Basic strop info

I feel there is a disproportionate amount of threads about which strop to buy, one material vs. another, etc. and it seems silly to me. The best tool is useless in he hands of someone who doesn't know how to use it. Where's all the info to help new guys know if they're doing it right? There has to be some advice other than "if you dull the edge and it doesn't shave well anymore you've done it wrong." What are some ways to gauge whether you are successfully stropping? Ways to test your progress? I have other questions too. If you're supposed to strop after shaving to ensure you have a clean dry edge why do you then strop before shaving? It doesn't make sense, since a shave ready razor comes honed and stropped and one is specifically told not to strop it again... What is some strop theory? Not which strop is better, but how often and how much does one strop and when? Tips and tricks for keeping the blade flat from spine to bevel, knowing whether the amount of pressure is right. When should a newbie strop on abrasive pastes knowing his amateur stropping is definitely rounding his bevel more quickly than a more adept straight shaver?

There was no depth on this in the wiki and I haven't found useful threads on the subject. If there is a thread I apologize, a link would be greatly appreciated. Otherwise please help this noob who desperately wants to get it right before destroying his strop and dulling his razor. Thanks.

Suuuuubscribed.

As a matter of fact slash mccoy needs to write a freaking book.

Great questions. If you think about it, though, there's really not all that much to stropping: rub razor's edge on leather or linen. Why? After the shave, to clean and re-align the cutting edge. This edge, I'm told, flexes back and forth as whiskers die. Stropping is said to put it straight again. Why before the shave, then? Many of us have lots of razors, some of which may not get used for months. I'm told that an unused edge may oxidize (rust?), so stropping before the shave will remove these nasties.

So how much should we strop. Everyone finds his own sweet spot here. I strop after the shave on both linen (~20 roundtrip passes) and leather (~30 passes). Before my shaves, I just strop on leather, about 30 passes.

How do I know I'm stropping correctly? 1) strop remains a single piece; 2) I'm not looking for sandpaper shortly after stropping; and 3) I can hear the sound of the very edge on the strop. #3 takes much practice and way too much time pretending to hear what the audiophile rags tell me I should be able to hear . . . .

In the end, though, you'll try all kinds of strops, numbers of passes, etc. and you'll settle on what works for you. Good luck!

. . . oh, and see these stickies.

Awesome thanks Larry! Very useful information!

I don't think there's a whole lot that absolutely must be added to what Larry covered. Voice of experience, and well said.

There are a few things that helped me understand what I think is the proper technique. That's, MY proper technique, though it may coincide with others.

1) I learned to focus my grip on the tang, and to KEEP my three outside fingers curled loosely, cradling the scales.

2) On the potentially troublesome flip, I start the turn (someone said it's like turning a volume knob) just before I have reached the end of each stroke. And immediately after reversing the direction of the stroke, I concentrate on feeling and hearing the blade slap the strop signaling contact of the bevel. It's a very light slap. When I feel/hear that, I don't have any worry about both the spine and bevel/edge being in contact during the stroke. That touch-down establishes the wedding of steel to leather, and though the pressure is very light, it's a confident feel. I think I split my awareness between the spine and the bevel, with a slight bias toward the spine position and contact. The edge is somewhat along for the ride.

3) That sounds like a lot, and at first it is if you are trying to implement this approach, but the turns can be slowed way down. I probably should say MUST be slowed down, at first.

4) I found that my strokes could be sped up out of proportion to the gradual improvement on the turns. I think that's a good thing, because I think a quick stroke is safer for your edge, and more effective at doing the job of stropping, time savings aside. Once you are comfy doing slow turns, focus on speedy strokes combined with slow turnarounds. At that point you're really there. All the difficulties are behind you.

It took me a while before I was confident that I was doing it right. That is something that can't be instructed or handed over. You just gotta strop, strop, strop, and pay your dues. But you WILL become an expert. You will.

Great thread!

doofus said:

As a matter of fact slash mccoy needs to write a freaking book.

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Hah. Lots I either don't know or dont bother to think about when it comes to regular strops so I am far from the expert on that topic. But lots of good tips in the above posts. The fact is, I am not all that choosy about my leather strops. As long as it is as wide or almost as wide as a razor edge's length, and not all wrinkly, not stiff as a board, no big bumps cracks or splits, no serious cupping, I really dont care all that much. More draw / less draw? Who cares. I just do it. I do prefer to have three chicago screws for attaching the D ring so I can adjust the tension along the centerline relative to the edges, to correct cupping if it develops. Shell? Latigo? Horsebutt? Cordovan? I keep thinking of Ricardo Montalban extolling the virtues of a car's upholstery when I even see that word haha. Its all just animal skin.

