Thread: Antique shop finds

Picked up these two items at an antique shop in St-Anne de Beaupré when returning from a weekend getaway in Charlevoix.

The strop is in excellent condition and the leather is soft and quite supple considering it’s age.

I have no clue what kind of hone this is however. It looks like a Thuringian but something tells me it might be a Turkey oilstone.

I don’t smell oil on the stone and judging from the size, I imagine a barber may have used it.

I am not sure if I should lap it. Your thoughts and suggestions are appreciated.

So I lapped it, and it is softer than I thought. Seems to be more like a thuringian.

A slate, of some sorts.

Put steel to it, get it burnished. Then see what edge it produces.

Nice shopping trip. I love that strop. The hone might wind up being a beauty too.

I gave the stone a test drive and it seems to be a marvellous finisher. Looking forward to tomorrow morning’s shave.

This is definitely a Thuringian, and with its 5 x 2.5 inches dimensions, who knows, maybe even an Escher.

Even if it was not an Escher, if it was cut to a “Barber” size it is most probably a good thuringian "Razor stone" I have a few.

It is only an Escher if it has a label, none of mine have labels but, unless you are selling, performance is all that matters.

Nice find and nice looking strop. Lots of good threads on cleaning and rehydrating vintage strops. True “Russian” strops were Birch Bark tanned for up to a year and are “stuffed” with oils and waxes which is why they last unattended more than most. And they are thicker than most.

Most vintage strops were treated on the back side, ribbed, or cut in a diamond pattern that transferred to the front and made them a bit more aggressive.

Clean and rehydrate it slowly, it can be a great finisher. The linen can also be cleaned and made to look and perform better than new. Many old flax linen strops are better performers than the leather and worth the effort of restoration.

Good thing that it is a Thuringian because I don't know where you'd get turkey oil