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What else do I need? Here's what's on the way so far...

Legion

Staff member
I don't know what I'm happier with - lol. I'm information gathering at this point while waiting for the stuff to arrive. Still haven't held a straight razor in my hand, it'll probably be here Tuesday.

It's par for the course when embarking on a new pursuit - lots of varying perspectives and often contradictory advice. Just trying to sift through it.

Do you think the cloth strops are even necessary? Or should I be able to do everything I need to do with the honing stones and a leather strop?
Cloth strops are not absolutely necessary. Lots of people do without them.

I personally use one, and find that the material I use (flax linen) helps the edge a little, but mainly because it is good to make sure that any microscopic particles of corrosion, soap, moisture, or whatever are wiped off on the linen before I use the leather. Could I live without it? sure, but I have it there, so why not use it? It certainly doesn't hurt.
 
Definately agree with Legion. You don't need the cloth strop but if you got it like Legion says it is good to clean the edge before the leather.

I do 10-15 laps on linen right after the shave. Then 40-50 laps on the shell strop right before the shave.
 

rbscebu

Girls call me Makaluod
I don't know what I'm happier with - lol. I'm information gathering at this point while waiting for the stuff to arrive. Still haven't held a straight razor in my hand, it'll probably be here Tuesday.

It's par for the course when embarking on a new pursuit - lots of varying perspectives and often contradictory advice. Just trying to sift through it.

Do you think the cloth strops are even necessary? Or should I be able to do everything I need to do with the honing stones and a leather strop?
I agree with @Legion. There is no great need for a cloth strop, although they can be good for cleaning a blade's edge - using it very gently. I feel that cloth strops are a little harsh on my delicate edges. I now line a cloth strop with natural chamois to clean my edges.

Unlike @Legion, I only use my cloth/chamois strop after a shave to clean the edge. Because I have a few SR's and they normally "rest" for a few weeks between uses, my routine is:
  1. Strop on clean leather (about 60 laps)
  2. Shave
  3. Dry blade (I use toilet paper being careful not to touch the edge)
  4. Clean edge on cloth/chamois strop (6 to 8 laps)
  5. Refresh edge on 0.1μm diamond pasted hanging balsa strop (60 laps)
  6. Apply Renaissance wax to bevel and spine-wear area and polish
  7. Put SR away
If you are using the SR daily, the Renaissance wax is not really required. The Ren wax is used to prevent oxidation on the bevel/edge when the blade is not being regularly used. The balsa stropping is also not required unless you want a fresh edge every shave (I do).

There is no need to remove the Ren wax from the blade before the next clean-leather stropping. Ren wax is good for leather and there is almost none left on the blade after polishing.
 
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Slash McCoy

I freehand dog rockets
I don't know what I'm happier with - lol. I'm information gathering at this point while waiting for the stuff to arrive. Still haven't held a straight razor in my hand, it'll probably be here Tuesday.

It's par for the course when embarking on a new pursuit - lots of varying perspectives and often contradictory advice. Just trying to sift through it.

Do you think the cloth strops are even necessary? Or should I be able to do everything I need to do with the honing stones and a leather strop?

Your best course of action is to start with a shave ready razor, or even better, two shave ready razors. Concentrate on learning to shave with verified proven shave ready edges. That means buying from someone in the community or recommended by someone in the community, not just some random seller who swears on a stack of bibles that his razors are shave ready. That way you know it's all on you and your shaving technique. And stropping. Once you understand the process and understand and recognize a true shave ready edge, you have a much better chance of creating such an edge or maintaining it on your own. You don't have to do it this way, but believe me, it is the way to do it if you do not like torturing face and your brain.

Cloth strops are absolutely not necessary. I have not used one in probably 20 years. Many members of this board and other boards will vouch for my edges right out of the box. A linen, canvas, fire hose, seat belt, felt, whatever strop does NOTHING that a leather strop alone cannot do. Nothing. However many users swear by a good fabric component. I believe there are several reasons for this. First of all, stropping on good linen DOES improve the edge. But so does the leather, just more so. Second, there is a bit of placebo effect. Third, at adds value to a strop, or cost, I should say, and nobody likes to admit they paid good money for something that is not needed. Fourth, it is habit and ritual. Fifth, it is popular for pasted stropping, though IMHO this is a bad idea since you can easily contaminate your leather side with abrasive. Most strops come with a fabric component anyway, so it is a moot point. It will be there already. I always toss mine, except with a horse shell strop, where it is good for supporting the very thin and flexible leather.

