Thread: Stropping and honing videos at Yahoo

I love watching these movies. As they say a google video says a thousand words (or something like that).

It's amazing what practice can do. if I tried honing and stropping at that speed I would seriously do some damage to my strop, hone, razor and self. The third movie with the paddle strop sounds like he's really hitting it with the razor!

He is, I don't recommend it but I've done it and its fun but not really helpful. If you watch closely though he is building a draw on the strop, that does help. You can get even a dull razor shaving with that technique.

What do you mean by building a draw? I thought you got a draw from the strop when the razor was properly honed and the fin caught slightly as you stropped.

(This is why these movies are great. They always bring up so many questions)

Yes, your right, but with proper stropping a dull or even a not so sharp razor can be aligned with proper stropping. This takes feel and experience. The razor begins to build draw as the edge becomes sharper/smoother. Its something you need to feel and experience, its hard to explain to someone whose never done it. Most dull edges don't actually need to go to a hone constantly, you can actually learn to increase the draw and thereby the edge results using only a strop. Watch closely as the razor seems to get sticky against the strop as he progresses. With light stropping you get the edge "wetted" and with some pressure the entire bevel smoothes out and the draw increases. Fortunately, most guys shave with just the edge. But if your one of these guys that strops mid shave a lot you may want to practice getting more draw out, it helps a little. Where it really becomes helpful is when you shave with a duller razor and you want it to shave really smooth without bothering on the hone. For beginners though, chasing a dull razor with increasing draw techniques isn't advisable, you can roll the edge easily, and honing is pretty easy.

Regarding the speed used stropping and honing in those first two videos:

Speed, as often pointed out on this site, is not essential to do a good job. Over time, and with much practice, speed develops on it's own. You come to a point where it's just natural to go faster, to a point.

I'm reminded of when I first learned to ride a bicycle. At first I went very slowly and cautiously, and wobbled a lot. It wasn't until I gained confidence and started pedaling and moving faster that I realized I actually had more control over the bike.

Although the physics are completly different with the razor (I thought the bike analogy was ok), I feel the same increase in control when stropping and honing faster. It also takes less time for me to prep the razor.

If you can consider that a stroke on the strop, or hone, made in a fraction of a second offers less chance for variation in pressure, lifting the spine, change of angle, etc. than would happen if the stroke persisted over 5 seconds, you may understand what I mean. At least this is what I've experienced personally.

This doesn't mean that an inexperienced person should start flailing away with the razor to save time. That could spell disaster.

But I have found, that once the skill is developed, there is some advantage to speed.

Scott

Originally Posted by honedright

Regarding the speed used stropping and honing in those first two videos:

Speed, as often pointed out on this site, is not essential to do a good job. Over time, and with much practice, speed develops on it's own. You come to a point where it's just natural to go faster, to a point.

I'm reminded of when I first learned to ride a bicycle. At first I went very slowly and cautiously, and wobbled a lot. It wasn't until I gained confidence and started pedaling and moving faster that I realized I actually had more control over the bike.

Although the physics are completly different with the razor, I feel the same increase in control when stropping and honing faster. It also takes less time for me to prep the razor.

If you can consider that a stroke on the strop, or hone, made in a fraction of a second offers less chance for variation in pressure, lifting the spine, change of angle, etc. than would happen if the stroke persisted over 5 seconds, you may understand what I mean. At least this is what I've experienced personally.

This doesn't mean that an inexperienced person should start flailing away with the razor to save time. That could spell disaster.

But I have found, that once the skill is developed, there is some advantage to speed.

Scott

Scott,

Yes, very wise indeed. I think the physics are the same. Where I really run into trouble is when I apply the idea to honing! :-)

good find on the video there superfly.

Originally Posted by AFDavis11

Yes, your right, but with proper stropping a dull or even a not so sharp razor can be aligned with proper stropping. This takes feel and experience. The razor begins to build draw as the edge becomes sharper/smoother. Its something you need to feel and experience, its hard to explain to someone whose never done it. Most dull edges don't actually need to go to a hone constantly, you can actually learn to increase the draw and thereby the edge results using only a strop. Watch closely as the razor seems to get sticky against the strop as he progresses. With light stropping you get the edge "wetted" and with some pressure the entire bevel smoothes out and the draw increases. Fortunately, most guys shave with just the edge. But if your one of these guys that strops mid shave a lot you may want to practice getting more draw out, it helps a little. Where it really becomes helpful is when you shave with a duller razor and you want it to shave really smooth without bothering on the hone. For beginners though, chasing a dull razor with increasing draw techniques isn't advisable, you can roll the edge easily, and honing is pretty easy.

Well there you go, learn something every day. When I've been stropping I have felt the draw come and go. Didn't know why. I found that if the draw went away I could change the angle of the razor on the strop to get the draw back.

I strop mainly on an \ kind of angle. Should I stick with this and stop stropping once I feel the draw, or go hunting for it with different angles?

AFDavis11,

I have found that proper stropping will maintain a keen edge for a very long time. In fact I've gone for close to a year, maybe longer, with just stropping and no honing at all.

As you mention, the "feel" is very important. As one develops skill, and speed, a kind of flow occurs during stropping, and honing. When the brain is no longer distracted by the mechanical process of stropping and honing, it can focus more on subtle variations, like "draw", that can be detected if one knows what to look for.

Scott