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Paddle Strop -vs- Loom Strop

I have two great hanging strops; An SRD and a Tony Miller Horsehide. Love them both, but I find I am not using the linen or poly web. I also have a small dual sided travel paddle strop from Stropman that is napped leather with CROX on one side and smooth leather on the other. I really like the portability of the paddle (though the Stropman is a basic model with no spring action to the bed). I like to hone in various spaces and don't always have access to a convenient hook.

I've narrowed my options to two. A paddle strop & a loom strop.

Paddle strop options are a modular style or a fixed two sided. SRD and The Invisible Edge both have nice modular strops, but I don't see myself using that many different materials. I need one napped leather for pasting and one smooth for final stropping. A two sided smooth leather with one side sprayed could work fine. The Custom Sprung Latigo Strop has my eye... pricey, but beautiful. Good stuff ain't cheap and cheap stuff ain't good!!

The other option is a loom strop. Same options as the two sided paddle strop with the advantage of being able to use the back side of the leather as well (though not nearly as convenient). Invisible Edge has a nice one.. Less expensive than their paddle, replaceable leather, adjustable tension and appears to be equally well made.
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Here's the dilemma... Action. A hanging strop can be self-correcting to a degree. If the blade is presented to the strop with a slightly off spine angle, toe to heel, the strop will twist as needed. Not so with the paddle. Possible with loom, though to a limited degree I would think. Likewise, the hanging strop and the loom have the benefit of being able to control tension. No go with the paddle strop.. the feel of the tension is limited to the flexibility in the bed.

For now I have eliminated the modular paddle from my options.

So which way to go? Two sided paddle strop or two sided loom strop? The paddle might have a slightly longer stropping area, depending on the model. I would love to hear from those of you who have used either or both.
 
I've not used either, but I have used solid leather paddles and hanging strops. For some reason I've never gotten good performance using razors on a solid un pasted leather paddle. In my mind it has to be related to the lack of deflection of the paddle. I see the paddle you have shown is sprung, but I can't imagine ever using enough pressure for that to make any difference at all compared to a solid paddle. The loom strop, on the other hand, seems like it would mimic the deflection of a hanging strop very well.
 
I've not used either, but I have used solid leather paddles and hanging strops. For some reason I've never gotten good performance using razors on a solid un pasted leather paddle. In my mind it has to be related to the lack of deflection of the paddle. I see the paddle you have shown is sprung, but I can't imagine ever using enough pressure for that to make any difference at all compared to a solid paddle. The loom strop, on the other hand, seems like it would mimic the deflection of a hanging strop very well.

That was my thought as well...
thanks
 
I,d recommend a medium sized mastro livi loom strop simply beautiful to use and one side is pasted with crox

Thanks Gary.. the past few days have resulted me in leaning heavily towards the loom strop and Mastro Livi is in the running for sure. Sadly, many of the loom strops I am finding are quite small so options aren't so abundant.
 
Mike, I have both the Invisible Edge paddle you pictured above and an extra long Mastro Livi loom strop. Completely different beasts. The paddle is beautifully crafted and has a nice 3" wide bed with lovely draw.

The Livi loom is just sublime. I only use it for my Livi razors as it's part of a matching set and I want to keep it having that magical feel.

I'll see if I can drag up some photos.
 
If you're after something closer to a hanging strop, then a loom strop would be the way to go IMO. There, you can vary the tension to suit your taste, similar to a hanging strop. Also, when finished with the loom strop, it is best to release the tension on it, on account of humidity fluctuations. So there, again like a hanging strop, you are starting from zero and introducing tension as needed at the start of the stropping session.
 
Thank you Gents...

Still undecided. I am not looking to replace my hanging strops. What I want is something portable to act as a bridge strop to be used right off the hones. Yes, hanging strops can be hung just about anywhere, I know. My honing kit is portable and I tend to setup in different spots around my property. None make for easy, repeatable connections points for hanging strops. So a paddle/loom will work perfectly for the initial stropping after a honing.

I am still feeling the modular route is overkill for me. And frankly, with the number of hanging strops I have, my woodworking skills would easily allow me to make a modular paddle myself.

I want a simple two sided design. One side to treat with diamond spray, other to be left untreated.

Still deciding which way to go, but the Tensio adjustable loom is looking more and more like what I want. The only drawback it's the stropping area is only 8". There-in is the battle. Small means portable, which is what started this adventure. But is it too small to be practical?

