Thread: Illinois Razor Strop Company branded strops

Hello all,

I was wondering if anyone could provide information on the strops currently manufactured today under this brand. I believe that Fromm International is the manufacturer of these strops now. Are these strops made in the United States, or are they made elsewhere? Overall, how is the quality of these strops? They seem to retail for a decent price, but do you end up getting what you pay for? I do have to say that I like the vintage styling on these strops. I wish more modern strops would have the nice vintage styling of yesteryear (I do know that the Kanoyama strops have a nice vintage look.).

I have read that old Illinois Razor Strop Company strops were really well made in the past. I have also read that the current strops are not made of horsehide - is that true?

What differentiates the models, outside of size and shape? Does the draw differ appreciably between models?

Thanks for any comments and help.

Fromm International and the Illinois Razor Strop Company are one and the same. The IRS Co was founded in 1906 and changed names much later. The son, or possibly grandson, of the founder was still with the company in 2006 when I talked with him.

As far as current production strops - it's possible that the strops now produced are not the very best that this company has ever made. I know that at one time IRS did make strops for other brands (Dubbl Duck for instance) and that they once produced cordovan shell strops which are no longer made by IRS. This does not mean that current production IRS strops are not good quality. I'm guessing that as the demand for barbershop shaving declined from the late 1950's into the early 1970's the demand for the highest quality razor strops also declined and what's left is a range somewhere in the middle. The little #206 was probably meant for personal use as opposed to a professional barber's shop, or possibly as a barber's travel strop.

Considering that this company started making razor strops during the golden age of American barbering at a time when most men went to a barber for a shave, I am very confident in their product and have been using their strops for over 30 years.

G'Day Altshaver,
I recently scored a vintage Illinois #992 and a Crown and Sword razor on the bay and have found that the strop has taken my blades to another level, so to speak.
I think it is because of the linen side as I was using canvas webbing on the strop I made for myself and a belt blank for the leather.
It seems 'noisier' as I use it than the canvas - the same sound as on Glen's videos when he strops on linen - so I am assuming it is 'rougher'.
This is a 'Russian' leather strop, apparently, which uses the inside of the leather rather than the skin side.
All I know is that is it lovely to use and gives me a great result.
I have also heard good things about the #127 and #827, however I cannot comment as I haven't used one.