

After getting used to the mechanics, I started stropping a bit faster and it brought a huge improvement to the edge. I think the razor is benefiting from a little more pressure - since it's hard to go fast without any pressure - and also from some heat being transferred to the thin edge.

Yesterday I got my first BBS after 20 days trying almost daily. It was far closer than any shave I ever got with my DEs.