By a wide margin, the DE rules the roost on this site. But although it may play second fiddle here, the straight razor has its fans, whether it's the hard core aficionado, the casual user, or the curious. In any event, if you want a straight, you'll need a strop, and here's everything you need to know about acquiring one-
1) Contact Tony Miller.
The end.
Seriously. I know this may be somewhat anticlimactic, but it's really as simple as that. Case in point- an old friend of mine has been beset by all manner of misfortune. Job, marriage, family, the whole nine yards. I gave him some not very collectable but completely serviceable razors (late 50's SS, slim adjustable, etc.) and some half tubs of creams. Along with music, shaving became one of his few pleasures. It cheered him considerably. I have a decent straight razor that I picked up on abay a while back that I know I'll never use, and rather than sell it, I wanted to give it to him. I got it shave ready, and if it ever needs work I can re-hone it for him, but for day to day use a strop is an absolute necessity. Ebay? Some of the crap for sale looks like it's not fit for a suicide bomb belt. What to do? Someone (I forget who) suggested that Tony Miller, a mainstay of straightrazorplace.com, sometimes has "seconds". I figured what the hell- I'm just looking for a decent hunk of leather.
I contacted him and he hooked me up with a setup that went far beyond my expectations. What a terrific guy to deal with. I'll not mention the price, other than to say that for the item I received, it was a song. And here's the kicker- I "test stropped" this morning, and Tony's strop is even better than my own, overpriced strop. It's larger and nicer than my (fill in name of famous strop manufacturer) from (fill in name of very popular shaving supply house). Looks just as good, too.
Now, if you look verrrry closely, you can discern a teeny blemish or two, but, after all, we're talking about the hide of a living thing that will always have some imperfections. Overall, the level of craftmanship is very high. I'm sort of glad my friend isn't on this site, because he's going to think I was extremely generous when he gets this- far more than I actually was.
In short, I feel like a complete dick for having purchased a strop from another company for my own use. I'll not make that mistake again.
1) Contact Tony Miller.
The end.
Seriously. I know this may be somewhat anticlimactic, but it's really as simple as that. Case in point- an old friend of mine has been beset by all manner of misfortune. Job, marriage, family, the whole nine yards. I gave him some not very collectable but completely serviceable razors (late 50's SS, slim adjustable, etc.) and some half tubs of creams. Along with music, shaving became one of his few pleasures. It cheered him considerably. I have a decent straight razor that I picked up on abay a while back that I know I'll never use, and rather than sell it, I wanted to give it to him. I got it shave ready, and if it ever needs work I can re-hone it for him, but for day to day use a strop is an absolute necessity. Ebay? Some of the crap for sale looks like it's not fit for a suicide bomb belt. What to do? Someone (I forget who) suggested that Tony Miller, a mainstay of straightrazorplace.com, sometimes has "seconds". I figured what the hell- I'm just looking for a decent hunk of leather.
I contacted him and he hooked me up with a setup that went far beyond my expectations. What a terrific guy to deal with. I'll not mention the price, other than to say that for the item I received, it was a song. And here's the kicker- I "test stropped" this morning, and Tony's strop is even better than my own, overpriced strop. It's larger and nicer than my (fill in name of famous strop manufacturer) from (fill in name of very popular shaving supply house). Looks just as good, too.
Now, if you look verrrry closely, you can discern a teeny blemish or two, but, after all, we're talking about the hide of a living thing that will always have some imperfections. Overall, the level of craftmanship is very high. I'm sort of glad my friend isn't on this site, because he's going to think I was extremely generous when he gets this- far more than I actually was.
In short, I feel like a complete dick for having purchased a strop from another company for my own use. I'll not make that mistake again.
