Thread: I just learned to strop from an old timer!

Alright so I was talking to my 75 year old grand father about straight shaving. I've been using a disposable straight razer and just ordered the real thing, shave ready. Any way, I told him I think it would be a good idea to practice with a butter knife until I know I'm getting it right. He offered to teach me the way he learned and pulled an old strop off the wall leading to his basement. He showed me how he learned from his dad and grandpa, and walked me through it until I could do it well. So now I don't have to worry about ruining my straight razor when it arrives!

The strop is from the 1960's and was given to my grandpa as a gift when an old barber offered to fix one of his straight razors for him. I don't have my camera or I would post pics, if any one is interested I'll look the strop over and post any information on where it was made. I know it says something about Genuine Scotch Leather on it.

As funny as it sounds, and after many years of personally stropping practically everything, I would still love to hear a summary of what your grandfather told you.

Please feel free to share . . .

I too would like to hear an old-hand's method of stropping... Mine is made up from online videos and what seems to work, but it sounds like you have one from a veteran! Please, do share this gem!

Motion carried. Let's hear what he said and showed you.

it wasn't so much telling as showing. He taught me to bring the butter knife from one end to the other, obviously holding the strop straight. I let the blunt end of the butter knife lead so the cutting end trailed. At first I got mixed up and was leading with the cutting side)-: so he suggested I slow down and lift the knife while I rolled it with my fingers, so that I could see which side was leading and which side was trailing. Then I got progressively faster. He told me to use the linen side when I get my straight razor to warm the blade up, and then switch to the harder leather side for 50 passes. The strop has a linen part, and a leather part with two sides. The hard leather is what he said to use before I shave, and the softer leather if the blade feels a little rough.

He's going to walk me through it again when I get my straight, because there are a few things I might not learn on the butter knife, but it seems pretty straight forward unless you over think it.

Maybe I'll film him teaching how to use a straight razor some time, it'd be interesting but it's been a few years since he's done it.

He's also showed me an old Arkansas stone he bought back in the day, it's still good but he doesn't use it that often. It's slate gray and you put oil on it before you sharpen with it. His three straight razors belonged to him, his dad, and his grandpa. His grandpa gave him his the day he learned to shave on his fifteenth birthday.

Wonderful story. Thank you for sharing.

To bad I'm not good at explaining things or it might be more interesting(-:

Any way heres the pics.

whatever you do, Keep that strop Scotch strops are IME great stuff, and Shell leather, especially the old, vintage stuff like you have there, is fantastic.

Great catch there, Have fun with it!

Cheers,
Jeremy

whoops guess I could've cropped those a little.