What strop to get?

[Kzaveri16]

I just scored my first straight on the bay !! A vintage “H.Boker” which is shave ready from “dukecityvintageshaving”

What strop would you recommend to a newbie? I am looking for something that is not too expensive.

Thank you !!

 

[rbscebu]

Youe location would help. The cheapest will be about USD10 to 20 including shipping. From there, the world is your oyster. A good strop, probably too good as a first one to cut up, will cost you about USD 60 plus shipping. What do you call "not to expensive"? Does your budget include shipping?

There is a good chance that you will cut up your first strop while learning. I cut up two before I mastered the basics of stropping, but I'm a slow learner.

I don't know if "dukecityvintageshaving" knows what a shave-ready edge is, maybe or maybe not. Perhaps others will chime in with more knowledge.

A good person to discuss Strops with is @Tony Miller. He makes and sells them and will give you good unbiased advice, even if it is to direct you to another manufacturer. Tony is good like that.

 

[Kzaveri16]

Youe location would help. The cheapest will be about USD10 to 20 including shipping. From there, the world is your oyster. A good strop, probably too good as a first one to cut up, will cost you about USD 60 plus shipping. What do you call "not to expensive"? Does your budget include shipping?

I am located in North Eastern United States. Preferably I am looking for something off Amazon

 

[rbscebu]

The type of leather hardly makes any difference to the blade's stropped edge. Next you need to decide on what width you would like your strop to be. They generally come in three different widths; 2", 2½" and 3".

A 2" wide strop is probably the most difficult to learn on due to the need to strop with a definite long X pattern. Three inch can have a tendency to cup but doesn't require any long X pattern when stropping. Two and a half inch (hardest to find) is about halfway between the other two; doesn't require such a dedicated long X pattern and much less tendency to cup. Americans tend to prefer 3" strops, thinking bigger must be better (it's an American thing). People from most other countries tend to prefer 2" or 2½".

Then you have strop length, or rather usable stropping length. Most seem to prefer about 18" of usable stropping length but shorter may be cheaper and just as usable except that you will have to do a few more laps to achieve the same result.

Another consideration is the handle type. Some prefer none, other prefer a shaped leather handle or a D-ring type handle. That is all just a personal choice.

It is also a good idea to get a leather strop with an incorporated cloth strop. The cloth strop can be used to clean the blade's bevel/edge after a shave.

Most of your SR shaving questions are addressed here:

Traditional SR Shaving Instructions for Beginners - Issue 7

Attached is the latest issue (issue 7) of Traditional SR Shaving Instructions For Beginners. The instructions have been revised to show the current knowledge and have been split up into parts for easier access. The parts are: SR Shaving Instructions QS Guide Rev A - a Quick-Start guide for...

www.badgerandblade.com

 

[Darren J 67]

I am located in North Eastern United States. Preferably I am looking for something off Amazon

There's a YouTube channel where he does a section on strops. Gives links on amazon and range from around 25 upwards and gives a review on them also. May give you some idea of what you want to get.

 

[Darren J 67]

Forgot to put that it's called adventures in wet shaving.

 

[HazMat Shaver]

I second what was said above. Lots of options. I recommend a handle on your first strop. Also a 2.5" in width. Sure, you can buy on Amazon, but for a strop I think Id be looking up Tony Miller. You will get a much better quality leather piece and a good secondary (linen) strop too. He will be happy to talk with you or email and answer any questions. Whoever you buy from on Amazon may have no clue about strops. Just sells them. Tony will treat you right. Ive bought from him many times snd stand behind him 100%.
And as it was said above, i have no clue about your straight bring really shave ready. You might get lucky. But from all my years buying vintage and ebay, I've only found two shave ready razor in 20+ years.

Keep us informed on how its going. We are happy to help you along this journey. Take some time to read about newbies and straights in our library's. A lot of good info to be had in it for nothing and its the Truth. Not like what you find on youtube where everyone is s pro.

 

[H Brad Boonshaft]

The leather strop is the last chance to align and polish the edge before it touches your face. You want the leather and linen to be of a high quality.

Linen will clean the razor of soap, skin, blood, hair and rust so that you do not paste the leather with contaminates which can scratch the bevel on the razor. It too should be a quality material, preferably flax linen.

So, spending a few extra dollars to get a quality strop can pay large dividends. Tony Miller hand makes his strops and has an entry line for as little as $50.

Stropping can take some time and practice to master, it does require 100% attention. And if you did nick it, the strop is still usable. I do believe Tony sells replacement leather and linen.

Set yourself up for success, buy the best quality products you can afford and take your time learning to maintain your razor. You may be able to buy an unknow quality strop from Amazon, but you can’t go wrong buying a Tony Miller strop for a few dollars more.

It’s all about the edge.

