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Just a quick question here, fellas...
Considering Kanayama strops are no longer available, Ambrose (I believe) has quit making strops, Tony Miller is on a break...apart from the venerable SRD, what premium strop choices are out there floating around that I may not have heard of?
Neil Miller has a line of strops in the UK that I hear great things about. IIRC Tony Miller is making strops again on a limited basis. HandAmerican seems to be out of it , as I've not heard anything of Keith lately. My go to daily driver is an SRD premium 1 and I've tried most of them, including the kanayama 90,000.
Ive seen some nice ones over at: The Superior Shave
He has Walkin' Horse Strops. Might even get to snag a shell cordovan one if you wait long enough.
+1 on the walking horse strops the leather comes from Horween. I love my horse butt and I have a English bridle with linen on the way in
I have not tried this strop but if you go to japanesenaturalstones.com and click straight razors and accessories you will see a cordovan strop made in japan.
The strop you are seeing on your reference site is a Kanayama strop. And, I am not sure Kanayama is no longer making strops but we do know that certain of their strops are no longer available through a source most of us are aware of. "Kanayama" has perhaps a dozen " brand names" on their strops and they are available at several places.Quote:
Originally Posted by danielghofrani
Neil Miller constructs some of finest strops you will ever lay your eyes on and is a superb resource.
SRD has, in my mind, the largest selection of strop leathers you will find in one place at very, very fair prices. SRD's in paddle form and hanging strops are my day to day workhorses.
I believe the Kanayama linked to is "out of stock"...and yes, it sounds like he is still making them, but according to this it would be hard to find them now and might not be worth the money if you did. I just looked on the website and Neil's strops are absolutely gorgeous...I will have to file that away for when I really want to go nuts and indulge. right now...for the money...I think an SRD modular paddle is going to be the way to go for me.Quote:
Originally Posted by lz6
The difference between paddle srops and hanging strops is noteworthy. I recommend a hanging strop. Neil Miller should be considered! JMHO
oh, a neil miller strop is in my future...don't you worry. but for the time being, considering current fund availability...many of them being sold out on his site...Quote:
Originally Posted by sharptonn
i've always wanted to try a paddle strop (yes, i'm aware it's a totally different experience), so the SRD modular paddle seems like a lot of fun to play with for a good price. the neil miller strop may have wait until may when my loved ones just can't figure out what to get me for my birthday :deal:
Call me jaded, but I have yet to see a newly made strop and linen that compares with an old high quality strop and linen. Most of the leather I have seen is too thin, as is the linen.
What I did is purchase some old style strop hardware with screw clamp, just like the original antique strops, and selected a good piece of cowhide and added an old thick linen that I had left over from an antique strap that fell apart do to age. That tops anything I have seen offered by current manufacture and from the cost of one or two newly manufactured strops, you can buy enough cowhide or horsehide to make a half dozen to a dozen strops. But it's not as quick as just buying one from someone else.
Don't forget about Scrupleworks strops, many consider them to be top of the line.
Norwegian made, by our member TM280.
In the end, yes, it's just a piece of leather. Thickness hasn't really effected me one way or the other...once I pull it taut it all strops the same to me. The type of leather, I've noticed, makes a huge difference.Quote:
Originally Posted by stonehenge
Regarding the older is better...specifically with strops, I can't speak to quality as I haven't used an old or NOS strop. In some ways I agree (I don't have any "new" razors) on the other hand...the reason I trust the quality a little more is because in the old days, they produced this stuff because they wanted to make money and that's how they did it. With a lot of the guys who we are talking about here...HOPEFULLY they are able to make a living doing this, but most of them probably do it first and foremost because it is their passion. So assuming they are good at their craft, I think there is the good chance a little more care is taken in the creation...plus I appreciate they are doing this and would like to support them.
For the same reasons, when I do buy a "new" razor...it will probably be one of the creations from some of the artists here.
But I digress...
Ahh, this is the reason I started this thread in the first place! Many thanks, I've heard nothing of them until now and will check into it.Quote:
Originally Posted by str8fencer