Thread: Stropping a wedge...

Hi,

just got a nice wedge for christmas there. It`s a beautiful razor, but I`m having a hard time getting a good feel while stropping. Compared to my hollow ground razors, it doesn`t give me any feedback. I find it hard to know if I`m doing it correctly. Do you guys feel the same way or is it just me.

PS. THe razor is also significantly heavier than my other razors.

Cheers and Merry Christmas,

JF

wedges give little feedback, and definitely do not give off much sound when stropping unlike hollower grounds.
if your stropping technique with hollow grounds is good then you will be fine with the wedge too. Same principles apply, the weight of the razor will provide enough pressure for the stropping.

have 2 agree, they give nearly no feedback whether during stropping or shaving. Sure will mow down what's in their path, though.

Originally Posted by kwigibocity

Sure will mow down what's in their path, though.

I like that, its very true! They are like battle tanks and will take down everything in their way!

I find they make very little if any sound when stropping them, but the technique is the same. I tend to go a little slower with heavy wedges.

Just went and stropped an old W&B to double check. I just strop them carefully as I do with the full hollows. If the tang is thin on any razor I might have to pay more attention but if I have a good grip on it between the tips of my thumb and forefinger they are all more or less alike to me. The tang and snug fitting scales matter more to me than the shape or weight of the blade. A thin or an odd tang is where I have to really be careful.

I don't really understand what you mean when you refer to feedback while stropping. The only feedback I get is draw. Yes, full hollows make some noise, but I don't consider it feedback because I can't really use it to tell me much about what's going on (unless the pitch goes way up, in which case I know I lifted the spine).

With draw, on my strop, any given blade will have more draw when it is sharp as opposed to dull. I find that, in general, wedges draw more than full hollows, regardless of how sharp they are. But, still, if wedge X is very sharp, it will draw more than wedge X when it is dull. This may not be the case on other strops, because they all produce draw differently.

holli I find that, beyond the draw friction coefficient which is useful in itts own right, full/singing hollows give acoustical cues as to when their being stropped ideally.

I find that seeking that sound helps me to keep as little pressure as possible on the edge more than feeling the draw and adjusting to it.

Use lots of different old hollow ground classics and they all feel differently in the draw, but they'll all make that 'zinging' sound if I'm stropping perfectly.

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

Just went and stropped an old W&B to double check. I just strop them carefully as I do with the full hollows. If the tang is thin on any razor I might have to pay more attention but if I have a good grip on it between the tips of my thumb and forefinger they are all more or less alike to me. The tang and snug fitting scales matter more to me than the shape or weight of the blade. A thin or an odd tang is where I have to really be careful.

I agree. The tang and scales fitting snug are much more important considerations for me when stropping.

yes, wedges and 1/4 hollows have less feedback when stropping than full hollows. The good news is the heavy blades take all the skill out of not rolling the edge as they are so heavy they kindof sit where they are supposed to on the strop.