Thread: Starter strop

Originally Posted by gunsandbibles

can't speak to the balsa. but i imagine if you keep it stored away from moisture i would think the wood would be ok

Neither can I...but this is what someone else said

The poor man strop kit is good.

But one needs to remember that balsa is a natural wood material and is subject to any of the issue that all wood is subject to. So care needs to be taken to make sure those issues don't become a problem.

As to leather strop the poor man strop comes in the fashion that the old barbers preferred without handles. This means that you grip the very edge of the strop to pull it tight. This would put your hand in a position to be cut but really it should not be an issue cause you should be turning well before that point.

Different grips come in and out of favor. When I first join the barber style was a favorite. Lately it has been D rings. Then you have strops like the Illinois strops that have full leather handles

Everyone has there favorites and you can find inexpensive strops in all versions.

im glad you haven't had the misfortune of nicking your strop. I'm the type who's hands must learn separately from his head.

anyways i definitely think the op is making a smart decision getting a practice strop. i personally would get one that i could either lay or hang so i could figure out which method worked best for them

As with so many things involved with wet shaving, YMMV. What works for one person may not work for another.

I still use the first strop I ever bought. It has a couple of tiny little nicks in it, but nothing that required any kind of repair and certainly not anything that impacts its performance. And so I can confirm that for me at least, yes it is possible to learn to use a strop without damaging or destroying it.

From what I have learned here on SRP though, I can also say that for many, many people that has proven not to be the case. It is because of this that we often recommend people get a practice strop to learn on, to build their muscle memory, and to generally get comfortable with the whole process. One can of course spend hundreds of dollars on, say, a beautiful cordovan shell strop right off the bat. But in doing so, one would also have to accept the fact that there's a decent change that one will do damage to it.

People have different degrees of manual dexterity. Some have more or less difficulty in transferring visual/textual learning into controlled physical movements. Some are extremely careful, others less so.

As I said, YMMV.

pick up an instrument, it may help your dexterity

As long as you start slow until you get the motion down, you should be fine.
A lot of people, Lynn included, recommend practicing with a butter knife until you get the motion down
If you're really that worried about nicks, try that!

Another thing that was weird for me when I first stropped (which was like a week ago) was trying to figure out a comfortable angle. I was doing it awkwardly at first and it threw me off. Find the angle that is most comfortable to do the flip! That helped me immensely.
I had my razor in my right hand and tried stropping on my right pant leg...awkward. Razor in my right hand, stropping on my left pant leg...WAY easier. That's just an example.
Best of luck!

Originally Posted by kwlfca

pick up an instrument, it may help your dexterity

oddly enough I'm a guitarist, a fourth degree black belt, and a frequent shooter. i just need a lot of practice to get a good thing going

What about mirror writing? I tried that for a bit LOL

You're right though, everyone's different. That's why I disagree with the statement "you will nick your first strop". You may and you may not.
I agree that practice does indeed make perfect...that's why I'm sitting here stropping on my pant leg right now lol

Star shaving has a paddle bridle for under $20. I have had it a while and it works great. Latigo on one side and bridle on the other. I also have a big daddy from them. Fast ship reasonable. I use em both. I dont know if Ive noticed a difference from the paddle to the hanger.

As I'm still new to the addictions of SRP not one specific All the above, is suggest as others have mentioned making one. It's pretty damn cheap to get scrap smooth leather 3" x whatever length, find a piece of wood that's
3" wide and some elmers glue and your done. It does a few things, one you made it, its cheap so the wife is fine with it. And two if you ruin it with nicks its ok, good practice in anticipation for further purchase of a great strop.I bought a beautiful hanging strop that's still in the bag as I love my paddles and am getting the full swing of it before I break her out. And to be honest I really enjoyed building my paddle strop, the simple wood working was fun. Just my opinion.
Respectfully
Christian

Originally Posted by EAGLESKADU

As I'm still new to the addictions of SRP not one specific All the above, is suggest as others have mentioned making one. It's pretty damn cheap to get scrap smooth leather 3" x whatever length, find a piece of wood that's
3" wide and some elmers glue and your done. It does a few things, one you made it, its cheap so the wife is fine with it. And two if you ruin it with nicks its ok, good practice in anticipation for further purchase of a great strop.I bought a beautiful hanging strop that's still in the bag as I love my paddles and am getting the full swing of it before I break her out. And to be honest I really enjoyed building my paddle strop, the simple wood working was fun. Just my opinion.
Respectfully
Christian

I was just making a suggestion. If you have the knowledge and the materials to put it together, then why not. Everybody's different and I like to patronize some of the sellers. Go for it! And let us know how it works out!