I'm just getting into shaving with a straight razor. I've got an Illinois 127 cowhide strop with a canvas stop on the backside of it. The cowhide seems fairly stiff, and possibly a bit convex (bowing out toward the razor). I'm pretty sure I rolled the edge on two of my razors, as they're pulling/tugging/skipping when I'm trying to shave. Pulled a new razor out last night, honed and stropped by someone with much more experience than me, and it shaved beautifully. Can a person hold the strop too taught? Should there be a little slack in it? Also, I've got the strops hung about as high as my head. Should I lower them to about waist level? I've got 1K, 5K, 8K, and 12K Naniwa hones to bring an edge back to life, but I'm worried that I'll just kill the edge again in learning to strop properly. Any tips for a beginner?

I have 13 years of straight razor shaving....I hang my strops at waist level...pull the strop to take the slack out of it...and if right handed,I have the strop about 4-5 inches off my left hip ...and strop.

And before I strop....I pull the strop with my right hand ....and rub the heel of my left hand ,up and down the strop to warm it up. That also helps to break it in and puts some oils from your hand into the leather. Keep the spine of the blade on the leather....with a touch of pressure towards the edge...but not much. It should make some noise will stropping ....music to my ears !

I put jeweler's rouge on the canvas to give it some bite and Ivory soap on the leather to keep it conditioned. Hold the strop firmly and keep your blade as close to flat as possible and apply light pressure. Hold your blade on a diagonal as you move it across the strop. Fifteen strokes per side on both the canvas and the leather. Once you get the knack for it, you should only have to hone your blades once a year...if that.

This.Proper rouge is a must for any strop.I even strop all my hunting knives after proper sharpeneing.And you could shave with them if you wanted to.You can buy different grades of rouge on-line.

God bless you all!

but for me, there ARE some things I'll gladly bow to modern ways...and disposable razors are one of those things!

Thanks for the info everyone! For now, I switched from hanging my strop to laying it flat on a countertop. Much easier to control and don't have to worry about flex. I've seen an improvement on my edges!

white marlin - there's just something about the nostalgia of it

Ma had one of them razor strops... sure kept us sharp and on our best behavior....... i bet them people that dont know their gender would get it figgured out pretty quick if ma was there with her strap !!!!