Solid Aluminium Magnetic Paddle Strop, Rams Horn

Solid Aluminium Magnetic Paddle Strop with Rams Horn Grip, 6 Stropping Panels and Dust Wrapper

This is a high quality magnetic paddle strop made from a base of solid aluminium billet, 6mm in thickness.  The overall length is about 16.5" (varies slightly - each item is hand-made and is a one-off) including the handle, by about 3" wide.  It is of very rugged construction and has a good, solid, sturdy feel to it and is satisfyingly hefty to hold.  These paddles are made by hand in very limited quantities - each one is effectively one of a kind and you will not find them for sale anywhere else.

The paddle needs no special care as it is very sturdy, but it should not be left in humid environments like bathrooms (if leather panels are attached they may become spoiled, as may the handle grips) and it should not be left in a hot place, like resting against a radiator, in case the adhesive of the magnetic attachments becomes less firm.

The sold metal frame provides a good solid support, making the paddle ideal for those who like to experiment with abrasive pastes.  The handle is fitted with real ramshorn panels hand-riveted through the aluminium with brass rod peened over brass washers.  It has a spacer made of ramshorn at the end and the sides have a chamfer for a more comfortable grip.

This paddle is fitted with heavy duty magnetic panels on both sides - the panels measure 300mm x 70mm and take removable stropping panels that are backed with a thin backing which attaches quite strongly to the paddle.  The paddle comes as a complete kit with 6 stropping panels and a simple, no-frills leather dust wrapper with press-stud fittings.  This paddle comes with the following panels

• 6mm thick Hard Wool Felt - particularly good for diamond spray, but may be used with pastes or powders and is a fair substitute for canvas
  
• Genuine Linen - a bit more abrasive than canvas, used prior to final stropping on leather
  
• 3mm thick Balsa wood - particularly suited to chrome oxide powder
  
• Soft red Latigo leather - medium to heavy draw, a good all-rounder
  
• Hard black Cowhide - very fast draw, can be adjusted with oils and strop dressings (eg neatsfoot oil and dovo yellow paste)
  
• Horsehide that is softer than the usual hard veg-tan horsehide: it has been tanned similarly to cordovan, but is not shell, though it gives similar results.
  

There will be more stropping panels coming soon, including juchten, lower-draw latigo, hard mexican latigo, english bridle leather and undyed veg-tan buffalo - they will be listed here when available.

Please note that this is a hand-made product, made in England, and may have traces of handcrafting such as small tooling marks and other artefacts that you would normally associate with any hand-crafted item.  The Leather panels may have some small marks and blemishes, but these will not interfere with stropping.  The Hard Wool Felt is made from natural materials and may have some inclusions of darker colour.  The genuine linen panels are made from natural material that has fine wispy fibres protruding from the surface - these do not affect stropping.

Aluminium Magnetic Paddle Strop Pros:

• Easier for the novice to use - no need to worry about keeping it taut!
• More compact than a loom or a hanging strop, and extremely rugged and resilient, so good for travelling with.
• Ideal for pastes because it does not sag - sagging contributes to edge rounding.
• User can select a variety of different materials - effectively this is six strops in one, or three double strops.
• If a panel is damaged it is easily and cheaply replaced.
• Moisture will not warp it!
  

This is a very heavy item and total packaged weight will be around 2.3kg, and as I must use an insured and tracked method of shipping for PayPal payments, this means the cost is roughly £15  for the UK, £50 for EU countries and the USA, and £60 for AUS - very expensive!  The cost could be less if insurance is not required, but I would need payment via electronic bank transfer in sterling (buyer to pay all related costs), or a cheque payment in sterling or some similar arrangement.