Thread: High pitched sound when stropping?

Now I would Guess (with a capitol G) that as the razor moves over the strop, especially a hollow, the edge vibrates like a reed making the noise. The movement provides the airflow.

Originally Posted by Fbones24

Consensus = Do not worry about strop sounds....it is the shave results that really matter.

I think this is one of those things I am "over thinking." K.I.S.S.

If it is shaving as it should there is no problem.

As long as the upstroke sounds the same as the downstroke, or at least relatively the same, there should be nothing to worry about.

If they DON'T sound the same, which you get sensitive to after you've been doing this for a while, a likely cause is during a stroke the spine is in full contact but the edge isn't. It won't damage your razor, but one side will be better stropped than the other due to the increased contact. This is generally more of an issue for smaller blades, as larger widths tend to lay flat on a strop with ease.

Originally Posted by Ryan82

As long as the upstroke sounds the same as the downstroke, or at least relatively the same, there should be nothing to worry about.

If they DON'T sound the same, which you get sensitive to after you've been doing this for a while, a likely cause is during a stroke the spine is in full contact but the edge isn't. It won't damage your razor, but one side will be better stropped than the other due to the increased contact. This is generally more of an issue for smaller blades, as larger widths tend to lay flat on a strop with ease.

Interesting...the noise gets slightly higher on the upstroke like you said. I will have to be more conscious of this. I guess it is a matter of experience because I feel much more comfortable stropping downstroke than upstroke if that makes any sense.

The only blade I get an unusual sound with is a smaller one that I suspect might be slightly bent. I get a scratchy sound on the downstroke only. One of these days, I'll have to send it out.

Leather strops have a directional grain which may or may not account for subtle sound differences. Just theorising ...

Originally Posted by onimaru55

Leather strops have a directional grain which may or may not account for subtle sound differences. Just theorising ...

That is an interesting theory. I just stropped a razor i am planning to shave with shortly. I noticed the high pitched noise mostly on the upstroke and not on the downstroke. I hope I am not lifting the spine on my way up but I don't think that would have anything to do with the noise. So far my razors have been shaving okay, from my limited experience, so I don't think I am stropping incorrectly.

This directional grain thing would make sense. Can anyone confirm this? Do other people notice a difference in the sound on the up and down?

I find it is very subtle & not something even my OCD nature would be concerned over.
If your strop is not being scratched by any anomalies in the blade shape then as Nun2sharp said:
"if it is shaving as it should there is no problem."