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Ramblings of a MilkCrate

MilkCrate said:
I’m still a noob, so I don’t know much.

The linen on this pass around strop is really soft and flexible. My cotton strop is not as soft and not nearly as flexible. So I started twisting the cotton this way and that. Just working it with my hands and it has started to soften up nicely. I would assume you could do the same with nylon.

I know some guys use old cotton fire hose or seatbelts also. You can use them with or without paste, just depending on what you are wanting to do. I think we should ping @BarberDave because I really don’t know squat :ROFLMAO:
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Sorry Gents, Just saw this

This really comes down to preference. You can get great stropping of an old pair of jeans and is what I recommend for in the beginning or for travel, you can even use Newspaper for that matter. The whole concept is to preserve and burnish and re-align the edge for smoothness. Those that use cotton or Firehose with pastes are actual doing an ad-hoc honing to keep and edge keen. I personally have tried and do not prefer. My feeling is that...
1. if there is a good bevel and keen edge, stropping takes out the harshness
2. unless doing an edge refresh pasted stuff is not necessary
3. K.I.S.S. Keep it simple stupid ( just rubbing metal against a rockk. err in the case rubbing metal against fabric then a cow or horse, LOL)

As to a fabric strop vs a leather. At the microscopic and molecular level although hard is still flexible and most of the time in a cross-hatch pattern. The cotton or linen, by virtue of friction heats the metal ever so slightly and re-aligns not only the molecules but the edge as well, as it over time will bend, chip, crack, but again at the microscopic level that you will never see or feel. and after honing very often you have a foiled edge and the stropping also removes that. the final Strop on the leather burnishes and smooths, my normal routine is this

Pre-and during Shave:
30 Linen / 60 Leather Prior to shave
10 on leather between each pass
25 on linen post shave to dry and align.

Post Bevel Set and Honing:

150-200 on linen
200 on Leather.

I know this was a bit "long winded" but hope it helps. Thanks for taggin me guys
There are also two trains of though Fabric / Leather / Fabric in honing, I do not again K.I.S.S. I English Linen to all other fabric portions as I feel it aligns and smooths the best and give me the feel I like when smoothed and burnished on leather after. I also strop between passes ( old barber trick I learned from Angel Delagadillo ( the Angel of Route 66 ) a barber since the 40's.). I think that keeps the edge consistent But really they do the same thing so finding the ones you feel give you the best results for re--alignment, smoothing and feel are the best.

the old adage is true. "The one YOU like and feel comfortable with is the BEST"
 
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Shave Count (DE: 451 SE: 9 SR: 596)

Pre Shave-
Strop: Tony Miller Pass Around Strop
Splash and go

Shave-
Razor: Henckels SR
Blade: none
Brush: Yaqi Sagrada Familia Badger
Soap: DR Harris Windsor

Post Shave-
Post shave lather
AS: Avon Everest

The Process-
So I was kinda goofing around with this shave. You can tell by the pic that it wasn’t SOTD worthy, but was a good shave. A while back I received a sample of DR Harris Windsor and I wanted to give it a go. I have MWF and I have tried Wickhams, so time for another soap from across the pond. On Windsor, I think I was picking up the pepper because it had a spicy type of scent to my nose. I couldn’t pick out individual scents though, it blended well. I face lather, but will use the copper bowl for samples (I don’t use creams). I had a small sample in the bowl, but the Yaqi whipped up a ton of lather. The lather consistency was different than my normal, but I think that’s the bowl. The lather was nice and wet, but not as dense as I usually use. This is probably because I normally load heavy off the puck.

For the shave itself, i used the pass around strop again. The leather side is thinner, supple and more flexible than my Plain Vanilla strop. The same can be said for the linen. It is a really nice strop. I went with my standard three passes of WTG, XTG and ATG with no drama to report. I was able to smell the scent throughout the shave and it was very nice. Yes, a very nice shave was had and I am BBS for the win!

Wrapped everything up with a quick rinse and pat dry. A healthy splash of the aftershave and everything was right as rain! Although the splash doesn’t match this soap, it’s a nice scent. Check out the scent notes if you get the chance. Life is good!
 
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Shave Count (DE: 451 SE: 9 SR: 597)

Pre Shave-
Strop: Tony Miller Pass Around Strop
Splash and go

Shave-
Razor: Henckels SR
Blade: none
Brush: Knothead Boar
Soap: MWF

Post Shave-
Post shave lather
AS: Aramis ASB

The Process-
So I was reading some of the love/hate threads on The Fat today and it seemed like a good day to break that out. I am one that hasn’t had any issues with the puck (not grated) and it works well for me. This puck has been in service for about a year or so. It’s a keeper.

Looking at my stash, this is in the upper cost range due to the ASB and EdP, but it was a gift. Most other bits of high end stuff that I have were bought off of several BST threads. I also shop at thrift stores too. I mention this because as I cull things down, my regular inexpensive items deliver a great shave without undo expense. Traditional wet shaving can be inexpensive if you don’t get trapped in the buying hype. And you don’t have to buy Arko and Williams to save money. But nothing wrong with that, if it’s your thing. Sorry ... I get like this when I start reducing inventory. If you are a collector of whatever, that’s alright also. But you knew that.

I did have a great shave with my typical routine. Three relaxing passes and I am BBS for the win! I have also really enjoyed trying this new strop. It is very nice. My time with it is short and it will be headed to the next person on Monday. I don’t usually use an ASB, but this one is ok and it smells amazing. You know when I smeared it on, everything was right as rain!

Speaking of rain. After 5+ inches of rain, it has finally stopped raining. In the country we don’t have storm drains, so well will have a mud mess for some time. Ah ... fun stuff. Life is good!
 
Nothing wrong with good shaves, however they’re gotten!

Muddy country landscape hm? Maybe you need to invest in a UTV you can go have fun in? 😎
 
GearNoir said:
Nothing wrong with good shaves, however they’re gotten!

Muddy country landscape hm? Maybe you need to invest in a UTV you can go have fun in? 😎
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Indeed, those comments were directed at someone specific. But it’s all good.

I do have access to a 4x4 side by side :cool: But the horses get put out when you play on the 4x4 and fling mud at them.
 
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