Scrupleworks makes a nice loom strop as well... waiting on a response to email inquiry.

Also, can't narrow the leather options.. My SRD is latigo.. lots of draw and rather stiff. My TM is horsehide...sexy smooth. light draw. The Tensio is available with Latigo, Napped (which I don't think I want) and English Bridle. Which way to go if I want to hit one side with diamond spray?

I don't think a Livi is in my budget.
 
Hmmm..I hadn't considered the SRD regular paddle. I was focused on their modular design.

I like the 12" length as opposed to 8" on the Tensio..

I think the Livi is too long for my desired use.

The SRD paddle wouldn't allow me to replace a damaged leather component, in the event of a mishap, where the Tensio loom would.

And I have to wonder how functional the hollowed body is. It would take a fair amount of pressure to flex the leather/wood combo. How much flex is there in the InvisEdge paddle you have? Is it hype?

I just honed a blade and did the initial strop on the Stropman travel strop I have. It is 7.5" x 2" with smooth on one side and pasted napped leather on the other. For my needs, I managed fine with the short length..remember, this is a bridge between the stones and hanging strop. What I dislike is it isn't sprung; zero give. It feels uncomfortable.

Wish I was able to test drive both of these options...
 
Mike, I specifically chose the long Livi Loom strop as something special. He makes them in different sizes too, small and medium. Reading your post again, I'd probably suggest the 3" paddle strop from The Invisible Edge. I have it too and use it after the hones. Both sides are of napped leather so one can be with a paste/spray and then go to the untreated napped leather and then onto your current hanging strop.

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I do not have and have never used a loom strop but just wanted to say that with Tensio in your photo, you could change out the leather in the event it was damaged or if you simply wanted different leather- I prefer horsehide myself so that would be a nice option.

And I have to say that while I have found most loom strops to be functionally unattractive, that Tensio is actually very nice. Impressively nice IMO. that won't make it strop any better but it may increase pride of ownership. Just a thought.

Brian

Hmmm..I hadn't considered the SRD regular paddle. I was focused on their modular design.

I like the 12" length as opposed to 8" on the Tensio..

I think the Livi is too long for my desired use.

The SRD paddle wouldn't allow me to replace a damaged leather component, in the event of a mishap, where the Tensio loom would.

<snip>
 
If I go the paddle route, frankly I would make it myself. I have the tools, skills and plenty of exotic woods. Also have two strops I could sacrifice for mounting on balsa panels. Also have plenty of rare earth magnets to complete the attachment system. If you look at the pictures of the Invisible Edges modular strop, it's quite simple to reverse engineer. Likely an hour or two combined behind the table saw, router and band saw.

Brian, I agree with you entirely. There is nothing romantic or attractive about the metal loom strops, Livi strops being the exception. And I agree that the Tensio has a nice appearance to it. So does the one from Scrupleworks but thus far, I have no response to my email inquiry to them..

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With the Tensio, virtually any 2" strop from any vendor could be retrofit. Not sure about the Scrupleworks.
 
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I've come close to convincing myself to get the Tensio loom strop but as much as it has cool factor in my eyes, I believe it's going to be too small. At a final stropping area of 8" x 1.75" it's actually smaller than the Stropman paddle. Unless Scrupleworks replies to my email and tells me their paddle is larger I turn my attention back to invisible edges custom paddle...
 
I have the modular SRD paddle strop. This thing is amazing and has replaced all of my other strops. It is very well made and the modularity of this design is awesome. I was also considering a loom but I've been using the SRD paddle for about 6 months now and can't imagine using anything else.
 
Who makes the loom strop that's in the original post? I realy like the way it looks. But if your good with wood work, why not build one 12x3? I would definitely be interested in talking to you about one!!
 
The loom strop in the original post is a Strop-It, Tensio.

http://www.fendrihan.com/stropit-tensio-adjustable-loom-strop-p-3060.html

I ultimately picked one up and though it's likely small for many folks, I absolutely love it for what I bought it for. At last count I have six hanging strops with another in the mail.. The Tensio isn't meant to replace the hanging strop. I like to hone in different spots and don't always have a good hook for hanging the strop, so the small Tensio is perfect for post honing strop. I have cowhide & English Bridle components and am likely going to make a horsehide component as well..
 
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