Thread: Strop Recommendation

Originally Posted by altshaver

.....
Looking forward to any more thoughts and recommendations.

Some wide strops seem to cup -- when a slightly narrower
one does not. The x on any two inch or wider strop will
feel natural with some deliberate smooth practice.

My first strop was a 2" Dorko with a linen backing and it served me well. I certainly didnt find it too hard to learn on. I've now got an SRD 3" black latigo with webbed fabric, which is a really great strop!

The additional benefit of the SRD strops is that they are modular, so if you slice the leather up you can just order a replacement bit of leather for about $30, rather than having to shell out for a whole new strop.

First of all, I can't recommend the SRD Strops enough... I just LOVE them.

Secondly, and this is completely unrelated, I have only EVER used 3'' strops, never anything smaller... Yet, when my mind wanders while I strop, every now and then, I'll snap back mentally, but not physically, and, upon looking at my razor, realize I was subconsciously doing an x pattern on a 3 inch strop.... And, like I said, I've never had a strop that mandated an x pattern...

Weird, huh?

this is nice. i just replaced my cut of latigo with a nice bridle replacement

Originally Posted by Stubear

My first strop was a 2" Dorko with a linen backing and it served me well. I certainly didnt find it too hard to learn on. I've now got an SRD 3" black latigo with webbed fabric, which is a really great strop!

The additional benefit of the SRD strops is that they are modular, so if you slice the leather up you can just order a replacement bit of leather for about $30, rather than having to shell out for a whole new strop.

I've been using a dovo 2" strop for a couple of months and have now got a dovo XL 3" wide strop making stropping a lot easier, but not sure if the red side is a replacement for the cloth on the smaller strop ?

altshaver,

I couldn't agree more...That's one reason that I opted for a 3" wide strop for my first strop back in December. I have been very pleased with my VB 3" Latigo strop.

I know of at least two vendors who advertise here at SRP that offer a 3" wide strop. One is SRD, the other is Vintage Blades. There may be others that I am not familiar with.

Check out their websites. I think whichever 3" strop you get from either of them will be a good choice.

I am leaning towards getting a 3-inch strop. I feel this will be much easier to use than the Filly. I am leaning towards a 3-inch SRD strop so that I can have readily available replacement leather in the event that I ruin the strop. Tony MIller's strops look great as well and would be my preference, but his shop is only periodically open and may not be open in the future. I'll have to think about it.

I have the SRD IV and it is everything you think a strop should be. From just a leather perspective it's damn nice. Nice even draw like the belt is magnetized and attracts the blade. Easy to keep your blade flat whether doing it straight or X pattern. It's as good as ShavedZombie says.

I started out on an Illinois 827 because it was considered a mid level strop that had a linen side. I liked that strop because it was hard to nick and of course it worked fine.

I bought a TM 3inch strop and actually found it more difficult to strop up and down versus the X pattern. I guess I had been accustomed to using the X pattern with the 827. After some practice with the 3 inch I was able to become proficient using it.

I have a vintage Red Imp strop that is my favorite and it is 2.5 inches wide. This is the size I prefer because I can get most of the blade on it while still doing a crisp X stroke

Well, I decided to go with an SRD Premium IV 3-inch strop. I'll let you know my impressions of it and whether or not I feel it is easier to use.