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First post. Hello everyone.
I did this one for a friend. Measures: 40 x 10 x 3.8 cm.
My question is: Should he use Chromium Oxide or not?
Thanks.
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Welcome!
Wow, that's a monster of a strop. Beautiful craftsmanship, too.
It's so pretty, it would be a shame to "deface" it with Chromium Oxide... but depending on what other strops and tools he has in his arsenal, that might perhaps be the best use for it. If it were mine, I'd keep it unpasted. (I've got other pasted strops.)
Mike
I'd turn it into a two sided strop and put CrO on one side and leave the other alone.
The main requirement is that a person has a plain leather strop to use just before each and every shave.
The abrasive pasted paddle strops are only to be used infrequently. They are used when the razor starts to pull a bit..... not everyday.
Thanks for the replays. I will advice him not to load it.
Thanks to the Administrators to move this Theme to Strops. I mistakenly posted in Hones.
Well, the strop is not working. Neither unloaded nor loaded. My friend (I suggested him to register here so i can stop being an intermediate) tried everything until 100 passes per side without success.
A piece of balsa wood that I sent him (i use balsa wood to strop my kitchen knives) did it better so I was tempted to replace the leather with balsa. What do you think?
Hi Ordo, I moved your post into the appropriate forum where I think you will get more exposure for the specific topic. In my experience balsa with diamond paste or chrom-ox is very effective. I don't see why your leather isn't working. It ought to be effective too. Could it be a lack of skill on your friend's part , or perhaps the razor isn't quite up to snuff ? Good looking blade BTW.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ordo
That is nice work, I've made paddles, and had some made for me by other members.
The leather looks like Tandy to me, but I could be wrong...
Normally, Paddles and the one you made are really designed for pastes, etc...it's like a bench hone. A daily use strop is normally hanging, like you'd see in an old Barber shop, I think the hanging strops are much faster to use on a daily basis. Of course, to each his own. Many members are using paddles these days for their daily use strop....
Thanks Jimmy and zib.
Well, he's a skilled guy, son of a carpenter. The last time he used the razor successfully i did a previous work on it: Naniwa SS 5000 and balsa strop. A lot of work indeed. Maybe he needs to buy a good stone. What about the classic Norton 4000-8000? Good enough?
His pursue of a perfect edge for shaving is turning me mad. I thought i was a proficient sharpener until I found this world of straight razors. Man, i feel miserable know. I can't shave myself even with my best Japanese knives.
A Norton 4/8 is a good one to have, especially if you're only going to have one. IMHO.
He should not need an abrasive on a leather surfaceQuote:
Originally Posted by Ordo
used as the day in day out strop.
Having said that:
I recall that Glenn did an experiment with a submicron pasted strop
and came away with the opinion that submicron paste lightly applied
to a leather strop used each day is just fine. This matches my experience.
CrOx is very green... If you have a choice I might recommend
CeOx (Cerium Oxide) or just 0.25micron diamond spray. I do not like
the green mess but it does polish steel well.
I recently applied some Dovo Strop Paste, Red and Black Two Part Set
to one of my Tandy home made strops to see how it acts. I like
it and when gently applied and fully rubbed on the leather gives the leather
a classic leather look that I like a lot more than the green of CrOx.
In all cases a pasted strop gets grey to black with use so in the
end it hardly matters that I dislike the green of CrOx.
I am inclined to think that the Dovo Strop Paste
is under appreciated. The fat in it gave me a
good draw/ feel on the strop.
My two cents it that he use it clean and unpasted for a
while.
Later if he thinks he wants an abrasive he should start
with a very fine paste at first.
Also with time and use a strop will gather small bits of steel that will oxidize
over time, so any strop will develop a "sub-micron" abrasive load
of steel/ iron oxide and carbides. A light application (dusting)
of a starter sub-micron abrasive will get this process started quicker.
My preference in this case is a fine touch of Cerium Oxide that Glen sells
in the classified.
I should note Dovo Strop Paste (red/black) is under evaluated
and under appreciated. I found Dovo Strop Paste at my local
cutlery store and did not have to pay shipping.
Diamond spray is a bit expensive but also works well but might
prove a bit harsh compared to CeOx or CrOx of the same micron
size. Finer is better with diamond.
In the end it is the shave test that is important. Each of us
has a different face and whiskers.
PS: beautiful.. If I had room I would want one.
Why? Is there a reason for that?Quote:
Originally Posted by zib
Lots of info. Thanks.Quote:
Originally Posted by niftyshaving
Still having problems. Balsa wood has like veins, is not an even, smooth surface.
I did this one, and i'm not liking it. Lots of work. May be it's too wide?
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