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How much pressure is too much pressure?

How easy is it to roll the edge while stropping? I am trying to get the motion down but it seems I always have a little bend in the strop. How much is enough to worry? I am also using a roo strop which shows it more than the poor mans strop.
 
there really shouldn't be much more pressure than the weight of the razor + a little bit in my opinion. slack in the strop is a personal thing.. experimentation is the key..
 
Right off the stones, you should keep a taught strop. After several shaves, when it seems like stropping isn't quite bringing the edge back, then add a little slack to the strop, and it'll straighten that out.

The slack in the strop basically buffs the micro-edge on your razor, and with repeated buffing it will slowly, on a microscopic level, round out your bevel. Too much slack with too much pressure, and you're rounding out that microscopic cutting edge too much.

Of course, there's that old, veteran barber on youtube who strops with the loosest strop you've ever seen, but he's a magician, and I wouldn't go that route.
 
I think I need to find the perfect balance, but this time I tired going out of my way for a soft touch (barely could hear it) and had the best feeling shave yet. I was looking for that stropping sound before and even with a pretty straight strop it didn't feel right. I am now wondering if I was canting the blade and lifting the spine just a tiny bit.
 
He seems to apply a bit of pressure and have a BIG slack

Yes this is the guy I was referring to. God knows why or how he does it that way, but I wouldn't recommend anybody doing this. He's obviously been at it for his entire life. It's like trying to mimic Happy Gilmore's drive. Sure, it works for him, but I wouldn't recommend it :lol:
 
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It appears to me that the strop is relatively straight between the spine and the end of the strop that Liam is moving away from, which would explain how he could strop with so much slack and not roll the edge. Not to say that I could get away with stropping like that.
 
So,e one questioned him about the slack? He answered he normally would pull tighter, forget where I read the post.

gary

I read that myself, Gary ...

Obie did an interview with Liam Finnegan... Don't want to break any rules by posting where. If anyone wants to know, just PM me. But most should be able to figure it out.
 
in the slo-mo part it looks like he lifts the spine decently high on the push stroke.. i guess with no pressure and on a tighter strop perhaps that's not much of an issue.
 
in the slo-mo part it looks like he lifts the spine decently high on the push stroke.. i guess with no pressure and on a tighter strop perhaps that's not much of an issue.
He certainly lifts the slipe at the end.

I pull my strops tighter but not white knuckle. I also use a little pressure-I think the important thing is to maintain spine contact and rolling an edge should be difficult.

It is steel vs leather in the long run
 

Kentos

B&B's Dr. Doolittle.
Staff member
I also feel it a lot harder to roll an edge on a strop than people think, though not impossible of course. I suspect some of the time it's a new straight shaver who is told by the razor seller that the edged might have been "rolled" on the strop causing dulling.

I prefer some slack in my strop, and some pressure as well.
 
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