Gotta get a new strop.

So I went to Europe last month and accidentally left my SRD Red Latigo Strop behind. I've been shaving with a Mach 3 or some such crap since I returned (sacrilege I know) and it's absolutely killing my face. I went to the local TAOS store and I don't see how that tiny DOVO strop can be worth $75 when I can spend a little more and get a new SRD strop. My only issue is that there are quite a few types and I don't really know the difference. Are there huge differences between each SRD strop and which is considered the best?

Well, in an emergency, you could always try palm stropping or using an old leather belt so you don't have to use the crap3. :)

As far as "best", that's totally subjective--it depends on what you like in a strop. All of SRD's strops are reported to be very high quality.


I personally have the III & IV. Both are great, with the 3 having a lot of draw. Very supple leather also, but delicate. The 4 has less than the 3, but it's still present. It also has really good feedback. It's been a while since I've used latigo, but in order of draw from most to least, I would say Prem III>latigo>Prem IV. Lots like the Prem I (supposed to have lighter draw than the IV, but I haven't used it, so I can't comment there).

I really like the premium IV as an everyday do-everything strop, but again, that's me. The draw of both increases w/ use, so that's something else you might want to consider.

So the only difference is amount of draw. I liked the amount the latigo had after I got it broken in so I'll probably go with another one of those. Next question: are there differences in fabric, wool and webbing for the other part of the strop?

I have the SRD Premium I and I cannot say enough good things about it... It's a personal preference, but I prefer the P1 over my Tony Miller red Latigo..
That said, I've been itching to try an SRD P IV also.

Thanks for the info gents. I keep hearing and reading really good things about the Premium 1 so I might give that one a shot. I did see the options of fabric material, but my question was in regards to the differences of each. Do the fabrics match up to certain leathers or is it more of a personal preference like most other things here? If it's preference, what is the benefit of choosing one over the other, say wool over cotton?

The face killing I mentioned isn't nicks and cuts, it's irritation and ingrown hairs. Things that don't happen when I use my straights.

The 2nd strop is really personal preference....