Thread: A question of luxury

Originally Posted by Ryan82

You have to keep in mind that good latigo gets better with use. Once the waxy top layer is worn from repeated use (like several months or even years) the draw improves. The strop won't even reach it's full potential until this has occurred. Mine is nearly 2 years old and is way better than it was brand new, or even after 1 year. In fact it continues to improve....

I've had the latigo for about a year now, and it sees constant use... I also wear it in with my palm constantly, and with razors... I know how good it is...

Please realize, I am in no way saying that it is a bad strop... Tony's latigo is a FANTASTIC strop... I have no problems with it and love to use it... I am not calling it bad by any means... My point was merely that I most assuredly have competent strops, if the one I like least is my Latigo. It was not a knock on the Latigo, but a complement to the bridle and horsehide...

Sorry if I've created any confusion, I still love the Latigo and realize how good it is, It is just at the bottom of my personal strops, in my personal preference.

Originally Posted by ShavedZombie

I'll give you a quick rundown on this... It's about the same as going from a Ruprazor Filly to a quality Latigo, or from an Illinois to SRD Premium IV... It's just a better feeling, better performing strop.

To answer your questions quickly:
1. I'd recommend the 60k, personally, because it's at the higher end of the list, without costing as much as the big brothers
2. Mainly, thickness... They get gradually thicker as the number increases... I'm not an expert on Kanayama (although I hope to get one myself, soon) but I believe they are all from the same material, just the higher the number, the thicker the piece (and maybe the more carefully selected the cut... Maybe it's the difference between the NY Steak and the Filet Mignon.)
3. That's a tricky question. To some people a Thater isn't worth it, because a Tweezerman does the same job and works fine for them... Then some people just want the Thater. If you realy love your strops like I do, they are worth it... If you just want a strop that gets the job done well, then you might want to look at something cheaper.
4. Not really... I'm going with the same analogy here... does the Thater do anything that a Tweezerman doesnt? No, it does not... But it feels /so/ much better doing what the tweezerman does. Same thing with the Kanayama. All (well, most) strops strop, it's just a matter of how they feel, and how they fit you. Stuff like that.

And, at the end of the day, it all comes down to personal preference like so much else.

Cheers,
Jeremy

Thanks Jeremy...exactly to the point.

Originally Posted by nessmuck

I would get the strop and a tub of Domenico Caraceni 1913 shave creme and let me know how you like the creme, i have not tried it yet but i hear its pretty good.

I've actually tried the DC at Lynn's house... If you can find it, buy it. It's great stuff... However, and I hope Robin doesn't see me say this , I think I'd rather save 40 bucks and get a tub of Al's The Bomb... The Bomb is more readily available, comes in scents that I far prefer, and works, In my opinion, just as well as Domenico Caraceni.

Mind you, I've only used DC once, but, as far as I remember, it didn't leave my face feeling as "conditioned" as The Bomb did...

But I absolutely love my bombs

Interesting question and lots of similar replies. I think that if I had spare money that I wasn't sure how to spend, I'd wait.