The Well Shaved Gentleman / Heirloom Razor Strop Company

Smooth cotton is my daily choice as it has a firm, stiff temper but a fine weave making for a smooth surface for daily stropping and is well suited for the application of fine abrasives should you care to use them. Nylon has a smooth, slick feel and used plain generates the required friction quickly but its smooth texture does not seem to hold abrasive compounds as well. Genuine Linen, being a less processed fiber and the traditional choice for years, is thought to be more abrasive than cotton and may be the best choice for those wanting the ultimate material. I do feel it would be a waste to then apply pastes over this material as it is already has the desired characteristics. I also decided to offer Hard Wool Felt, a material very popular now in the strop marketplace. I feel is a good option if one plans to use abrasives such as diamond sprays or powdered or liquid chromuim oxide. It will work well with diamond pastes too but the application is not quite as easy as with the sprays. It is important with any pasted hanging strop to keep it quite taut in use to prevent any rounding of the edge.

Strop Width

The best width strop for a beginner would probably be a 3" model. It allows you to go straight up and down without learning the x-pattern early on. Later, as experience grows, an X pattern can still be done on a 3" if desired. This is the width 90% of the buyers choose, hence my trade name for it, the New Standard™. For years a 2 1/2" width was pretty standard here in the States and happens to be my own personal favorite and is offered as my Traditional™ strop. Some fellows still prefer the narrow 2" Old School™ strops, a width that have been popular in Europe for years. Lots of choices but if in doubt I feel the 3" would suit you just fine. In theory a wider stop may be more prone to cupping than a narrow one but my use of heavy leather end caps and metal hardware typically eliminates this problem. Cupping actually seem to be more a function of the type of leather and tanning choosen, not so much the width.

All of my current Artisan strops feature modular construction, another Heirloom Razor Strop Co. innovation that I developed with my first strops 5 years ago. While stitching is strong and attractive, the use of Chicago Screws has several advantages. A user can easily replace a damaged section, leather or cloth, without having to buy a complete new strop and it allows you to swap sections or upgrade components at a later time.

The Practice Strop Option

The Practice Strop is something I started offering a few years ago. It is a simple 2 1/2" x 22" leather strop with thong and bead hanger that loops easily over a doorknob so you don't even need a hook on the wall to get started. These are made from left over latigo leather and offered at a token cost as a menu option with my best strops. It is a tool for you to learn the proper motions used in stropping, a stage where the most nicks and cuts occur, without risking your primary strop and larger investment. While not as pretty as my main strops it will sharpen your razor just fine and allow you to make your beginner mistakes without harm. Due to this being a break even offer at best, it is not a product I can offer separately.

Synthetic "Vegan Friendly" Strops

For those adverse to using animal based products I offer my synthetic strops. These are made from a urethane based material bonded over nylon webbing. They are very resisitant to nicking and virtually care free making them popular in their more simple form for travel use as well. The draw is similar to Latigo. I do still feel that leather is a superior surface for stropping so would only suggest synthetics to those who have a need for its special characteristics.