SIMPLE BUT COMPLICATED, WHY STROP AT ALL?
What could be more simple but possibly more complex than to rub a piece of steel on a piece of leather.
Why do we strop anyway?
The closest strop we have is the one we carry around every day, our own skin. When we shave, the blade is pulled edge first into the skin. When we strop on a barbers strop, we pull the blade through spine first. Does either of these actions actually dull or sharpen a highly refined world class high tech or old world fantastic steel blade?
In as of itself I suspect not. But there must be other factors that come into play somehow. The way I see it there are two main reasons a blade becomes dull and ineffective, those are adverse abrasion and oxidation. The world is full of abrasive particles including dust and the case hardened fibers of newspaper, these will to a greater or lessor degree dull our cherished blades. But I keep my razor super clean and away from dust and I never cut out coupons with it and in fact the only known abrasive my razor comes in contact with is my sharpeing stone. Than what's left and how can it become dull? Maybe I am missing something here.
After I hone my razor on my best and final stone and I deem it sharp enough to shave with, I do just that, I shave. I do not strop it next I just go ahead and shave. I personally do not feel that stroping on clean leather is sharpening.
Now I may be a little simplistic here but the only reason I strop my blade is in order to, after I have shaved, to systematically super dry the blade at the cutting edge by using the friction generated by stroping. This I have found will help to stymie the formation of rust on the microscopic level, the bane of a sharp blade. I am also meticulous about stropping after honing my blade for the same reasons.
Have you every laid your razor flat on your freshly shaved cheek after stroping? The edge is hot.
I suspect that the greatest threat to a sharp blade is rust. I do not have a super hard beard so others must weigh in on that element, but I have found that "if" I can control the oxidation on my blade it will stay sharp for many weeks or even months. You might have guessed, I do not store my razors in the bathroom next to the shower, nor do I finger them endlessly during the day leaving fingerprint/moisture trapping stains on the blades and I do not load up my lovely use polished leather with foreign abrasive particles. I try to keep it simple, hone (only when dull), shave, strop, shave, strop, shave, strop. Alx