Thread: Paddle strop

Hey all!

after some research I need some help here. I want to get a four sided paddle strop and some pastes to keep my straights sharp. After reading all the information it seems everyone has a different opinion and everything has become as clear as mud. Ok, so from my understanding this is what I gather. Most people use Crox and or a combination of pastes to maintain that wicked sharp edge on their straight. No one agrees on one certain way to do that! :-) so being new where do I actually start? I don't mind experimenting with different combinations of pastes and such but I just want a basic starting point. I don't have a huge razor collection and I don't think I ever will. I just have a three razor rotation that I want to maintain and keep sharp. Thanks in advance for all your help.
Greg

When you start to feel some tug while shaving just strop some passes ( I usually do 7-10) on chromium oxide and it should bring it back to shave ready. There's many ways to maintain a razor. Good luck.

Ok I,ll throw this out for ya,mand keep in mind I,m not advocating any particular brand if others have one shop around. That's my disclaimer. I got a modular paddle in the beginning mainly for my travel , but the modular comes with different surfaces that are attached by magnetic so, so you can experiment with different compounds, I got mine at SRD and I got the leather I wanted , plus a scrub leather and then I ordered 3 felt pieces, to which I spray with CRoX , .25 Diamond, and .50 diamond to try them out. Right now I have the leather on and the CRoX is all I ever use with it, but I like my hanging strops more,must was handy at the time and I know people who use them full time. Tc

The inside portion of cloth on your hanging strop can be pasted with crox. 7 - 10 passes should liven up the edge. If that does not work, I would go to a 12k stone followed by balsa block coated with crox, then strip well on cloth and leather.

Everyone is different and even razors may not like crox. You will have to read, watch, and experiment to find out what will work best for you.

So you want a 4 sided strop so you want 1 side left plain leather. To be able to bring an edge back completely maybe 3mic diamond (8k equivalent ) , 1 mic diamond (12k equivalent ) and crox would cover pretty well. Are you planning on just using the paddle and a pro when needed or are you looking to hone also. The Naniwa 12k and pasting the back of your linen is another option and would probably cost less than the paddle and pastes

I tried using the opposite side of my strop to refresh razors, and it did not work so well for me. I searched for a better option, and I finally bought a modular paddle strop from SRD. Very well made and a nice size. I put diamond spray (1 and .5 micron) on the felt, CrOx on the scrub leather, and left the regular leather plain. It is working well for me!
To answer your question specifically, I avoided the 4 sided strop becasue it seemed more difficult to store without cross contamination and the stropping surfaces are on the smaller side compared to a modular system.