Thread: 2" strop vs 3" strop

I am about to purchase a wet shaving set from srd and saw that the strops come in 2 &3 inch. I was wondering if it is necessary to spend the extra money on a larger strop and what kind of experiences people have with the Latigo leather. Thanks

I went with the 3" strop. It covers the majority of the blade. I bring my blade across the strop at a slight angle to ensure total coverage. The smaller strop will make you have to use an "x" pattern or a much greater angle to make sure your stropping the whole edge. Hope it helps.

-Alex

I know for myself that the beginner is better to take a wide strop ...
As already said, is easier stropping.

Sincerely,
Alexander

I could never make up my mind between the 2 and 3 inch so I went with a vintage 2 1/2 inch strop. All joking aside anything from SRD will be top notch, I myself would recommend the narrower strop in order to practice the X stroke when stropping, I believe that the X stroke in stropping has a beneficial aspect much like the X stroke in honing.

I have both, a 2" and a 3". They each have their special challenges. The 3" has a tendency to cup in the middle when you pull it tight, so you really have to make sure you don't pull it too tight. When I use my SRD model IV 3" I actually don't pull it very tight at all. The blade stays flat on it that way, and it gives an outstanding edge. The 2" latigo does not cup at all, so cupping isn' t an issue there, but then you have to make X strokes to cover the whole blade, and for me, I have to be very careful about how I balance the razor when I do that. I find that a bit challenging.
Personally, I think the 3" is a lot easier to use. Just watch how tight you pull on it.

Originally Posted by nun2sharp

I could never make up my mind between the 2 and 3 inch so I went with a vintage 2 1/2 inch strop. All joking aside anything from SRD will be top notch, I myself would recommend the narrower strop in order to practice the X stroke when stropping, I believe that the X stroke in stropping has a beneficial aspect much like the X stroke in honing.

+1

IMO, I feel that you're probably going to need to learn how to do an x stroke at some point or another, so you might as well learn from the start.

I will echo going with the 2" as the x stroke is a useful tool to have. After you do it the first couple of times it will start to become second nature to you and you will hardly notice you are doing it any more.

Also if you plan to hone in the future then you will need to learn the x stroke for that anyway.

Thank you all. As I do want to get into honing I think I will get the 2" and learn the x strop

I am wondering, are there experienced people who try both the 3" and 2" varieties and wind up choosing the 2" in the end? I ask because it seems like all the "primo" leather strops mainly come in 3" sizes.

In my opinion, no matter how wide your strop, some of your strokes should be X strokes.