Thread: rough and dirty fabric strop

I don't have any Linen to compare, but I had read about all sorts of different fabrics being used as strops, I had used a bag strap a few times, it was a fairly lightweight herringbone weave cotton/canvas which worked pretty well except for the fact that it was attached to a bag, next I tried a heavier strap that was designed to go around luggage this was not so good.
I did think that the benefit was slight compared to just not using fabric, ie just the leather, but now I am wondering whether the fabric may help to extend the life of the edge.
My experience tonight told.me that maybe it was worthwhile.
I made the R&D strop so that I could give fabrics a go quickly and easily, I can either cut the denim (it is lycra denim I think, though I didn't know that when I bought it) off and reuse the bars or just make a few more.
If you have a pile of off cuts maybe just give them a go. I am trying to think of a system where the fabric could be swapped out, something like two bits of wood with teeth on the insides that clamp together.
The strip I made is probably 28" x 3.25 inches, so when finished its about 26" overall.
The fabrics available from strop makers seem to range from nylon strapping to felt and linen.
As I say it seems to be good but early days yet.

Originally Posted by Razorfeld

Ed, denim strop? Does this give a better edge than leather and linen? I'm a fabric artist with a closet full to overflow of fabric bought cheap when I worked part time at a fabric store. I lot of denim in there doing nothing and a lot of what looks like linen doing nothing. I already have too many things going but this looks interesting. Talk to me.

The concise version of my last post really could have been "i don't really know, but I have read about denim strops elsewhere". Though I would be interested to hear how you go if you do give it a try. Do you have a sewing machine? It would only take a few mins to knock something up on that. I sewed the tubes into the fabric effectively, but I think the flap of fabric really could have been loose enough to slide the tubes in and out, that way only one set of tubes would be needed to trial lots of different fabrics, I just use z reef knot to form the loop.

razorfeld i think it is pretty well understood that 100% genuine linen is the best material. that is what Tony and Neil Miller use for theirs.

No harm in experimenting and I have thought about giving denim a try. It has a course texture but at the same time is soft. I don't see top of the line strop makers using it because it seems cheap or because of the color clash thing. It's the heavy weave/thread that does the work I think.

To bombay, I am so old I wa there when they invented linen.
To 10pups, there will always be a str8 user who would delight in different colored strops. Think pink for our lady shavers.
To edhewitt, a sewing machine? Who do you think your'e talking to? I currently have three sewing machines. Two Singers that are about as old as I am (and are my benchmark on how to keep on ticking despite of age) and one Viking full of electronics that acts like a prima donna half the time.

To all, I went to the Wiki and read the quick and dirty denim strop piece. I am mentally working on how to improve what was shown, will keep everyone posted as it develops. I am also thinking of how to make it as a stable sleeve that can be slipped over a leather strop or even make it as a denim bench strop (you could do that and save me the effort). All this, of course, has to fit in with my creative work, my part time work as a bookkeeper for my son and trying to find where I can get Welsh language lessons without having to go there, and lastly having to keep up with the insanity/inanity of the viral thread started by that imp, MrPeters (Damon, you realize your name is one letter from demon?).

I will now go and have breakfast, leisurely read the Sunday paper, morning ablutions w/hopefully a BBS shave, medicate my two lady cats (old age & high blood pressure) and eventually get back to this thread sometime this afternoon. G'day mates!

Originally Posted by Razorfeld

find where I can get Welsh language lessons without having to go there,

but mick already posted a video on learning Welsh you can sing along to and learn at the same time.

i believe you were there at the dawn of velcro, but not linen

Bombay, some mornings I feel I even predate time itself. Today was the invention of widget #246398599. That one automatically cleans your partials and sings Dixie to you while it cleans.

By the way, 98% BBS. If it was perfect I'd have to go find something else to perfect. Once reached how an you surpass perfection?

Originally Posted by Razorfeld

If it was perfect I'd have to go find something else to perfect. Once reached how an you surpass perfection?

if everything was perfect, wouldnt life just be boring?

Razorfeld, it would be nice to make a version of the slightly better than mine strop without using adhesive, my thought was to somehow sew the two edges together, but flat, ie butt them up and sew across the join, but the stitching would need to extend far enough to stop fraying.
Or I suppose if the edges were sewn over with the x pattern stitches that you get inside trousers etc, then sewn together it would work. But obviously it woild be a lot of work.
I think Pete (bombay) might be getting a bit touchy about querying tradition

Flannels and denims have gone to crap in the last 20 years but, for a strop, I'd guess any denim would do fine unless/until the edges want to curl or cup. If you have a tent/awning house around (or someone who makes cloth buckets for utility workers) you might find some 16-20 oz duck scrap which, I think, would be very nice - very stable and stretch resistant.

Current awnings are mostly 100% acrylic which has good tenacity and stability. It's cheap and available but harder than cotton flannel or linen. I have a lot of it around and will experiment with some next week. Any commercial cloth probably is treated with stabilizing "sizing", typically a starch but waxes are sometimes used, too. Wash it out with soap and water before using would be my first thought.

Linen or pima, with such a fine finish, sounds perfect but not sure where to find any heavy enough to be stable. The older barber strops I've seen use some pretty stout duck so I'm not sure fineness of the surface finish matters that much if you finish on grain leather.