But the question was how do you know you are doing it right. Well, the results will tell you. In time. Snatch the pebble from my hand and all that stuff. But basically if the spine always stays on the leather, the leather is always pulled tight but not like full body weight tight, no abrasives or pastes are used, turnarounds are done slowly and carefully until you get the hang of it, you are using at least a little bit of an X stroke even with a wide strop, pressure is not too much but still enough to keep the razor on the strop, I guess you are doing it right. Watch for cupping. This is when the centerline sags slightly below the edges, and is common on wide strops, especially low to mid priced ones that have seen a bit of use. The temporary fix is to use the index knuckle of the left hand or whichever hand holds the strop, to press upward slightly as you bend the strop end over your hand. A "barber end" strop has a bare end I suspect especially for that reason. The permanent fix is to slightly enlarge the holes for the two outer chicago screws to let off a tiny bit of tension relative to the center one. (remember, three chicago screws is the best attachment). Cupped strops can prevent good stropping contact on the whole edge.

Stropping before or after shaving, or both is really a matter of preference. I tend to strop just a little afterwards and dedicate more stropping time just before the shave but that's more a matter of my own routines which varies with when I'm gonna be shaving. Sham/hibudgl I recall taking quite a bit about stropping post shave being detrimental to the edge alongside stories of strange things going on at the edge of a blade as it rests after a job. I never noticed much of difference but my testing has been far from rigorous.

Pasted strops are handy but I'd lean towards a less is more approach to get a feel for them and how they impact the edge. Better to try a few strokes every few shaves and see how it progresses than doing 50 laps on diamond paste to recover an edge in doubt.

For technique I rather like sham's video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mj5YliQQzg Sham is frequently stating what is right and what is wrong which is not to my tastes but as a particular method it is interesting.
Also don't focus too much on the grip and razor, experiment with stance and how you hold you arms and body in relation to the strop. Moving the strop anchor or cord a few inches or adjusting how you face the strop can make a big difference.

Orlando_The_Axe said:

If you're supposed to strop after shaving to ensure you have a clean dry edge why do you then strop before shaving? It doesn't make sense, since a shave ready razor comes honed and stropped and one is specifically told not to strop it again...

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The reason you are told not to strop a shave ready razor is not because there is anything wrong with stropping a shave ready razor and more so that a newbie can try an edge stropped and honed by someone who knows what they are doing.....there is likely to be some doubt present in your first stropping which can be left out for the first shave, simply one less thing to worry about on the first attempt or so.

I found that going slow, and really concentrating on technique was the best. You know how they do it so fast in the movies, well that is an ideal, not a 'how to'. No one can see how slowly you're going in your own house! Maybe counting and taking note of what 'feels' best during your shave would be useful - and also! I strop a few strokes on the linen side after the shave just to make sure the edge is dry (I have a whole 'nother ritual for the rest of the razor, not that I have OCD about it or anything ..... )

What is the linen for? When should I use it?

If you are dragging the blade backwards across the strop, how do people cut their strop?

Also, thanks for the video link. I have been useing the video that geofatboy posted as a tutorial foe what I should be doing

RDSBandit said:

What is the linen for?

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Stropping!

RDSBandit said:

When should I use it?

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Before the leather, in about a 1:2 ratio (i.e. 15-20 linen, 30-40 leather). Also do about 10-20 on the linen after shaving and cleaning the razor; it will finish cleaning and drying the edge.

RDSBandit said:

If you are dragging the blade backwards across the strop, how do people cut their strop?

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You'll see soon enough

Basically if you move the blade in the direction of the edge at all, accidentally, it will cut the strop. Improper flipping is the usual culprit. To help, *always keep the spine on the strop*. At the end of a stroke, do not lift the spine off; just rotate the razor.

Go slow.

Do I need to put anything in the linen? Or just strop as it is?

Keep the linen clean. If you are going to use pastes, use a separate piece of linen, denim, balsa, felt.... But you should IMO always have clean linen and leather available.

When you are finish honing, stropping, or shaving the feeling should be that the razor is just lightly sliding across the surface, normally no concious sensation of applying pressure. YMMV. And of course, no rolling the edge while stropping.

Cheers, Steve

The only thing I'd add to Steve's response is if you strop before shaving, and many of us do, there's no need to use the linen too. Just leather is enough.

So, just leather before a shave, and linen & leather after? Useing a 1:2 ratio? For 15 full passes minimum? Up to what? 60-100 full passes?

Just trying to make sure I have everything correct. Sorry.

There are no rules. Most folks strop on linen after shaving to make sure the blade is clean and dry before stropping on leather. The number of passes for each will vary according to your preference. I do ~20 on linen, then ~30 on leather. Before my shave I also strop ~30 passes (back and forth = 1 pass) on leather only.

No need to apologize, we all asked the same questions, and you may be helping someone else who is more bashful than you. Ask away!

Can one strop too much, assuming good technique is used? In my before shave leather only stropping, I'm using more passes than most.

No, but there are diminishing returns after 50 or so. Science of sharp has STEM images showing lots of change 0-30, some change 30-50, and then little change 50-150 or so. I forget the actual numbers. Basically, once the blade is aligned, it's aligned.

One thing to bear in mind is that while it won't hurt it to strop more, there is also always a finite chance that you will nick the strop accidentally or screw up a flip or something and potentially clip the edge, of course.

I usually just do around 30-40 on leather pre-shave (with some linen before that if the razor was just honed) and 20 on linen after shaving. Seems to work well for me.

Thanx, I'll make 50 my top end.