Stropping - does “when” matter?

[2bit_collie]

Hi All,
Pretty new to straight razors and SR maintenance - my question is this: I know it is important to strop before each shave, but does it actually matter whether I do it right before the shave or merely that I do it at some point between shaves?

Background is that I started off with a good-quality strop (I know, should have gotten a cheap one to practice on). I am trying to be very slow and careful with my stropping to not hack up the strop, so it takes a few minutes to get it done. To speed up the whole shower/shave process I typically do the stropping as a mid-afternoon exercise to get me away from my desk while working from home. But that might be day or 3 before I next use the razor (possibly more if I am switching between razors). So wondering if that has any impact or not.

Thanks!

 

[stone and strop]

Anytime before the next shave.

 

[bluesman 7]

I fall into the 'directly before the shave' group. Though I always strop directly after the shave too.

 

[pwheeler]

I do my linen stropping after I'm through shaving and razor has been wiped clean. I do my leather stropping before my shave that day.

 

[Slash McCoy]

It probably doesn't matter enough to notice if the time between shaves is fairly short (days, not months) and the razor is stored in a properly controlled environment. However, you should let your lather stand a few minutes before shaving. What did you have planned to do while you are standing there waiting? May as well strop then, right? I do my leather stropping right before shaving, right after lathering. It is efficient, traditional, and just the right thing to do. You don't have to do it that way though.

 

[alla2465]

I tried to experiment, and stropped the night before my shave, so around 8-10 hours before the shave.
I noticed my edge was just a bit "off" when I did that, switched over to stropping just before the shave, and that "off" feeling went away.
So through my own experience it does matter, but it might not to you. Try and experiment and see if it makes a difference to you.

 

[rbscebu]

Stropping does two main things. It "realigns" the edge and removes any oxide buildup from the edge. The realignment is not so time critical, the oxidization is. Almost all metals oxidize to some extent.

If you think that the oxidization affects your edge, strop just before your shave.

 

[Tomo]

I don’t think it really matters. I store my razors and strops outside of the shower room. For convenience and to avoid walking the house up, I strop and prep my razors the night before. On a rare occasion I strop again in the morning. I’ve never noticed any difference.

 

[Aidah]

I strop after and before every shave. But I also really enjoy the ritual of it and the feeling of it in my hand.

 

[RumpleBearskin]

I did a test where I stropped sll the razors for the next week on Saturday morning and then used them Sunday through Saturday. Worked fine and didn't feel any different to me. Of course, YMMV since the feel of a blade on skin is a very personal thing.

I'll add that I found that I "missed" stropping when I did it all in one day and have taken to stropping for the next shave at lunchtime the day before.

 

[ajduplessis]

I strop before and after each shave. I’ve experimented stropping seconds before the shave but also left a razor for a week before using, no difference...

The fact remains, strop before and after shaves. When and how long before the shaves IME is irrelevant as long as it’s not months.

I face lather so no need to leave lather on while I do something else. IME those who bowl lather tend to strop with sitting lather.

 

[SliceOfLife]

I usually strop while my brush is soaking and soap is blooming. Or if I'm showering before the shave, right before I get in the shower.

I have stropped in advance (days) before and didn't notice any difference... but I suspect in a particularly humid environment that may change?

I just assume right before is best.

 

[2bit_collie]

It probably doesn't matter enough to notice if the time between shaves is fairly short (days, not months) and the razor is stored in a properly controlled environment. However, you should let your lather stand a few minutes before shaving. What did you have planned to do while you are standing there waiting? May as well strop then, right? I do my leather stropping right before shaving, right after lathering. It is efficient, traditional, and just the right thing to do. You don't have to do it that way though.

Hi Slash,
Umm... OK so I haven’t been letting my lather sit, which could explain why some of my soaps don’t have very impressive lather. Is this more an issue for soaps than creams? I am struggling to get a decent lather out of my Trumper’s which is a hard puck, while I am having much better luck with creams such as Pacific Shaving company. I know Trumper’s seems to get generally good reviews, so was wondering if I was doing something wrong.

 

[2bit_collie]

Thanks to all for the replies. I also read through the whole thread on “how many laps” so I am now concluding that perhaps I should worry more about “how much?” more than “when?”

 

[Slash McCoy]

Hi Slash,
Umm... OK so I haven’t been letting my lather sit, which could explain why some of my soaps don’t have very impressive lather. Is this more an issue for soaps than creams? I am struggling to get a decent lather out of my Trumper’s which is a hard puck, while I am having much better luck with creams such as Pacific Shaving company. I know Trumper’s seems to get generally good reviews, so was wondering if I was doing something wrong.

It might surprise you to hear that I have only tried about a dozen soaps and creams, so I am not a soap/cream expert like some guys here who have probably spent almost as much on software as razors. But there a a big variation among the various products. And high price often only means prestigious and recognized brand, not effectiveness. The best cream I have ever used was Godrej Rich Lather. I was buying it in the Indian shops in Dubai for about a buck a tube. Probably half that price in India. About $3 in the US. Makes a crazy lather that has a lot of glide, and also softens whiskers quite well. I used to use FDH Deluxe (Not the Luxury) and it used to cost barely more than Williams, but it was a great soap, and it could be melted and poured into your mug. They changed the formula, though, and not only is it no longer sold at Walgreens or Target or Walmart, but it is not as good. Now I use Arko. Smells like a urinal cake but the smell doesn't linger. Shave, rinse, it's gone. What these all have in common is they are by coincidence dirt cheap but also very easy to get a great lather from. One that is slightly upscale from there but still reasonable, that I often use for making a superlather when I have a lot of hair to shave off, is Proraso, which is also sold under the C.O. Bigelow brand name, in the U.S.. I have tried a lot of "quality" soaps and they all smell kind of light in the loafers, to me, and they don't lather any better than the cheap stuff. Some not even as well. I won't single out any particular brand for punishment here.

