Razor Wisdom from the Eighteenth Century

[Earcutter]

I don't know about lifting the spine, David. Remember, he says:

"The first thing to be attended to is to keep the razor perfectly flat on the strap during the whole time of strapping. The reason for this direction is . . . that, if the back is raised, the extremity of the edge will be too much affected by the leather and the composition, and, together with it's roughness, will be deprived of it's keenness."

You're right that his main piece advice seems to be keeping the strop as flat as possible, and I think Kingsbury would much prefer a paddle strop to a hanging strop. I don't think the latter was used much at all during his time, because when he talks about the perils of elasticity, he focuses on strops sold with bases of flexible wood.

The method of stropping that he advocates is not too dissimilar to what most do here, but he recommends moving the razor "obliquely across the strap from the point to the shoulder." If I'm interpreting that correctly, it means keeping the razor's edge somewhat parallel to the bottom of the strap, and, starting with the point on the strop, moving diagonally upward to the left (if you're right handed). Upon reaching the top of the strop, with the point now hanging over the edge, reset its position while turning the spine so that the point is resting on the right side, then pull diagonally downward to the left, "point to the shoulder," resetting again at the bottom and repeating.

To further recap, always moving "point to shoulder" on the strop, according to Kingsbury, will eventually shape the "teeth" so that, they point very slightly towards the heel (such as with a saw), allowing the edge to cut much more efficiently when drawn obliquely away from the ear while shaving.

Anyway, I'll definitely be trying this out with the next razor I hone. If anyone got something different out of it, please correct or add to what I've said.

We are on the same page on this but yeah, I think I skipped the part where when you do your flip, you keep the spine on the strop and slide it over before the next pass to ensure the point to shoulder thing (would be a bugger with a finished spine lol).

I'll try it that way, but it'll be work to change up what I am so used to doing. I have to read the honing section, but does he advocate that one hones in a manor that keeps the teeth angled from point to shoulder as well?

 

[dirkstruan]

We are on the same page on this but yeah, I think I skipped the part where when you do your flip, you keep the spine on the strop and slide it over before the next pass to ensure the point to shoulder thing (would be a bugger with a finished spine lol).

I'll try it that way, but it'll be work to change up what I am so used to doing. I have to read the honing section, but does he advocate that one hones in a manor that keeps the teeth angled from point to shoulder as well?

No, according to Kingsbury, you can hone however you like without altering the direction of the teeth. The particles on the hone are too closely spaced. It seems that Kingsbury used some sort of paddle strop with two sides -- one was of relatively thick, regular leather (probably calf-skin, as he says he prefers), and the other was a thin layer of leather with "composition" on it. His "composition" is some kind of ultra-fine particle paste spread onto the leather with a knife, and it is apparently this which is most effective in shaping the teeth, due to the wider particle spacing of the composition on the leather. You could probably get a similar effect by spreading some diamond paste or CrOx on an old strop or piece of balsa and giving it five to ten Kingsbury laps each day before taking it to the regular leather. Maybe a backup razor would be best to experiment with.

Here's a quote from near the end of section three:

"Perhaps, indeed, I may make this matter a little more clear by observing that, from the nature of the composition on a razor-strap, it cannot remove the whole line of particles which form the edge of a razor; and that, composed, as it is, of materials of different powers, the hardest of which are separated one from the other, it must wear away the particles of the razor's edge at distances similar to those of it's own operating particles. That it will remove them in similar lines of direction, is the necessary result of it's power of removing them. The hone on account of the closeness of it's substance, will not, in any manner of using it, produce the former of these effects; nor, as the strap must finish the operation, is it desirable that it should."

 

[Earcutter]

You could probably get a similar effect by spreading some diamond paste or CrOx on an old strop or piece of balsa and giving it five to ten Kingsbury laps each day before taking it to the regular leather. Maybe a backup razor would be best to experiment with.

."

Odd - I have been doing just that of late, and been getting the best shaves ever as a result. I haven't seen any signs of wear yet either. Too much fun lol!

 

[Goblin]

'The majority of razor and razor-strap-makers have recommended the practice of dipping the razor into hot water as wonderfully conducive to ease in shaving. I am happy in finding that the number of it's advocates decreases daily; and that this long continued absurdity appears, at length, to be viewed in a right light. Too long, indeed, have the favourers of this practice forgotten, not merely that the expansion of the edge will be accompanied by an exactly equal degree of softness, and, of course, that it's supposed good effect must be momentary, but that a razor of perfect excellence, which has often had this trick played with it, can never be restored to it's former state.—Those only who use a microscope in the examination of their razors, can be fully aware of this truth.'

It seems so obvious when he says it...and I feel like I have just been given a thorough telling off. Never again will I dip my blade in hot water!

Thoroughly enjoying these chapters. Thanks, dirkstruan!

 

[dirkstruan]

Nine months have passed since I finished working on this. After re-reading some bits I still find it very interesting and figured it was worth a bump for new members or those who missed it the first time around.

Definitely a worthwhile read.

 

[noahpictures]

Thanks for the bump. It's a great read.

 

[strop]

What a great read. I somehow missed this the first time around. Thanks.

 

[jd1965]

Dirkstruan, thanks for putting this up! Great look back, things haven't changed all that much.

 

[Redhead]

The problem with things like this is that the written word was not how information was transmitted to tradesmen back then for the simple reason that 98% of them were illiterate. So, someone digs something like this up and people think its the definitive "old school" way.
Red