2 Qs....MWF and Paddle Strops!

So I have been shaving for about 6 months now and I am about to send my razors off for their first honing! I am currently using Larry's poor boy strop kit, and was looking to upgrade the strop (I think I already have some other ideas about the brush, but if you want to make suggestions go ahead!). One of my concerns about my current strop is that it not being flat when I use it, sometimes the sides seem bent or the top is not even with the bottom. I think a paddle strop would be better to help me learn to strop better, what are your opinions on them and where can I find one?

Also, I use MWF and I love it. I know they sell a fancy wood case for the pucks but does anybody use anything else to hold the soap? Mine right now is in a ceramic case but the case is slightly too big and I have a hard time getting my brush loaded up before I build my lather in my mug.

Thanks for all of your input! SRP is awesome.:mace:

I melted my soap into a bowl that I found in my kitchen. It worked well enough for me! if you shred or melt the soap then you can put in pretty much whatever you want

The poor man's strop from larry has a weird way of attaching to whatever you're hanging it from, and I think thats probably why the edges are curling up. Most hanging strops that I've seen have something flat across the hanging end of the strop that helps keep the whole thing flat when it's pulled tight.

Im not sure what you mean by "the top is not even with the bottom" so I can't really be helpful there

Soap storage... I just cut slivers of soap off the puck and press it into the bowl. The puck stays dry in it's original container/box.
O
Just this week I bought a Suribachi and have used it with stick soap very successfully. I don't see why it would work with a puck/round just as well. A lot easier than cutting slices off.

I would say a full quality strop is better than the paddle. I have SRD modular paddle, and it is versatile for sprays and travel, for every day in and out nothing beats a full 3" quality strop IMHO. Double O

I used Larry's 'Poor Man's strop for a couple of months, but when I upgraded to a strop with linen and leather, my shaves improved greatly. I'd recommend a good quality strop to replace the one you have. There are lots out there with great quality.

I started out with a poor man's strop and switched to a Latigo paddle strop from invisible edge. That really made a difference! It did improve my technique a lot as I recently tried the poor man's stop again and noticed a big difference there. I really enjoy the paddle strop. Today I picked up a Kanayama strop from the post office, looking forward to tomorrow....

I'd recommend to give a paddle strop a try. In case you later want to switch back to a hanging strop you can always spray/paste it.

(btw, I have been shaving for 6 months now, take that into account)

You could try placing the strop on a bench or another flat surface and using it as a paddle.
It will help with learning the flip as well.
Hang on and enjoy the ride

A cheese grater will make any soap fit perfectly in any container.

I am not a fan of paddle strops, i like to strop agressively and paddle strops don't really allow for that. MWFS is the bee's knee's though! A "must have" for every wet shaver to experience.

My wife visited the annual sale of a local pottery club, and came back with several soap-size ceramic bowls for a few bucks each. My MWF and Tabac live in those, now. Very classy! and very cheap.

The gap around the top of the puck doesn't bother me. But if it bothers you, the previous posts' suggestion of a cheese grater sounds good.

Charles

I found miniature casserole dishes at my local K Mart ($3) which I've grated my soaps onto and they work very well - and they have lids as well.

I have hanging strops and a paddle strop, and prefer the hangers by a long shot. When I use the paddle strop, I often rest the round end of the handle on something that allows the paddle to rotate with my stropping stroke, as the hanger is free to do. That might be a peculiarity of my own stropping, but there it is.

I agree with Birnando that the SRD modular paddle is a great tool. I use it for travel and for pasted stropping. For daily, at-home stropping, though, I prefer the hangers.

Like mentioned you can lay a hanging strop on a flat surface to "imitate" a paddle strop and as your stropping improves you can use it hanging.

If you get a paddle, when you feel you want to move on to/back to a hanging strop you can use the paddle for travelling, there's nothing to loose, only win :)

Is your problem with the MWF that it spins around in the container? If so it's easy to solve, just leave some water/lather in the containernand it will stick to it within a couple uses.

Whatever you do don't try to melt it, it will melt the lanolin and ruin the soap. This is also why you should use luke warm water with MWF, lanolin melts at about 38C/100F.