Hi all,
I'm keen to get going with the straight razor, and have acquired an older blade, and a new stainless steel Dovo (although it's an old model). I have also purchased a Dovo paddle strop (from the New Zealand equivalent of eBay, TradeMe).

The strop is apparently also new (according to the vendor). It has leather on both sides, and is not padded. It appears to be smeared with some sort of green compound on both sides. It occured to me that it could be sharpening paste, but if so, it hasn't been applied consistently - it's more of a smear than an application - does anyone have a suggestion on how to do this?

Oh, and the Dovo razor is not "shave ready" - do you "honemeisters" suggest that Norton stone, or something else - I also have my eye on this item http://www.trademe.co.nz/structure/a...sp?id=38153219
(which looks to be a bargain) - would this do the trick, do you think?

Thanks in advance for any assistance you can offer!
Cheers