New Tony Miller

I posted a pic of this new strop in another thread but figured I’d try to get some conversation going on it. I have four strops. Two of them are Tony Miller strops. And as you would suspect by this additional purchase, I like them. The other two are serviceable, good strops but not of the caliber of a TM strop. The first was a fast bridle. The second, pictured below, is the premium steerhide. For those that have a TM strop, how do you like them in comparison to other strops? Dollar for dollar, how do think they value up?

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I only have three strops.

My go to strop has been a Tony Miller fast bridle that I have probably had for three years or so. It has a wonderful feel and silky smooth draw. The value for the dollar couldn't be better seeing that in my case it is still going strong.

My question to you is how does the premium steerhide compare to the fast bridle?

Enjoy!

Pete <:-}

Is this his site?

The Well Shaved Gentleman The Heirloom Razor Strop Company

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Originally Posted by earcutter

Is this his site?

The Well Shaved Gentleman The Heirloom Razor Strop Company

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That's the site. The stock of strops comes and goes. You have to catch him when he has some available.

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Originally Posted by petercp4e

I only have three strops.

My go to strop has been a Tony Miller fast bridle that I have probably had for three years or so. It has a wonderful feel and silky smooth draw. The value for the dollar couldn't be better seeing that in my case it is still going strong.

My question to you is how does the premium steerhide compare to the fast bridle?

Enjoy!

Pete <:-}

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How do they compare? They are the same size and quality. In that regard there is no difference. In spite of the names of them, the fast bridle has more draw than the steerhide. The steerhide is actually quite fast. If you are a latigo/draw fan, the steerhide is not for you. Both are flawless pieces of leather with a silky glide. His site promises that the difference is in the details. I agree. Its a good addition to my strops because some razors bring their own draw. Having a fast strop is a good addition.

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Originally Posted by OCDshaver

That's the site. The stock of strops comes and goes. You have to catch him when he has some available.

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Man, there’s a bit too much proselytizing going on there for me. Oh well!

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Originally Posted by earcutter

Man, there’s a bit too much proselytizing going on there for me. Oh well!

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Well, scroll past it and check out the strops. My understanding is that he's in Amish country and takes his faith seriously. But good leather is good leather.

I have your same strop in dark leather. My first, got it 4 years ago. It is my favorite as well. My other is a horween Scrupleworks. I like it too, but I prefer the TM. A little less draw with the TM. It's 3 inches wide vs. the 2.5 on the Scrupleworks, but either width is fine by me. Unless I cut one badly I'll never buy another.

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Originally Posted by cau

I have your same strop in dark leather. My first, got it 4 years ago. It is my favorite as well. My other is a horween Scrupleworks. I like it too, but I prefer the TM. A little less draw with the TM. It's 3 inches wide vs. the 2.5 on the Scrupleworks, but either width is fine by me. Unless I cut one badly I'll never buy another.

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

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 :)

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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 :)

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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.

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Originally Posted by OCDshaver

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

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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

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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

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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

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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.

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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.

I have 2 Tony Miller strops, Chocolate Bridal yes its a fast draw but nice (I am not a massive fan of fast draw strops, but I still like it) 2.5 inch wide
I also have a 2.5 inch Steer hide which is a lovely smooth draw slower than the bridal for sure but smooth, I also own SRD 3 inch Roo and Latigo
All 4 seem excellent quality,

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Originally Posted by Phoenix51

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.

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Tony Miller strops are primo. And you can't beat that introductory price!

Okay,
Y'all talked about 'em enough to make me order a Tony Miller strop this morning. I assume that's what the intent was (for sure sharptonn likes to encourage me to spend my kids inheritance) so it's time to move on to something else everyone should have. Why does it seem that everyone already has one but me?
:beer1::beer1:

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Originally Posted by Diboll

Okay,
Y'all talked about 'em enough to make me order a Tony Miller strop this morning. I assume that's what the intent was (for sure sharptonn likes to encourage me to spend my kids inheritance) so it's time to move on to something else everyone should have. Why does it seem that everyone already has one but me?
:beer1::beer1:

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There we go! Now we've got a winner. Just post a pic and a little review when it arrives. We love that stuff.

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Originally Posted by PaulKidd

Tony Miller strops are primo. And you can't beat that introductory price!

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Not that they are a secret but looking at the recent strop threads, I hadn't seen much about them as of late. I was wondering how many people had one and how they felt they compared to other strops they might own.

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Originally Posted by Diboll

Okay,
Y'all talked about 'em enough to make me order a Tony Miller strop this morning. I assume that's what the intent was (for sure sharptonn likes to encourage me to spend my kids inheritance) so it's time to move on to something else everyone should have. Why does it seem that everyone already has one but me?


:beer1::beer1:

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I was going to pull the trigger last night....the wife had my credit card. Getting one tomorrow..Just hope you didn’t buy the one I was eyeballing....lol

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Originally Posted by nessmuck

I was going to pull the trigger last night....the wife had my credit card. Getting one tomorrow..Just hope you didn’t buy the one I was eyeballing....lol

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Not to Worry,
I just went to the site and checked. Went to the one I ordered, chose the same option for handle, and it still shows "in stock".

If he's out when you try to order, someone else bought up the supply, not me!

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Originally Posted by nessmuck

I was going to pull the trigger last night....the wife had my credit card. Getting one tomorrow..Just hope you didn’t buy the one I was eyeballing....lol

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Ha! Very good. What did you select?

OCD the enabler!!!

I think we should make him cook us dinner as penance
:)

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Originally Posted by gugi

OCD the enabler!!!

I think we should make him cook us dinner as penance
:)

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I agree 100%.
Now we need to decide on the menu and location.

I'd say based on his posts in the food threads we are better off leaving it up to him!

The big plan here is to answer him enabling us with us enabling him :)

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Originally Posted by gugi

OCD the enabler!!!

I think we should make him cook us dinner as penance
:)

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Now you want me to make you fat too?! LOL.

The way I look at it it's a small price to pay!!! :)

"The way I look at it it's a small price to pay!!!"

You guys crack me up!

I too, of course, have a Tony Miller. I bought it only 2 years ago, and since then it has been the strop I use 90% of the time. The other 10% I use a paddle strop on which I can change leather.

It is THE single nicest strop I've owned (out of 6 or 7) and the only one I'd never give up. I don't remember what I paid and whatever it was, it's worth it. It makes stropping feel like spreading butter on bread!

I want the Duck !!!

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Originally Posted by nessmuck

I want the Duck !!!

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That would be easy to arrange. Lol

I've owned a Tony Miller since 2009.
It's still a great strop.

I need another one, thanks for reminding me. :roflmao

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Originally Posted by Disburden

I've owned a Tony Miller since 2009.
It's still a great strop.

I need another one, thanks for reminding me. :roflmao

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I know that they are not a secret but they haven’t gotten much discussion lately. I’d say that now is a perfect time to get another. I just hope you’ll tell us about it if you do.