About Our Board and Paddle Strops:
With any good quality razor, a strop is needed to keep your razor "Shave Ready", so we have included this section to help you navigate the broad world of straight razor stropping.
Board Strops are perfect for anyone new to the World of Straight Razors. Easy to use, and do an outstanding job; by using a board strop, you are effectively taking the learning curve out of stropping! Everyone cuts or nicks their first strop when learning, which is why we recommend a less expensive option the first time through. Keep in mind that less expensive doesn't mean less quality. Made with the smoothest leather available with amazing feedback, our strops are incredibly high quality.
Likewise, Paddle Strops are a simple, yet incredibly efficient, way to strop your straight razor. Their compact and lightweight nature makes them the perfect choice for daily stropping, while their handles make them easy to hold.
Regarding the variation between the strops you'll find below, a few important differences should be noted between leathers/surface materials:
Balsa Strops are excellent for Chromium Oxide, which without question is a necessity for keeping your razor in working condition.
Corium Strops are an ideal first choice for those new to stropping, and an excellent finishing leather. Relatively inexpensive, it can be used to learn for a low price; and later, once you've nailed the art of stropping, these board strops (after being replaced with a higher end strop) can be used exclusively for chromium oxide. Even if you end up cutting your first Corium Strop, the leather can be sanded down with 400-600 grit sandpaper. In that case, while it is no longer usable to strop, it is now perfect for abrasives, making it an incredibly resourceful choice! Although, after sanding, make sure to run a lint roller over the leather to remove any sand particles left behind. That is very important.
English Bridle Strops are well established as the best choice for high end strops, because of their ability to refresh a superb cutting edge, along with its capacity to give the best stropping experience possible.
Slightly different than the leather strops, the Felt Strops are useful if you're looking to use diamond slurry in your honing routine; they are an excellent abrasive choice when it comes to achieving that almost unbelievably sharp, shave-ready edge!