Thread: Linen Substitute....why?

I see all the time folks wanting the real deal yet they can't seem to find it and look for substitutes.

Ask any baker and he'll tell you true Flax Linen is easy to source. Go over to Amazon and search for a baker's Couche. Get one made of Linen. They are big and heavy just the thing to make your own authentic linen strop.

As a substitute would rough napped leather work in place of the linen? I don't have the money to buy anything shaving related for a while...

Originally Posted by S0LITARYS0LDIER

As a substitute would rough napped leather work in place of the linen? I don't have the money to buy anything shaving related for a while...

It kind of like saying would boar be a good substitute for badger or would a DE be a good substitute for a straight.

There is a reason linen was used back in the day. Other things will work, maybe not as good or have the precise effect but it will work.

Originally Posted by S0LITARYS0LDIER

As a substitute would rough napped leather work in place of the linen? I don't have the money to buy anything shaving related for a while...

Some people try substitutes for the same reason that they try different hones, even though the ones they have work perfectly well. Variety being the spice of life. Others try different stuff because what they have isn't working, or they can't get what they want for one reason or another.

Keith De Grau (HandAmerican) used to make some mighty good strops, and always with smooth and rough leather component. He felt the rough leather was better than the linen available nowadays. So some guys like rough leather in place of a linen component. I'm not one of them, but different strokes for different folks.

I did the math and here convert it into something most people would relate it to.



My vintage linen strop (plus an insignificant amount of white paste, one side) weighs 4.0 @ 23" x 2 1/2" or 57.5 sq/inches.

1296 sq/inches per yard / 57.5 = 22.5 pieces per square yard.

22.5 pieces x 4 ounces = 90 ounce per square yard fabric. Ounces per square yard is the US standard method of describing fabric weight. I expect the rest of the textile world recognizes 90 ounces/yard as 3050g/m sq.

Convert ounces per (square yard) to grams per (square meter) - Conversion of Measurement Units

Figure todays super-duty canvas work gloves are made from 10-12 ounce/yard cloth.

Old-timey quality heavy leather work gloves use 5-6 ounce square/foot fabric which, x 9 feet/yard = 48 ounces per sq/yard.

Relatively to the hide on a decent welders- or barbed wire stringers glove, traditional linen strops are twice the weight. They also have selvage edges which do not unravel and, somewhat peculiar to strops, have an edge thickness virtually equal to the body of the strap; in other words, the edges don't bulge thicker than the strap.



The linen strop (and things like todays webbings, including seatbelts, etc.) are produced by a small subset of weavers who specialize in narrow gauge goods. It is very expensive to produce 2.5" width goods compared to 54" (or wider) fabrics. I don't know who is producing narrow gauge flax linen at 90 ounce/yard today but, I'll bet, whoever is buying it for strops would consider his source a secret. That fabrique-couche looks pretty light and I expect it would have a fraying problem but, probably, not a serious one because of the nature of flax fiber.

The couche fabric might work a wonder (never tried it) but it seems pretty lean on its own.

The material I have weighs 8.5 oz. I looked at my red imp strop and the linen part (which I consider to be premium) is actually built like a sock with a stiffening material in between.

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

The material I have weighs 8.5 oz. I looked at my red imp strop and the linen part (which I consider to be premium) is actually built like a sock with a stiffening material in between.

This is true - the old guys were made from tubular webbing (24-oz/yard per side approx = 48 ounces/yard) plus a fill of cardex or whatever they called it back in the day; mylar sheet would probably do the job perfectly. Not sure how mylar thickness in mils equates to ounces/yard but I'd say some creditcard-thick mylar sheet would be perfect.

There are some weavers who make heavy fiberglass, Kevlar, Nomex and Spectra tubular webbing in 3" widths (mostly custom runs) but none to my knowledge use linen. I think you can still have it made in China.

Originally Posted by edhewitt

Shoelaces would be synthetic though wouldn't they so burning them melts the fibres together whereas linen is a natural material so I doubt it would work. But it might be worth a go though as I am speculating.

Concur. In the last 35 years I have set afire, charred, dissolved or melted just about every commercial fiber known to man. Oddly enough, flax linen never made to a "TEST TO DESTRUCTION" event in my office or lab. I seriously doubt it would flash like cellulose (it has been used as clothing fabric too long for that outcome) but neither do I think you can fuse the raw edge with heat.

Trouble with raw edges (compared to selvage edges) is the fabric loses stability. Razor-whooping on linen with raw edges would probably open up the weave and allow the warp and fill to wander. No selvage edge or other type of stabilization sounds like a mechanical shortcoming for a strop.

I love textiles.

I think some, and I am not implying that I am not part of that some, just have to learn for themselves.

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

I see all the time folks wanting the real deal yet they can't seem to find it and look for substitutes.

Ask any baker and he'll tell you true Flax Linen is easy to source. Go over to Amazon and search for a baker's Couche. Get one made of Linen. They are big and heavy just the thing to make your own authentic linen strop.

Would you just cut it into strips? how would you keep the edges from fraying?

Originally Posted by tintin

Would you just cut it into strips? how would you keep the edges from fraying?

Personally I would try burning it slightly, like a shoelace you cut. That I would first try on a small scrap of material. It could be flammable and dangerous!