Thread: Strop Choices

Originally Posted by Dieseld

I thought I read that somewhere as well.
The new one is Buffalo and from the description a bit more thin

The buffalo strop is thinner but it has lots of draw.

Originally Posted by Dieseld

It seems the Kanayama strops are the creme da la creme of strops
Maybe one day, but I have a long way to go before I'd attempt using one. My skills are good, but not great

Nope, Neil Miller strops are the creme de la creme of strops & a strop thread without a mention of him...very strange?

Thanks I'll add that to my list to check out. Ya know just to see

Originally Posted by jaycey

Nope, Neil Miller strops are the creme de la creme of strops & a strop thread without a mention of him...very strange?

He closed up shop a while back tho, didn't he?

Neil passed away in 2015.

I wasn't aware of that

Unless you must have a very light draw, a Russian oil-tanned leather strop is one to try. Very firm draw, butt-ugly, and presenting itself in a most old-school fashion, they are well worth investigating

Best to try a few strops like the ones in this thread. I have tried the heavier draw Latigo, the Russian styled strops, and I've settled on the lighter draw Kanayama strops as my everyday strop of choice. Enjoy your journey.

Well got my new Buffalo strop in the mail yesterday. Fast shipping and an amazing new strop.
I will say that the Straight Razor Designs strop is the same as the Premier Strop Company's strop. Side by side there is no difference.

Now I'll be using the new strop this morning and will give a full review in my opinion.
The Stropping "leather" on the buffalo is less thick than the latigo by about maybe 1/4 less in thickness. It is nice and flexable.
But I can say without a doubt top quality

Originally Posted by Dieseld

Now I'll be using the new strop this morning and will give a full review in my opinion.

That will be a progress report. Until you have properly broken in that strop, you will not be able to properly review it. And that will take some time. I know, because I once did this:

That's every SRD strop ever made (I used two strips of leather for several, hence the relatively low total number).

Summary of that experiment:

1. The type of leather does not matter. Every strop was capable of sharpening (as in "bring back previous sharpness level", not "actually sharpen", you would need an abrasive material for that, and leather is not abrasive when it comes to steel) a razor. No differences whatsoever.
2. The type of non-leather component does matter. Straight Razor Designs's webbing gets the job done, and very well so. But the sound, to me, is like fingernails scratching across a blackboard. Slowly. After someone's splashed some lime juice onto said blackboard. For me, nothing beats the linen Torolf uses for his strops. And his strops, by the way, are fantastic, too, and better made than SRD's. They are also in a different league as far as price is concerned, but given the choice between a Kan(a|o)yama and a Scrupleworks strop, I'd take the Scrupleworks one without second guessing.
3. Price does not equal performance. Given that performance is the same across the entire range of strops, that is, of course, a no-brainer. You pay extra for better made, or just more exotic, leathers.
4. Everything else is totally subjective and personal. Some people love Kan(a|o)yama strops, and are willing to pay a lot of money for them. Me, I do not care for them at all. Some like Latigo leather, while I think it is an abomination, and the absurd amount of draw it produces does nothing except negatively affect stropping.

So, enjoy the Buffalo. It is a nice strop. Personally, I would go for the extra long English bridle leather, but that is - see above - totally subjective and personal.