Thread: Lather on Strop?

I forgot my strop pastes back in Canada, and so I got curious and decided to lightly lather my strop and then smear it away with a towel (I'm not sure if this was known to be done before or if it's ill-advised).

I was actually very impressed with this workaround! It simulated/created the same kind of light drag as the pastes did and it lasts for a good while too.

For keeping your strop pliable, you can use a small amount of pure virgin olive oil. In a pinch, while traveling, I've used a small amount of Dovo Sterol, (I use it to protect my blades from the monsoon climate).

Hal

Originally Posted by Fardad

I forgot my strop pastes back in Canada, and so I got curious and decided to lightly lather my strop and then smear it away with a towel (I'm not sure if this was known to be done before or if it's ill-advised).

I was actually very impressed with this workaround! It simulated/created the same kind of light drag as the pastes did and it lasts for a good while too.

I've heard of putting some lather on a hone but not on a strop. I'd be worried that when the soap dried that it would make the lather stiff. I suppose you could get a damp sponge and wick off any of the lather after you're done. Let us know how it goes.

Originally Posted by halwilson

For keeping your strop pliable, you can use a small amount of pure virgin olive oil.

Olive oil goes rancid. Lather can be used, and it's all the barbers used in the past. My friend uses lather and nothing else on his strop for 25 years...

Nenad

A retired barber told me about the lather method of treating the strop when I bought one way back in 1977. He said to let it dry a bit before applying. That's probably why I still have most of my first little jar of Dubl Duck strop dressing bought at the same time!

I've had mixed results with this method. Once it got really smooth and once had lots of draw.

Can you describe what you mean in a little more detail about "letting it dry"

Originally Posted by superfly

Olive oil goes rancid. Lather can be used, and it's all the barbers used in the past. My friend uses lather and nothing else on his strop for 25 years...

Hi Nenad,

Good point. I thought the same thing, when I first read about using olive oil a few years ago on the yahoo SRP website. Well I gave it try anyway and I used a small amount of olive oil on my strop for sometime without noticing rancid effects. Perhaps if you used it over a longer period of time one would experience some undesirable results. Since I haven't tried it for an extended period of time beyond a few months, I cannot say. Thanks for mentioning this.

I also used to put lather on my strop too (Not sure, but I think I heard about this idea from, the master barber, Greg Ives, on his excellent video, _The Lost Art of Straight Razor Shaving_. ) I had thought it was done to help keep the surface clean rather than help keep it pliable. Anyway, I no longer do this either, as I now maintain my strops with Fromm strop paste, which I would highly recommend. Interestingly, Greg Ives recommends regularly rubbing the palm of your hand along the surface of your strop to keep it supple. I gather from this, that the natural oils from your skin can be sufficient to maintain your strops too.

Hal

I would think the lather method an okay choice if the strop had already been treated with a dressing of some type to seal the pores. If already "oiled" so to speak I can't se lather hurting anything. On a raw finish strop like a tan Dovo or Jemico though I would worry that the water in the leather would eventually damage the leather.

Tony

I think the best dressings are the products like lexol or bucks or the fromm strop dressing or strop paste. They keep the leather moisturized and in perfect condition. I wouldn't use any oils like olive oil because they will go rancid.

The "real" stuff is cheap enough....why not just use it.

Tony