Thread: Too much draw?

Originally Posted by Swerve

how about rubbing it with palm? did you do that? also some people like to take their strops and lightly sand with higher grit sandpaper and then condition. also you might be using too much pressure.

I rub the strop with the palm before stropping every day. I used the same pressure I usually use with the bridle but perhaps I need to back off even more. will try that in the AM, thanks

I hate to tell you this, but rubbing neetsfoot oil and the like normally increases draw

If you like no draw, Horsehide is the way to go. Mine is pretty slick.

I never condition, soap, oil, etc....The only thing I ever do to my strops is rub them down with the palm of my hand. The draw stays the same.
YMMV.

Originally Posted by zib

I hate to tell you this, but rubbing neetsfoot oil and the like normally increases draw

If you like no draw, Horsehide is the way to go. Mine is pretty slick.

I never condition, soap, oil, etc....The only thing I ever do to my strops is rub them down with the palm of my hand. The draw stays the same.
YMMV.

lol, of course. wrong move but I tried.I stropped on it the day after and while it didn't make it better it didn't make it appreciably worse, either.

I'm not sure what I like as far as draw. Is there any advantage, prep wise to the blade on a strop with minimal vs maximal draw? or is it just personal preference for feel in the process?

Originally Posted by RogueRazor

I'm not sure what I like as far as draw. Is there any advantage, prep wise to the blade on a strop with minimal vs maximal draw? or is it just personal preference for feel in the process?

I'm not really sure if more or less gives a 'better' edge. I like a very moderate amount of draw with moderate pressure on the spine and very light, if any pressure, on the edge after the flip.

I found materials with a lot of draw, latigo for example, gave me the feeling the blade could be snatched out of my hand, or maybe turn in my hand unintentionally, if I didn't use a really light pressure on the spine, and go uncomfortably ( for me) slow. I couldn't get a smooth and rhythmic cadence going with the heavier draw, the way I can with horse or premium 1 with their light draw. Maybe if I had practiced more with the latigo I would have gotten the same smooth flow with that surface, but I had the horse and was too comfortable with that to fool with the latigo anymore.

I guess for some guys more draw feels like it is doing more to the edge than a light draw? With my own stropping I think whatever a light draw might lose in effectiveness, if anything, is compensated for by a more coordinated and smoother flow I can achieve with the lighter draw. OTOH, someone else might be able to say the same thing about the heavier draw. YMMV to the max.

Jimmy

thanks for the reply. I feel the same way; as if the heaviness of the draw is dictating the stropping motion too much. Looks like I need a horsehide strop )

Draw seems a controversy. The fact that guys get nice edges from heavy and light draw is my first tip that no one likely has authoritative input on the subject. I still find many aspects of stropping baffling. That doesn't mean there aren't differences - they show up in the HHT for me after using different materials

Having started out as a stropping idiot, I started w/ latigo, and found, like Jimmy, that it could be grabby and I had a hard time keeping a stroke smooth and light. I tried different leathers, and like many, found horse hide easy. Yay team. Further reading exposed me to the school that wanted high-draw first, then low draw. It had a consistency to the edge, but sometimes just latigo would give best results. For the last 6 mo. or so, I've been back to latigo almost exclusively, and been very pleased. I hold the razor differently to guard against the dreaded 'grab' that damaged several strops in just the fashion Jimmy describes. The smaller blades are the worst for me. The small size, low mass - allows them to flip over on their spines so fast that there's no stopping before you see the edge sunk into you strop. My grip, now, is right up against the heel of the blade w/ my thumb contatcting the heel. 'Been a long time since I've brutalized a strop this way. I don't think of it as a 'right' way, but just one I've been able to make work. 'Nothing sacred about the method - I'll let someone else argue with anything that works.

I have been telling people for years a simple rule about draw vs stropping effectiveness...

"The most effective draw for the razor's edge is the one that you strop the smoothest with"