 

[Kzaveri16]

I second what was said above. Lots of options. I recommend a handle on your first strop. Also a 2.5" in width. Sure, you can buy on Amazon, but for a strop I think Id be looking up Tony Miller. You will get a much better quality leather piece and a good secondary (linen) strop too. He will be happy to talk with you or email and answer any questions. Whoever you buy from on Amazon may have no clue about strops. Just sells them. Tony will treat you right. Ive bought from him many times snd stand behind him 100%.
And as it was said above, i have no clue about your straight bring really shave ready. You might get lucky. But from all my years buying vintage and ebay, I've only found two shave ready razor in 20+ years.

Keep us informed on how its going. We are happy to help you along this journey. Take some time to read about newbies and straights in our library's. A lot of good info to be had in it for nothing and its the Truth. Not like what you find on youtube where everyone is s pro.

Thank you I am very excited!! I figured, reading up on this forum, that there is a good chance that the razor I bought won’t be shave ready. I asked for honing service recommendations in another post, and will use the most recommended one in case I need to.

Does Tony Miller have a site I can check out? I am leaning towards a board strop since I have a small bathroom with few options to hang a strop.

Thank you again !

 

[Frinstance]

Happy shopping.

 

[rbscebu]

Thank you I am very excited!! I figured, reading up on this forum, that there is a good chance that the razor I bought won’t be shave ready. I asked for honing service recommendations in another post, and will use the most recommended one in case I need to.

Does Tony Miller have a site I can check out? I am leaning towards a board strop since I have a small bathroom with few options to hang a strop.

Thank you again !

A board strop is not recommend. Get a proper hanging strop. If your small bathroom has a door, tie some thin rope to the door handle and hang your strop there.

My bathroom doesn't have a door. I hang my strop from the door handle in my bedroom.

 

[HazMat Shaver]

I dont store my razors or strops in the bathroom. Too much moisture in my opinion.
The thin rope on the doorknob works great. I have hooks in the wall of my room for stropping. And hooks just to hold strops.

When stropping a doorknob is really about perfect for heigth as you want a slight up but very close to level. A board strop can be used but a hanging strop is best IMO.

Ask Tony what he thinks. I recommend his basic begginner strop. Plus when you cut it up and /or want to upgrade he makes all strops the same so you can just buy a better leather piece and swap out the old one.

 

[Slash McCoy]

I just scored my first straight on the bay !! A vintage “H.Boker” which is shave ready from “dukecityvintageshaving”

What strop would you recommend to a newbie? I am looking for something that is not too expensive.

Thank you !!

I don't know that seller. Maybe someone else here, does. If a seller is not part of the straight shaving community then it is most extremely doubtful that his edge will delight you or even not punish you too badly. Like I said, maybe he is known to other members here so don't be discouraged right off the bat.

The true test of shave readiness is naturally the shave test, but a shave test by a first time straight shaver is far from conclusive. And so, as a point of reference, I suggest using another sharpness test when your razor arrives, such as the HHT (look it up) or else the Tree-Topping Test. Go ahead, click the link. You know you wanna. Test before you strop. Test before you try to shave. Test before you send it off for honing and test when you get it back. KNOW whether to blame your edge or your shave technique for a crappy shave.

Keep your first strop expendable because you will probably "expend" it while learning to strop. Illinois or Fromm is fine for your first strop. You can upgrade later. I would avoid all Chinese or Pakistani strops, though, especially the $3 to $15 price range. If you are too cheap to shell out $30 or $40 for your first beginner strop, just make one. Get a strip of veg tanned cowhide leather, 8 to 10 oz, from McMaster-Carr. Much better and cheaper than what you get from Tandy or other craft stores. 3" wide is fine. 2" is maybe too narrow. Don't cripple yourself. D rings can be hard to find but check with saddle shops for girt rings and such. They will be expensive but when you damage your strop you can re-use the D rings like forever. For simple construction, just notch the leather so it will pass over the bar of the D ring, drill or punch, and pop rivet the flap to the body. For a more professional strop, make a bolster or cap piece to pass through and double over the D ring bar, and sandwich the end of the strop body between the two ends of the bolster piece, then punch and secure with chicago screws. I suggest a D ring on both ends. If you slash one side, just flip it end for end so the undamaged left edge becomes the new right edge. For super duper cheap, just cut a hole in one end and set a grommet into it, and leave the other end plain.

Tony Miller is our strop go-to guy here. See if he has any beginner strops. Also check with Larry at www.whippeddog.com. You might find his "poor man" strop a bit too basic but he also has a "rich man" version. BTW he sells silvertip badger brushes up to 30mm that are excellent value for the money. I have er, let's just say more than one.

 

[Alum of Potash]

One thing to remember is that in starting out, it is very easy to nick or cut a strop as the motions needed in stropping have not yet been figured out. This being the case, I would suggest against an expensive strop until you have stropping down. Tony Miller, as mentioned, is a maker of quality products, and he has some cheaper options as well. I would suggest going with one of is cheaper and/or smaller options in starting out. By starting out small and cheap, you will get your motions down and moving to anything larger and nicer will be a real treat if and when the time comes.

