SR first shave prep and beyond.

Good morning gentlemen, getting ready for my first SR shave and everything beyond it. My wife was kind enough after years of buggering her about wanting a SR she got me a Grim Blades SR for my birthday. Now I need to get all the other stuff to go with it. Plot twist, I leave next month for the middle east for a while. Shipping supplies may be a little difficult and I'll be training for days or weeks at a time. So now comes the questions.

Whats a decent strop that will last me at least a year that doesn't break the bank and will get the job done without question? What additional thing do I need for my strop and keeping my blade nice and sharp?

I'm not sure how easy it will be to get shave soap shipped to me, however barbasol shaving cream will be readily available. I've read that canned stuff ins't that great for you skin however, I've been using it for the last seven years and my skin hasn't dried out. So should I just stock up on soaps and bring a scuttle or mug out to the field with me or just go the can route?

How many people heat up their soap for a hot shave or just use cold water? I've read cold water is actually better than hot water is it makes your hair more stiff and keeps your pours closed and skin tighter.

You don't need a scuttle and you don't have to even use a bowl. If you use creme you can just load a little on the end of your brush. If you use something like Porasso you can just use the container that it comes in.

Cold water might keep your skin tighter but it doesn't keep pores closed as pores don't actually open and close like that.

Any strop is a decent strop. You might want to also get a pasted paddle strop to help maintain your edge. You might also want to get some kind of finishing hone for when that doesn't work.

Hi, and welcome! Any clean piece of leather should be good for your strop, so you don't really have to worry about breaking the bank on that one. In fact, most of us start with an inexpensive strop because it's not uncommon to cut them up a bit while learning. I'm not sure canned goo is the best to learn how to shave with a straight, but if that's what's available, I guess that's what you'll use.

Good luck to you!

. . . . oh, and you might want to google what you were doing with your wife. lol

As Larry said it's best to start with an inexpensive one as you most likely will cut and or nick the leather while learning, i rushed into buying a nice one to early and cut it and even damaged a few more down the road either by a few nicks or expermenting using different dressings trying to change the draw so my suggestion is start with an inexpensive one, as far as the razor goes you may want to consider having a backup incase you damage the edge.

Strop with clean leather and clean linen/canvas.
An extra strop is not a bad idea.
Nail file (sandpaper) : take out nicks in the leather strop
Block of alum.
Shavette and blades for back up?

Buy shaving soap now and try it out before leaving, they last a very long time.
What is the time period and climate?

So a cheap strop, linen/ canvas with some chromium, and try soap now.

I'll be there almost a year. Dry desert. Lots of sand.

One clean real leather, not leatherette/synthetic=> that is, not the cheapest possible on eBay.
One clean linen/canvas with no paste, to be used before clean leather and to clean/dry after shave.
Perhaps an back up clean real leather strop.


Touch up, different solutions 1, 2 or 3
1. Hanging linen/canvas with paste like 5 micron.
Hanging leather strop(not leatherette/synthetic) with diamond paste or other paste, 0.5 micron.

2. A balsa strop with paste on

3. A fin grit whetstone 8000# or higher grit.

Check out the cut down finishing stone from Whipped Dog for $15. That would maintain your razor indefinitely and it is hand held sized.

Just ordered my Tony Miller plain chocolate strop. Anyone know how long it takes to receive?