Thread: Stropping Paste is New?

Hi All!

Well there are Ce pastes, Diamond pastes, etc widely talked about using on strops. Are pastes new to straight razor stropping?

I have in my possession a book that is 121 years old this year. It is actually a cookbook that includes may home remedies and such. It recommends the following, and I quote:

"Wet the strop with a little sweet oil, and apply a little flour of emery evenly over the surface."

Just thought that I'd share. Anyone got any thoughts?

No stropping paste is not new at all, there are just pure, clean, grit even, pastes now...

There are tons of recipes and references to different pastes out there...

From lamp black to white chalk and almost everything in between...

What that book is describing is a paste, so they certainly are not new. The emery plus the oil is the equivalent of a paste.

Originally Posted by cudarunner

Hi All!

Well there are Ce pastes, Diamond pastes, etc widely talked about using on strops. Are pastes new to straight razor stropping?

I have in my possession a book that is 121 years old this year. It is actually a cookbook that includes may home remedies and such. It recommends the following, and I quote:

"Wet the strop with a little sweet oil, and apply a little flour of emery evenly over the surface."

Just thought that I'd share. Anyone got any thoughts?

When I said: "Are pastes new to straight razor stropping?" I should have ended with NO! I was simply trying to point out that pastes/coatings have been in use for years. Glen pointed out some very important facts about the improvements through the years!

I hope that this clarifies my post! I'm sorry for any confusion.

Now I understand better!
Yes, given the number of old razors I have examined under a microscope, I suspect that pasted strops were used much more frequently than hones for razor maintenance.

cudarunner,

You are quite right

Perrets 'La Pogonotomia' from ca 1769 mentions the use of fat & rouge (initially applied as fine iron filings) as a sharpening paste

Have fun !

Best regards

Russ

A few years ago before the explosion of new hones and the Japanese craze all the talk was about pastes and how they were the way to go and all that.

Things change around here faster than...honing methods.

I have old paste may be more then 100 years old.
Paste has been used always.

My grandfather told me when he found out i was gettign into straights that he remembers his father putting wood ash one his strop and running the razor one it a few laps. so i think there has always been (paste) in use for razor care since it is much easer in my openion to keep a razor touched up than it is to have to hone a dull one.