Thread: First Strop Purchase... Assistance required.

if you don't mind spending the few extra bucks, go for the 3". Then you have the flexibility to strop in x-pattern or not. I have 3" but I do the x, but i'm a novice.
If you want to go a bit cheaper 2.5" should work perfectly well.

I'm a rank amateur also but I think I'll end-up doing the X pattern. All things considered I think it's better to have and not need opposed to the opposite. Besides, from what I can tell it's something around a $10 (give or take a few bucks) difference between the 2.5" and the 3"... nickels and dimes my friends. ;-)

Thanks,
-David

Originally Posted by Kees

Well, I don't.

of course there's always the few exceptions...

i chose to save some money (which immediately went back into strops lol). the money i saved on 3 strops pretty much bought me my honeybrown

Originally Posted by Steelforge

So strop number 3 is now on it's way. This time I went with a Paragon 2.5" in horsehide, I asked Tony to make it without a canvas side as I didn't use that very much anyway, and as a plus it reduced the cost a little.

I can't wait to try it out now!

My strop arrived this morning, it's really quite lovely!

I christened it with my Thiers Issard SRP LE and had a great shave. Thanks Tony.

Oh, and thanks for the freebie Williams mug soap that was in the box, I need to get a suitable mug so I can try it out now!

Iwan,
Thanks. The soap was a freebie for those guys who had orders delayed from my vacation.

Tony

Hi I was redaing this thread and you mentioned when the linen is soaped? Can you explain? I am also a newbie and I am going to order a new strop?

I am wary of giving details of the soap treatment when you are new to SR shaving etc. I wouldn't want to be blamed for a treatment to the linen of your new strop when you have not tried it as it comes yet. Like most treatments, once done, there is no going back. Try your new strop as it comes and decide if you want to try anything on it after a good period of use as is.
If you buy a dovo strop they come pre-soaped. TM strops come in natural finish, this gives you the choice.

PuFF

richard1...

I think the reference to soap was Iwan's thanking Tony for sending along a sample of Williams shaving soap with his strop order and Tony's "don't mention it." Soaping the fabric strop might be a fabulous thing to do: the secret to fine stropping, but then again, maybe not. If you try it on yours, report back, won't you? Especially let us know what grit soap you use. I gotta stop now before I get into too much trouble.

Bruce

Bruce
Soaping a linen strop is normal practice on heavier linen canvas strops and it does improve the strops performance, I guarantee it. I did mention that TM's real linen comes up perfect with a soap dressing as does his courser linen strops. As a point of interest, beeswax soap or the old fashioned household soap works the best, imo.

PuFF

PuFFah,

Now I'm curious. Can you describe more thoroughly what the beeswax soap is and how it is applied to the fabric? I have some old strops which appear to have a treated fabric component, but as to how it has been treated, I have no clue. I also have one of Tony Miller's strops equipped with a very coarse fabric side which I use very little considering its coarseness. I would be inclined to try treating this with soap just to test the concept were fairly explicit directions given. If it's a total bust, I've sacrificed something I use very little. If it turns out to be God's gift to the stropper, won't that be dandy?

However, I don't think the old Illinois strop fabric element has been treated with soap as there is no reidue left on the blade after using that side.

Bruce