Thread: How much pressure when stropping?

There are 2 reasons given to strop fast...

1. To get the job done quickly

2. To create heat in the bevel/edge that will invoke the plasticity of steel to more easily burnish the bevel/edge and thus make it smoother & sharper.

Unfortunately this have never been shown to happen. It is purely a theoretical argument.
The downside to rapid stropping is that the risk of making an error greatly increases.
BTW, even with very slow stropping your edge can become so sharp that it will be uncomfortable to use. There is no need for rapid stropping or for rapid honing on a stone.

At first I used very little pressure, about the same as honing so that I would not roll the edge. What I found is that once you get the motion down it will come to you. The pressure should be mostly on the spine and the amount on the edge can then be controlled. You will get to a comfortable level when you get to about 10 thousand laps. Just the fact that you are asking the question of how much pressure means that you will recognize the proper amount of pressure. It will come to you.


Take Care,
Richard

Originally Posted by mumpig

I am focused on training muscle memory, keeping the spine on the strop, maintaining a taut strop (too taut, I worry) with the edge trailing in contact all the way. I'm putting a bit more pressure on the spine and on the edge. So far, so good. Paranoid about ruining an edge. I have an old time barber friend who is returning to health and when he is up and about I'm hoping to get more tips from him.

PMFJI --

You _cannot_ hold the strop too tight. A perfectly-tight strop is equivalent to a paddle strop -- and those work fine. An almost-perfectly-tight strop is equivalent to a loom strop -- and those also work fine.

What will kill the edge is:

. . . putting lots of pressure on the blade (including pressure on the edge), and

. . . having the strop loose, so that it bends around the edge, rather
. . . . . . . than only bending around the spine.

A tight strop, and light pressure on the blade (mostly on the spine) is what you want. It sounds like that's what you're aiming for.

Your barber friend should make all this clear in about two minutes.

Charles

Most strops have a little draw. If it does you would use only enough pressure to feel some draw. Looked at another way, the simplicity of stropping becomes painfully obvious; strop with enough pressure so it feels like you are stropping.

What this means is that when you move the blade down the strop you should feel something, and what that is is stropping. As Randy points out, this effect happens at practically any speed.

Just a point of clarification for the OP.............

Pressure......when I hone I use a 60/40 distribution, 60% on the spine and 40% on the edge ( approx). I try to do the same when stropping.

Taut strop........Yup, a slack strop will dull the edge but please, not so tight that you pull the bolts out of the wall!

Originally Posted by randydance062449

Just a point of clarification for the OP.............

Pressure......when I hone I use a 60/40 distribution, 60% on the spine and 40% on the edge ( approx). I try to do the same when stropping.

Taut strop........Yup, a slack strop will dull the edge but please, not so tight that you pull the bolts out of the wall!

I posted a video in the Stroptober thread asking about how taught to keep the strop, I keep hearing taught but I guess its like trying to explain what sharp is

Originally Posted by randydance062449

There are 2 reasons given to strop fast...

1. To get the job done quickly

2. To create heat in the bevel/edge that will invoke the plasticity of steel to more easily burnish the bevel/edge and thus make it smoother & sharper.

Unfortunately this have never been shown to happen. It is purely a theoretical argument.
The downside to rapid stropping is that the risk of making an error greatly increases.
BTW, even with very slow stropping your edge can become so sharp that it will be uncomfortable to use. There is no need for rapid stropping or for rapid honing on a stone.

I'll propose (again) one additional reason for "fast" stropping, and that is uniformity. Imagine the variance of the razor as it travels s-l-o-w-l-y along the strop. Wavering here, more pressure here, less there, etc. Even though the variance might be miniscule, it might be enough to matter, especially with multiple passes.

Originally Posted by honedright

I'll propose (again) one additional reason for "fast" stropping, and that is uniformity. Imagine the variance of the razor as it travels s-l-o-w-l-y along the strop. Wavering here, more pressure here, less there, etc. Even though the variance might be miniscule, it might be enough to matter, especially with multiple passes.

There is sort of a natural speed one settles into with stropping, I think - going faster than that feels detrimental to me

Originally Posted by hoglahoo

There is sort of a natural speed one settles into with stropping, I think - going faster than that feels detrimental to me

Of course speed must match comfort and ability. I'm just pointing out that the slower you go, from point A to B, the more chance there is for little differences in variables such as pressure change, tilt of the razor, etc. to affect the edge. The quicker the swipe from A to B, the less likely anything willl have a chance to change from beginning to end. Of course still accounting for the skill of the person stropping. Also, not implying lightning fast, just fast enough, whatever that might be. And keep in mind, there are two sides to the blade. So not only is it necessary to strop one side of the edge uniformly, you want to strop the other side equally uniform, or as close as possible.

I think this same principle would apply to honing as well.

I'm assuming that uniformity of the edge is important to the overall shave-ability of the razor. Just as with machine made blades. But since we probably don't have the ability for that same, fine precision of a machine, anything we can do to reduce error, I think, would help.

So, I suppose there is a point where if you go too slow you are increasing the chance for error, and if you go too fast the same. You just have to find the right middle ground.