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TIL my grandpa's old straight razor just needed a real strop, not replacement
I had this straight razor from my grandpa sitting in a drawer for like 8 years because I figured it was too dull to use. Picked up a decent $25 strop from a local barber shop in Akron last month. After maybe 15 minutes of stropping on Saturday, the thing actually shaved smooth. Night and day difference. I had been about to throw $100 at a new one. Anyone else sit on old tools forever before realizing they just needed a little upkeep?
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jasonf1710d ago
That strop trick really is the secret. I had an old chisel from my dad that sat around for years because I thought the edge was toast. Finally watched a quick video on how to strop a chisel on some leather and bam, it started cutting clean shavings again like it was brand new. It's amazing how much a good edge just needs a little alignment rather than a full grinding session. Definitely worth trying the cheap fix first before spending all that money on new gear.
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taylor.hayden10d ago
Honestly, that "needs alignment rather than grinding" part really clicked for me. I used to be the same as you, I'd hit the stone first thing and end up taking off way more metal than I needed. One time I had an old plane blade that was just barely not cutting right, and after a quick strop on some scrap leather with a little green compound it was back to work perfect. Really makes you realize how often the edge just gets a little folded over instead of actually dull.
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alexk6010d ago
Man I used to be the exact opposite. I had it in my head that if a chisel wasn't sharp it needed to be ground down on a stone for twenty minutes. Thought stropping was just some fancy extra step for people who had too much time on their hands. Finally tried it on a beater plane blade after ruining the edge one too many times with aggressive sharpening. Totally changed my mind. Now I reach for the leather strip before I even think about touching a stone. It saves so much work and keeps your tools lasting way longer.
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