Another good, cheap option would be one of the smaller Herold strops made in Solingen. Look around and you might find a good deal there as well.

 

[Darth Scandalous]

One thing to remember is that in starting out, it is very easy to nick or cut a strop as the motions needed in stropping have not yet been figured out. This being the case, I would suggest against an expensive strop until you have stropping down. Tony Miller, as mentioned, is a maker of quality products, and he has some cheaper options as well. I would suggest going with one of is cheaper and/or smaller options in starting out. By starting out small and cheap, you will get your motions down and moving to anything larger and nicer will be a real treat if and when the time comes.

Another good, cheap option would be one of the smaller Herold strops made in Solingen. Look around and you might find a good deal there as well.

Yes, and keep in mind that a lot of the expense of a strop is the hardware. Tony sells replacement leather very reasonably and his strops are made so that you can easily replace the leather if you needed to.

 

[Kzaveri16]

I don't know that seller. Maybe someone else here, does. If a seller is not part of the straight shaving community then it is most extremely doubtful that his edge will delight you or even not punish you too badly. Like I said, maybe he is known to other members here so don't be discouraged right off the bat.

The true test of shave readiness is naturally the shave test, but a shave test by a first time straight shaver is far from conclusive. And so, as a point of reference, I suggest using another sharpness test when your razor arrives, such as the HHT (look it up) or else the Tree-Topping Test. Go ahead, click the link. You know you wanna. Test before you strop. Test before you try to shave. Test before you send it off for honing and test when you get it back. KNOW whether to blame your edge or your shave technique for a crappy shave.

Keep your first strop expendable because you will probably "expend" it while learning to strop. Illinois or Fromm is fine for your first strop. You can upgrade later. I would avoid all Chinese or Pakistani strops, though, especially the $3 to $15 price range. If you are too cheap to shell out $30 or $40 for your first beginner strop, just make one. Get a strip of veg tanned cowhide leather, 8 to 10 oz, from McMaster-Carr. Much better and cheaper than what you get from Tandy or other craft stores. 3" wide is fine. 2" is maybe too narrow. Don't cripple yourself. D rings can be hard to find but check with saddle shops for girt rings and such. They will be expensive but when you damage your strop you can re-use the D rings like forever. For simple construction, just notch the leather so it will pass over the bar of the D ring, drill or punch, and pop rivet the flap to the body. For a more professional strop, make a bolster or cap piece to pass through and double over the D ring bar, and sandwich the end of the strop body between the two ends of the bolster piece, then punch and secure with chicago screws. I suggest a D ring on both ends. If you slash one side, just flip it end for end so the undamaged left edge becomes the new right edge. For super duper cheap, just cut a hole in one end and set a grommet into it, and leave the other end plain.

Tony Miller is our strop go-to guy here. See if he has any beginner strops. Also check with Larry at www.whippeddog.com. You might find his "poor man" strop a bit too basic but he also has a "rich man" version. BTW he sells silvertip badger brushes up to 30mm that are excellent value for the money. I have er, let's just say more than one.

Thank you @slashmccoy. I’ve been reading your posts across the forum. Thank you for sharing your insights. It’s been very helpful!

The sellers name is Mike, he is from Albuquerque, NM. The vintage Boker came shave ready, well honed by the seller. I did the forearm test, and the HHT and both worked. Then I shaved with it. Got a near DFS, with no nicks, cuts, or tugging; very smooth. I am still learning straight razor shaving technique.

I got the poor man’s strop kit from whipped dog. I want to learn without having to worry about cutting up an expensive piece of leather.

 

[Slash McCoy]

Thank you @slashmccoy. I’ve been reading your posts across the forum. Thank you for sharing your insights. It’s been very helpful!

The sellers name is Mike, he is from Albuquerque, NM. The vintage Boker came shave ready, well honed by the seller. I did the forearm test, and the HHT and both worked. Then I shaved with it. Got a near DFS, with no nicks, cuts, or tugging; very smooth. I am still learning straight razor shaving technique.

I got the poor man’s strop kit from whipped dog. I want to learn without having to worry about cutting up an expensive piece of leather.

Right on! Well done! You are off to a great start.

 

[Acmemfg]

Can’t go wrong with a Tony Miller strop.
Do consider though that a light colored leather strop can pick up water spots which although they have NO adverse affect on the stropping process, can look kind of funky.

 

[Ironw]

I'm a little late to this thread, but I've bought a razor from dukecityvintageshaving. It was shave ready and I think Mike does very nice work. I actually just bought a second razor from him that arrived today.

 

[Frank Shaves]

Another advantage to buying from Tony is he sells replacement parts.