2" Wide Purpleheart, Juchten & Horse Hide Paddle Strop

2" Wide Purpleheart Hardwood Paddle Strop, Finest Juchten Leather & Horse Hide

An excellent quality strop made from a base of solid hardwood - purpleheart (fabaceae family) - an exotic hardwood from the tropical rainforests of Central and South America.  It darkens with age to a rich purple colour.  There are two leather stropping panels.  The pre-stropping panel is made from the finest quality dark brown Juchten leather, specially imported from Germany.  It is a waxed and oiled leather similar to latigo and far finer than rindleder.  It has very good draw and brings out the edge of the blade remarkably well.  The edge it gives is excellent to shave with, but may be further refined on the lighter coloured horse hide panel.  Horse hide has very little draw indeed and is used to finely tune the edge of the razor after it has been stropped on the juchten panel.  The overall length of the paddle is about 18" (varies slightly - each item is hand-made and is a one-off) including the handle, by about 2" wide (again, as this is a handmade item the exact width may be a little over or under 2").  The leather stropping panels have about 13" in length of usable stropping area.

The solid purpleheart frame is about 1/4 of an inch thick, giving a good solid support.  It is lightly sanded and treated with three coats of Renaiisance Wax to make it moisture-proof and to add a subtle sheen that brings out and enhances the grain.  The handle is cut to the style of a favourite Victorian paddle strop I own.

Because the leather is a natural item and also due to the hand-made construction there are some small marks and natural faint lines/grain, but these will not affect it's ability in the slightest to produce a keen edge on a razor - I use prototypes of all the strops I make, and can tell what is an acceptable cosmetic marking and what will impede the quality of the leather and affect its performance - I only sell the best quality selected leather - the rest is discarded.

This is a hand made strop, made in small quantities and you should expect the small eccentricities and deviations that such an item inherently possesses - no two items will be exactly the same, so each is, in effect, unique.

Paddle Strop Pros:

• Easier for the novice to use - no need to worry about keeping it taut!
• Lighter and more compact than a loom or a hanging strop, so good for travelling with.
• Ideal for pastes because it does not sag - sagging contributes to edge rounding.