Thread: New Tony Miller

Originally Posted by gugi

Tony Miller has always made top notch strops. I got the first one ten years ago and I would describe it as a luxury product - it was flawless. That's meaningful with leather because as natural product there are inevitably flaws, so you have to be very choosy and throw away stuff that's just as functional. He didn't throw those away though, he made them into 'basic' strops at very low cost, which I thought was great. I've been able to get a basic strop with each of my orders and give it to a needy member.

In any case, I think, as a result of the discussions here he pioneered the 3" wide strop, and he said that extra width required his design with three screws. The fact that his designs have been copied 1:1 by others as their own I think is indicative.
Sometimes it's fun to read those old threads on the forum

Personally, I prefer 2.5" wide strops and I like my vintage strops best, but for a new strop I think Tony Miller is one of the best, if not the best option out there at that price point. Of course, there is the well known issue with availability but I always liked that he's straight up with the whole thing. To me it's much more off-putting when a company lies to me and people pretend to be something they aren't.
I always find it very cool that all of us are so different. Still pretty much all of us prioritize family, religion, friends, etc. before hobbies, business, money, etc., thank God

I’ve felt the same about the value. The other two strops I own rang in at the same price point and are nowhere as nice. They were a lot more available though.

Originally Posted by OCDshaver

Is yours a fast bridle? My fast bridle is a dark leather. This new one is obviously a lot lighter.

Yes, mine is the fast bridal strop. Mine has D-rings. Extremely happy with it.

Might have to get one. I have no idea what a fast draw is. Or any other draw. I bought a red Latigo 9 years ago,when I got into Straight Razor Shaving...and that’s the only strop I’ve owned. I Nevah caught SAD....Strop Acquisition Disorder......lol

Originally Posted by nessmuck

Might have to get one. I have no idea what a fast draw is. Or any other draw. I bought a red Latigo 9 years ago,when I got into Straight Razor Shaving...and that’s the only strop I’ve owned. I Nevah caught SAD....Strop Acquisition Disorder......lol

Fast draw meaning light, low resistance. What I hear is the opposite of your latigo.

I received my new 3” ScrupleWorks Horween strop yesterday and tried it out immediately. It has a slower draw than my vintage Japanese shell strop which is quite slick and the linen seems coarser than the linen on the Japanese shell. That might change with use.

I think my new progression will be linen on the ScrupleWorks followed by linen on the Japanese shell and then ScrupleWorks leather ending with Japanese leather. I tried that yesterday and it produced a very nice edge on my Shumate.

The first strop I bought was Tony Miller latigo. It's still my go-to strop all these years later. I originally bought it with just the leather, but later decided to order a piece of linen to add to it. He asked that I send a photo of my strop to ensure things matched up, and they did. He stuck me as a stand-up, honest dealer.

Since then I've made a few strops (which really helped illustrate the difference between a hobby leather maker like me and a real craftsman!), but have never felt the need to upgrade from the latigo, and so it remains the only one I've actually bought.

My Tony Miller Heritage is my go-to strop. For me, it has the perfect draw, and the craftsmanship is top notch. I even bought a backup in a light colored leather which is still in the plastic.

I have had a few TM strops over the years. All have been quite good. His “Plain Vanilla/Chocolate” models arewithout a doubt the best drop-dead value in the world of wet shaving.
I currently own a few strops:
Rasoir-Sabre horsehide
Herold Russian
Herold Oil-tanned Russian (becoming scarce I am told)
A One-off vegetable tanned 8-9 oz. cowhide with lizard skin bolsters I made.
Tony Miller’s new “Rough Out” steerhide strop

The new TM may be the best strop I have owned. The draw has a wonderful, velvety feel to
it. Workmanship is perfect as usual. Great introductory price too.
Top to bottom:
Tony Miller “Rough Out”
Rasoir Sabre Horsehide
Tony Miller “Plain Vanilla”
Hand made cowhide/lizard

Originally Posted by Cangooner

The first strop I bought was Tony Miller latigo. It's still my go-to strop all these years later. I originally bought it with just the leather, but later decided to order a piece of linen to add to it. He asked that I send a photo of my strop to ensure things matched up, and they did. He stuck me as a stand-up, honest dealer.

Since then I've made a few strops (which really helped illustrate the difference between a hobby leather maker like me and a real craftsman!), but have never felt the need to upgrade from the latigo, and so it remains the only one I've actually bought.

I haven't seen him offer latigo but have heard others refer to it. Now, admittedly I don't check back with his offerings on a weekly basis so he may have in the time between visits to his site. I typically don't like heavy draw so I have not sought latigo.

I bought my 3" Artisan Red Latigo/Horsehide strop ("D"-rings, not handles) from Tony Miller's "Well Shaved Gentleman" on 9/30/08. I've been wholly pleased with the purchase and, since then, it's been my one-and-only strop.

Most of my razors are near-wedge or ¼/½-hollow grinds, in 9/16-6/8, and I find myself almost always using only the Red Latigo strop (and very rarely the horsehide) -- love the "draw" on the Red Latigo!

At the (then) price of $116 +S/H, it was money well-spent.