Thread: Newbie Stropping Question

As I start to get the hang of stropping and start picking up my pace a bit, I notice that the faster I go with a stroke, the more draw I feel on the razor. I don't think I'm applying pressure as I move the razor faster, but being a newbie, this could be a nuance that I don't notice myself doing.

So, my question is, should one feel more of a draw when stropping a blade faster versus slower?

Be sure to pull tight the strop through the entire stropping process. When I first started stropping, I would concentrate so much on the passes and unknowingly slightly release the tension in the strop. Thus I was getting this nice draw the entire time.

But that shouldn't be the case, as the straight sharpens up a bit, their should be less draw and the stropping sound gets quieter. I always like to lightly touch the edge with my thumb base. Having done this a thousand times and knowing how it feels to shave, I can feel it when it is sharp enough.

Once in a while, I will dry shave some hairs on my arm and the straight edges easily pop some off when it is sharp enough to shave.

It just takes time to gain the experience and that is part of the learning curve.

Welcome to straight shaving!

Pabster