Thread: Thank you @Razorfeld - stropping issues.

I wanted to post a thread to all beginners - USE THE MENTORS!!! These are awesome people. I was about done with straights until @razorfeld took me aside via email and gave me some advice. The straight shaving experience is 100% dependent upon technique. Took about a month of ranting at him on email post-shave, but he politely guided me through it all. The mentors are here for a reason, so use them. I went from wanting to quit straights to getting perfect 10 min shaves within a few months of tutoring. 90% of the time, you don't need a hone, you just need to learn how to strop and you'll have awesome shaves.

Glad to hear it worked out for you...and getting some direct guidance from Pope Razorfeld is an incredible bonus...you were blessed!

Originally Posted by Phrank

Glad to hear it worked out for you...and getting some direct guidance from Pope Razorfeld is an incredible bonus...you were blessed!

One of my favorite people ever. I didn't even know what I was doing wrong until he walked me through the process. Then, you say to yourself, "DUH!!!". It's obvious once you get it.

Yes - stropping is a key fundamental, took a visit with a honemesiter who looked at the edges of the 8 blades I had at the time to tell me that 6 of them had rolled edges, I was stropping incorrectly, and with a rolled edge, you're essentially pooched of getting a good shave.

Went back and started all over again practicing stropping, speed kills, keep the spine on the strop, slow and steady...next was stropping the correct amount...there was a thread awhile back, a member posted a pic of the edge of a blade right after the stones with 50 laps of stropping on the leather...then went back and did another 50 laps on the leather for a total of 100, posted another pic...and the difference was very noticeable...I upped my stropping at that point...but that seems to be a real YMMV aspect.

So what bridged the gap for you then?

Thanks for the kind words while I go get a cold compress to fade the blushing I'm going through.

Shaving isn't rocket science, thank God, but it is an exact method (with variations) that if followed will give a fantastic result having you singing huzzahs and hoorays to the heavens. Only if you look carefully at your technique and take it slow and in small steps. It also helps to start off convincing yourself that you nothing, literally nothing about razors, soaps/creams, strops and especially honing and move at that slow pace, conquering each step as you go before you take your next step. End sermon of the day. Go forth and shave.

Amen Pope Razorfeld, these words of advise should be written on tablets of stone and handed out to all newcomers. Tc

The best advice @razorfeld ever gave me was to look at what I was doing. Took me MONTHS to realize that the blade edge wasn't even touching. There's a "light touch", and then a "light touch" with meaning. Once I adjusted my angle, it's been awesome since. I spent a few months stropping the spine because I was more obsessed with being "light" vs being "right".

Razorfeld is a big sweetie! Gotta love him!

Originally Posted by sharptonn

Razorfeld is a big sweetie! Gotta love him!

AW!! You're creepy.

If not for razorfeld, I'd be spending $30/month on Gillette disposables. The guy is a true man.