I have a superior shave strop with linen and d-ring handles. When I strop I just let the linen hang. It seems like when I start stropping the linen swings back and forth giving the leather a slight twist. Is this a bad thing and if so is it preventable?
Twisting strop
- Thread starter drathgeb
- Start date
I dunno man, but I always hold both components when I strop. It's especially easy with d-rings.
pull straight down..should fix the angle issue...or so it seems
I think most people hold both together when stropping. When just using the cloth side letting the leather hang will tend to cause fine wrinkles right near the top as the leather will be bent across the skin side. So either way, leather up or cloth up holding both together is better for the materials and will stop the pendulum effect.
Tony
Tony
I separate 2-component strops most of the time. The swinging linen/leather drives me nuts.
I had exactly the same problem. Holding both together at the same time, as blackman and Tony mention above, remedies this.
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- Thread starter
- #7
Tony Miller advice on strops is greatly appreciated. I hope to soon own one of your fine strops. The problem with this strop is that the leather seems a touch longer than the linen. I can keep the linen tight while giving it a tug but not the leather
I hold both, but put a little slack in the bottom so I'm holding solid tension on the working component.
This is one reason why I prefer barber's end strops. Just grab both pieces (linen and leather in this case) at the bottom, smoothing out any variance or buckling along the length before doing this, and ignore the needless handles and D-rings. With both pieces held together, there will be none of the swaying of which you complain. Beyond this, it may be better to leave a little slack in the strop (say, 1/4" to 1/2" of gravity-led bow) when stropping, rather than seek to pull the strop tight.
I nicked a strop pretty badly doing that. now i hold both
Mine have D rings and I hold the one I'm using (leather or cloth) with my first three fingers and the lower with my pinkie finger. This way the top one is taut and the other is not, but not swinging.
Lots of good points here. The cloth and leather will often be at slightly different lengths as each reacts differently with changes in humidity. That is why I went with separate handles or dee rings on each component, not both tied together at the botttom as on my first strops. As soon as one component stretched or contracted there was a bow in the other.
Plain cut ends eliminate this issue as you just grab both a few inches from the bottom and as you slide your hand down into the final gripping position each component is drawn taut with the other. Most guys have trouble starting with the plain ends as it takes a little practice to get the grip right but once mastered it works great. If it was good enough for Grandpa it is good enough for me!
With a little practice you should find a grip that allows you to pull the top leather component tight with the dee ring while still holding the longer or shorter cloth component enough that it does not have to swing free and cause trouble.
Tony
Plain cut ends eliminate this issue as you just grab both a few inches from the bottom and as you slide your hand down into the final gripping position each component is drawn taut with the other. Most guys have trouble starting with the plain ends as it takes a little practice to get the grip right but once mastered it works great. If it was good enough for Grandpa it is good enough for me!
With a little practice you should find a grip that allows you to pull the top leather component tight with the dee ring while still holding the longer or shorter cloth component enough that it does not have to swing free and cause trouble.
Tony