Some soaps get good ratings just because nobody wants to admit they can't get great results from a $20 soap, when plenty of other guys go on and on about how fancy it is. With soaps and or creams you definitely do not always get what you pay for. Sort of like brushes. The big names are in demand partly because of the refined and classical sound of the brand name, age and location of the company, and price. Expensive stuff HAS to be better, right? Kind of depends on your definition of "better". A Rolex watch as made by the factory really can't be made much cheaper, I suspect. And yet, a $30 Casio keeps better time, and a top shelf Seiko is just as fancy and looks just as good. A Timex Ironman definitely will stand up to more abuse. And yet, Rolex sells every watch they make. So obviously plenty of people think they are worth the price and superior to the $30 to $300 price range watches. It is okay to pay for the meticulous workmanship, such as polishing a part that is never seen and doesn't rub against any other part. It is okay to pay for the prestige of the brand. But as far as working better than a battery watch with a rubber strap, well, it doesn't. What do you want it to do? If you want it to make you look wealthy or like you have impeccable and uncompromising good taste, Well, a Rolex and a few other brands are what you want, though at night in a "gentleman's club" a good fake should pass muster in the dimly lighted ambience if the shoes, clothes, and demeanor match.

Same with brushes. You could probably spend $300 on a 30mm artisanal quality silvertip. You are paying for exquisite workmanship, much of which you never even see. You are paying for care and attention that you simply will not get cheap. You are paying for things to be NOT done the easy way. You may be paying for high priced materials. You may be paying for a prestigious brand name and a recognized makers mark. But it does not lather any better than my $40 30mm Whipped Dog silvertip, I am pretty sure. I could be wrong, since I am not about to spend so much on a brush when my most expensive razor only cost me $160 or so. I have three of those big lather monsters, and they do a great job. Does that mean a fancy pants artisan quality brush isn't worth the price? No, it does not. Only that it doesn't WORK any better.

IMHO, same with soaps. The high price has very little to do with how well it actually works. The extra value, if any, usually lies elsewhere.

Bottom line, don't shy away from buying a soap that you like or want to try, just because it costs more, if you really want it. But don't be disappointed if it doesn't lather a bit better than a stick of Arko or a tube of Godrej.

With a hard soap, you will want to let some hot water stand on the soap for a bit, before hitting it with a brush. You can do this while you shower. If your brush is kind of floppy, choke up on it. Pinch it at the base of the knot, to give it some backbone. A boar will chew up hard soap easy, but it doesn't hold a lot of water. A reasonably priced silvertip of 26mm or better will hold plenty of water and product; it just might take a little longer to make the puck give it up. Also try a "pumping" motion on your face, along with the usual circley circle motion. If you need more water, dip the tips in the sink and work more water in there.

If you can't live without your patchouli, bergamot, or lavender fix, then the cheap soaps aren't for you. If you want great lather, buy the soaps that give it to you and that suit your budget.

 

[2bit_collie]

Thanks for your detailed reply Slash,
1) I am at least trying to let some water sit on the Trumper’s while I shower. But perhaps not enough water or enough time. My complaints are that it doesn’t give me a thick, creamy lather, and in addition whatever I do get seems to disappear within a minute - before i can finish the pass. The two creams I’m trying seem to lather better and last longer. If letting the lather set up in the mug will help, I will give it a try, but so far my thought has been that the lather would just disappear if I let it sit.

2) After reading a lot of comments, including yours, I have ordered an Arko stick and a jar of Proraso to give them a try. At those prices (especially with a Black Friday discount) why not?

3) An irony is that while I am new to straights (and Safety Razors), I have been using a badger brush and Trumper’s soap for at least 10 years. Really kicking myself now that I didn’t put more effort into trying different brands of soaps at some point in the past. OTOH, since I was using a cartridge razor, the Trumper’s was probably “good enough”. I am definitely seeing that a straight puts more demands on shaving lather

Getting slightly off topic (but sticking to shaving and quality vs price) - Many years ago my wife gave me a Tiffany’s badger brush with a silver handle. Really nice bristles. After a few years the wood at the base shrunk enough that it just sipped right out of the silver handle. I’ve no idea where the handle is, but I still have the brush end - which is in good shape. Is it possible to repair this by attaching a new handle to the brush? Don’t really care for a fancy handle, but my memory is that the brush bristles were pretty nice - wouldn’t mind putting them back to work.

 

[Slash McCoy]

Yeah you can put the same knot in a new handle. You might want to start a new thread for that. You will get lots of help in the brushes forum.

 

[SliceOfLife]

If you can't live without your patchouli, bergamot, or lavender fix, then the cheap soaps aren't for you. If you want great lather, buy the soaps that give it to you and that suit your budget.

I don't do this, but if you like patchouli... could always buy vintage soap with no scent left and light a stick of incense before the shave.

 

[Alum of Potash]

Not that it matters, but I always strop after each shave. Main reason for doing so, as far as I'm concerned, is that it helps to clean the blade's edge. Otherwise, residual grime risks to stay there and fester before it's time for the next shave. (Usually 72 hrs. afterwards in my case.)

 

[Biltong & Boerewors]

I strop just before shaving. Get's me in the "groove".

I am with Slash on the soaps, I have only been able to try about 6 soaps in the last three years straight razor shaving. I face lather so a puck will last me at least 4 months shaving daily and I made the conscious decision not to keep more than about 5 soaps at a time. Being tight, I use them until they are done. Cheapest was Cella, most expensive was Taylor of old Bond Street. Favourite is Tabac. Apart from scent not much difference in performance, some are just a bit more user-friendly, so it's worth using the same one for a while to learn what's the best way to handle it.