If a razor comes to you shave ready, the only stone that will do you any good is your finisher. You don't need a progression. If you are honing razors from scratch then you need the progression you mentioned and also a bevel setter and a coarser repair stone or two. I suggest a 1k Naniwa Chosera for the bevel setter. For the coarser stone try a 600 grit Chosera or Shapton Kuromaku and later on when you have more of a sure hand, possibly a 320 grit stone. Remember that when you get a stone it must be lapped and periodically lapped again. No, "flattening stones" are not the way to do it. I won't write a book here. Do your homework. You can avoid that by using lapping film instead of stones.

Many of us here hone and maintain our razors with a system we call "The Method". It is a very detailed plan that is proven to give extremely sharp and very comfortable edges even to raw newbies who use it, IF THEY FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS EXACTLY AND PERFECTLY. Often the first attempt is a resounding success, and if not, then the second go at it. If you are the type to lean on your own understanding of something you don't understand, you will fail to achieve a Method edge. Substitutes, omissions, additions, changes and freestyling will sabotage your efforts. Carefully following the entire ritual WORKS. Part of The Method, perhaps the most important part, since it builds upon an edge that can be achieved by most any professional honer, is the pasted balsa progression. If you receive a razor with a true shave ready edge, you can improve it to Method quality through the correct use of correctly prepared pasted balsa. They are incorrectly called strops because they lend themselves more to spine leading than edge leading strokes, but the fact of the matter is that abrasive is used and so on a microscopic level it is honing, not stropping. Because The Method evolved over several years, it is important to read all the relevant threads from beginning to end. They are long, and getting longer. There is no free ride here. There is a main thread, and within it are several links to other threads that contain the nuts and bolts of The Method. If you don't have time to read, you don't have time to shave with a Method edge.

Newbie Honing Compendium | Badger & Blade
 
With respect to the issue of using pastes, you can decide what works best for you. That is what has been advised here. But your decision should be based upon principles (facts). Here are some guidelines:

• We sharpen (or touch up) our razors on flat stones every 3 to 6 months. This will vary with how often you shave and the type of beard you have. The stones will sharpen the razor by removing metal. We do not sharpen our razors with each shave.

• We strop our razors before and after each shave. Stropping does not sharpen the razor. Stropping realigns that very fine edge of the razor, which becomes distorted or misaligned with each shave. Stropping does not remove metal and does not sharpen.

• If you put paste on your strop (linen or leather) it will remove metal from the razor. But because the strop is not flat like a stone (it has give) you will be rounding or dulling your edge as you remove the metal. You will actually have a convex knife or axe edge and not the typical razor's edge.

• Your linen strop will quickly load with steel and blacken. You will need to clean your linen strop often.

• If you don't clean your razor with a good paste remover (like an ammonia solution) after the linen/paste strop, the paste will transfer to your leather strop, ruining that one.

So the basic thought here is to sharpen or touch up every few months when needed on a flat stone, and strop to realign before and after each shave. The exception to this is the use of "The Method", where an extremely small amount of metal is removed by paste after every shave. But that is done on a flat balsa surface and not on a flexible belt. So the edge does not become convex.

twocents.jpg
 

Kentos

B&B's Dr. Doolittle.
Staff member
Good luck on your straight razor journey!

Linen before leather helps to clean off the bevel of skin, lather residue, whatever. Does it matter? I dunno, but it surely doesn’t hurt. And 10 passes takes a few seconds at most, and I like the results I get.

In the end despite all the advice so far given, you have to try it out for yourself. At this point your greatest challenge will be learning how to strop, shave, and maintain your razor. All the other finer points will fall into place on their own. Eventually shaving will become second nature, freeing you up to experiment with all the wonderful doo-dads available to fine tune an edge. If I may suggest, finishing with CBN sprays on brushed horsehide can give you an exquisitely sharp and comfortable edge:).
 
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