Thread: Old Horse Strops

True shell is always from the rump of a Horse/steer,visualize the shell shape over the rear end of the animal.
One way to tell if it is shell is it is far thicker than the norm,around 3/4mm+ yet extreamly pliable.
Shell is very hard to buy as the high end shoe makers get most of it which from a complete hide yields about 3 pair of shoes per/side,thats another reason you never see the shells when buying full hides,are like gold.

I have a Certifyd strop that I use almost every day, and you couldn't pry it from my cold, dead hands. It took a little while to get used to how slick horse hide feels since I had been using a latigo strop previously, but it really helps dial in an edge before a shave.

I was lucky enough to get a red Imp Strop NOS still in it's wrappings on Eboy around 6 years ago. It's the thickest strop I have ever seen and I prize it more highly than my kanayamara.

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

I was lucky enough to get a red Imp Strop NOS still in it's wrappings on Eboy around 6 years ago. It's the thickest strop I have ever seen and I prize it more highly than my kanayamara.

Mine is an FW Engels,I believe the same as the Imp you have,was also N.O.S,4mm thick and for being 50+ yrs old.as supple as my wife was back in the day out of all the shaving crap I have been blessed to own at one time or another,this strop puts a smile on my face every time I use it

Real nice, where you purchased? Its a genuine shell Cordovan?

Thanks
K

I've got an old Riordan shell strop. It qualifies as a strop according the Wintchase because it looks like it has had several cats thrown at it.

In spite of all the abuse it has received in the past, it is still a heck of a strop. It has practically no "draw" but does a fine job for me.

The name 'shell cordovan' has a double meaning. 'Shell' defines which part of the horse it comes from, in this case it is the butt cheeks, and each shell is a roughly circular or oval, around the side of a dustbin lid. You only get two shells from one horse, which (along with the 6 month long tanning process) is why it is so costly. Most old shell was fairly thick, but the norm these days is for it to be around 2mm thick. The probable reason is that its intended end use is shoes and belts, not thick leather strops.

The other part of the equation is 'cordovan' - this came from Cordoba, in Spain, where the stuff was made (in the old days it was called 'cordwain' hence old english shoemakers being described as 'cordwainers') and refers to the method of tanning. As an aside, the original stuff wasn't even horse - it came from goats - but the tanning method was very different. Any part of the horse can be tanned in the cordovan method, so you can get cordovan horsehide which is not shell. In some places it usual to use the thicker leather from near the neck of the horse, cordovan-tan it, and mis-sell it as 'shell cordovan' - dubious practice indeed! You can usually spot the difference by the leather being thicker and more fibrous on one side - true shell cordovan is thinner and both sides are very tightly grained, the front being dried on a sheet of glass to give it the characteristic glazed look.

Regards,
Neil

My old strop got too many nicks so i bought this one.
Can you help Me id it?? WHO made it?





Greatfull for any info.

No Clue FB but it should serve you well.
Niel,I have a Thought on real shell,may be off the wall but something I have been pondering.
Is no Question real shell is somewhat rarified and very spendy,The old true shell strops I have are far more pliable for the thickness than any other hide strops I have.
I wonder if the reason is because the material comes from an area that is pure muscle,always under tension,always moveing verses other parts of the Horse anatomy,perhaps it's thickness is part of the grand design because that is where a predator would attack a mammal. that and the neck area you mention,Just some ruminations

Originally Posted by pixelfixed

No Clue FB but it should serve you well.
Niel,I have a Thought on real shell,may be off the wall but something I have been pondering.
Is no Question real shell is somewhat rarified and very spendy,The old true shell strops I have are far more pliable for the thickness than any other hide strops I have.
I wonder if the reason is because the material comes from an area that is pure muscle,always under tension,always moveing verses other parts of the Horse anatomy,perhaps it's thickness is part of the grand design because that is where a predator would attack a mammal. that and the neck area you mention,Just some ruminations

Ruminations - lol!

The shells are just that - pure muscle fibre, which is why they are so pliable and not prone to wrinkling and very close grained.

I think that the difference in thicknesses is really due to the practice of squeegeeing the face of the shells to a glass plate and drying it stretched over the plate to achieve the very glossy effect. In order for this to be most successful it is normal to remove the top layer of the skin side - called 'splitting' - to reveal the smooth muscle layer below.

Back in the day There were horses everywhere - pulling freight, making beer deliveries, pulling cabs, working in fields, mounts for the police and the armed services - so there must have been a super-abundance of leather available. Happily, there was also a big demand for strops, so I suppose that not all the leather was 'split' giving a choice of smooth or napped leather. Some of it also had abrasive compounds worked into it by powered rollers - they were spoilt for choice, if only they knew it!

You don't really come to appreciate the full importance of something until it has gone...

Regards,
Neil