Thread: Hello from a new member

Originally Posted by izlat

Anyway, do I positively need a strop and why can't I use a belt? My grandfather is no longer with us, so I cannot get any advice from him

thanks
Ivo

I have always ordered my strops from Tony, in fact he is making a custom sized strop for me now, however, at one point my strop was stolen from my hotel room and I was forced to use my belt as a strop and it wasnt half bad. I noticed the shaves werent as good as with a strop, but I didnt have to stop shaving either.

Some things to think of when deciding on a strop are the type of metal and the thickness of the blade you are using. My blade was very thick 1/2 hollow at most, but more towards 1/4 hollow, had I been using a full hollow razor I have a feeling the lack of a good strop would have been more noticeable. The other thing to think of is if you want to use an X pattern or not when stropping, I prefer not too, so I dont have any strops that are less than 3" in width.

If you are not sure which way you want to go, it may be worth it to buy one of Tony's factory second strops if he has any laying around, they arent as pretty as his best strops but they will work just as well and are generally very cheap. That way you could try this against your belt and see which way you want to go without spending much money.

Im betthing though, once you try one of his strops you will want one of his best strops with linen backing, etc, etc. I would definitely recommend this, and I personally recommend the 3" width.