Thread: Stropping over the maker's mark?

I've been using my new TM horsehide strop for a couple of weeks now, and I am wondering about whether or not it is a good idea to avoid stropping over the trademark (or maker's mark) stamp at the top of the strop. It seems like a bad idea to do so, so I have been avoiding running the blade across the bumpy embossed section of the strop. It seems a terrible waste. That stamp renders about two inches of the strop unuseable. It may look pretty, but there must be other places where he could stamp his mark that wouldn't interfere with the purpose of the strop. Perhaps on the handles? Am I doing the right thing staying clear of the mark while I strop?

I can't see that it could do any harm at all, to the razor at least. In fact I do it all the time on my TM and have never noticed any problem. Why do you think it a bad idea?

I wouldn't worry about it. If it's a normal stamp, it's not going to affect the stropping enough for you to notice.

Now if it was a raised mark of some sort you might need to be careful.

I believe this was discussed a while back and Tony himself said there is no worries...i believe he said because it is stamped not raised...

I strop over it also...no worries...

Originally Posted by jimmyray

Now if it was a raised mark of some sort you might need to be careful.

Make that, "If it was a raised mark, you definitely would need to stay off it or prepare to wreck your edge."

As others have said, I can't imagine a stamped it logo causing a problem.

Its really kind of a nonissue. Most strops are long enough to do the job without getting too close to the ends. Its also a safety issue. if you get too close to the ends depending on whether you are holding the ends or it has hardware or not you could hit the razor against a dee ring or your fingers. Most paddle strops are way smaller than hangers and they work just fine.

I'm with the Spendur on this one. I never get that close to the end of my strop for a couple reasons. First, I have plenty of lenght to strop on the middle section. Second, I find that trying to make my stroke long enough to use the entire strop is uncomfortable. Naturally, avoiding my hands and the hardwear is another reason to stay in the middle.

I've done it a few times and nothing bad happened from it. I do however, rarely, go that length on the strop. I find it's awkward for my hand to go that far back and forth.