Thread: How do you strop

I want to poll members on what they actually do. I'm also curious, if you would like to add, on your resulting edge life.

I'm not sure how to do a poll though, so we'll see if this works.

I'm taut and amount varies slightly. I try to finish, as you suggested in a previous thread AF, with very, very light pressure .... going for almost the weight of the blade.

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

I'm taut and amount varies slightly. I try to finish, as you suggested in a previous thread AF, with very, very light pressure .... going for almost the weight of the blade.

Same routine as Jimmy, but I'll add that my strop is taut but not so taut that my arm hurts, just enough to take up the slack. I've been experimenting with this approach after reading several threads on stropping and edge retention and it seems to be working out great so far.

Not as well as I should.

Taut; A little pressure, the amount varies slightly. I think that strops have a sweet spot. My edges seem to last remarkably long ever since Bart taught me proper stropping.

How do I strop? Hold and pull south end of strop with left hand and stroke razor repeatedly north and south with right hand. Really? Really. Description of rocket science endeth here.

Originally Posted by BeBerlin

Taut; A little pressure, the amount varies slightly. I think that strops have a sweet spot.

I am becoming a believer in this... my strops act differently and I change accordingly.

Since I started Stropping with a slight deflection, my edges have been absolutely unbelievable! The amount of this slight deflection depends upon the grind of the blade. I let the blade determine the deflection by feel and sound. Of course, my pressure is absolutely no more than the weight of the razor, very, very light.

I wish I could translate/communicate this better. I am sold, absolutely, on this new method, for me. Yes, my prep and shaving techniques continue to improve. I think my honing skills have remained the same, which is excellent to great(honest). I attribute this new phenom for me to be the new stropping technique........... It's just something that I know!

* What I am saying is that my edges were always excellent, but now they have even improved to a level that is difficult to describe.

Regards,

Steve

Taut; A little pressure, the amount varies slightly is the choice for me, as well. I normally start off with a little pressure and ease down to where I'm only using enough to keep the spine flat on the strop. This works better for me than using that same extremely light pressure all the way through the stropping process.

I use just enough pressure to keep the spine firmly against the strop. Then I add a little torque until I can just feel the blade edge dragging along behind the spine.

For a while I had a problem with slapping and popping at the turns, but I noticed over the last few days this has gone away. I don't know how?

All the rotation occurs with the thumb and fingers; no wrist rotation at all.