Thread: Is linen neccessary + The difference between linen and cotton

My standard every day stropping is 25/50, I haven't ever found more to be better... BUT... as we say with honing your stroke might not be the same as mine, so start more at first, then back it down until you notice a difference in the feel of the shave.. you might only need 15/30 only you will know...

Ok, I'm going to restart at 30/60 and move down.

I have both tm cotton and linen the linen is more efective in my opinion. I do 20 linen and 40 leather.

As Jimmy points out, this issue has been debated over the years. I have read the same as the rest of the posters but never that the linen (or other materials) could be damaging. If anything, if you have the few minutes to spare, I would do it. I do find stropping extremely relaxing so I do not mind the extra stropping at all.

Al raz.

This is what I am talking about

Top is new linen, bottom is after about 200 razors....

Originally Posted by gssixgun

The benefits to the shave are subjective, and therefore up for discusion...

BUT

Anyone who strops on a white colored linen/cotton fabric will tell you, and can show you the one fact of the discussion... There are traces of rust and corrosion left on the fabric, the longer you use it the more that shows up.... I would rather have those traces on the fabric (where they can be brushed off easily) then embedded in my leather strop....

Glen, you've stropped many more razors than most of us ever will. Have you noticed any appreciable difference between cotton and linen?

I just began using Neils linen and it is great. Seems like a perfect fit for a
straight razor.

Originally Posted by Basset

Glen, you've stropped many more razors than most of us ever will. Have you noticed any appreciable difference between cotton and linen?

NO !!! not on a per shave basis... I don't even know if I could honestly say the edges last longer that way, I THINK they do but I have never set down an experiment to prove it...I can't even say I notice a difference between just leather...

The only PROOF I can offer is what I just showed you, something comes off the edges, if you could look close, there are tiny bits of red in there too....So something is happening off the linen/cotton and I am pretty sure if the webbed fabric were white you would see it there too... I have been doing it this way to long to change now, whether you chose to go that route is your decision....

You would have to look closely with magnification to see what the stuff is. maybe oil traces, maybe dust and dirt, maybe metal?

I have the same thing on mine. I've used linen and canvas and a few other types and though I always use cloth and I feel it helps I don't notice any differences between them though they all feel different as you use them.

Originally Posted by gssixgun

This is what I am talking about

Top is new linen, bottom is after about 200 razors....

Hi guys,
I'm a noobie here and have a question about the strops pictured. Do any razors go directly from hones to that cloth or is it strictly from face to strop? If hones are involved I think that is swarf from honing. I have same strop with 6 months of use with no hones involved and mine looks nothing like that. I very well could be completely wrong.