Balsa strop paste; what do you use?

B

Beeko

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34
Location
Bangor NI
Hi guys,

I have 3,8,12k stones and have ordered a bunch on lapping film.

I've also received a few balsa blocks and am keen to play to about and see what progressions I prefer.

The question is, where do you buy pastes for balsa strops? Can anyone please advise?

I have strop paste from executive shaving, and the TI 260 tube, however I believe I should be using a diamond paste progression for 3 blocks of balsa, or a green/ red oxide progression?

Any links and reviews of what I should use would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Steven
 
Remember first of all to lap the Balsa. I used crox on balsa before, heat up both the crox and the balsa and put the very soft crox on a lint free cloth...gently apply a nice even coat to the balsa and allow to harden before first use, now, what I moved onto was...keep the crox balsa and remove as much crox as you can, glue a piece of 3mm felt onto the balsa and reapply the crox, you get a much better draw and a better edge, the felt was about £2 on ebay and plenty for 3 or 4 strops, I also have a dia spray one on the felt, the spray is expensive at £25 for a small pump spray bottle....tho it has lasted a year with plenty left.
 
Bob1955 said:
Remember first of all to lap the Balsa. I used crox on balsa before, heat up both the crox and the balsa and put the very soft crox on a lint free cloth...gently apply a nice even coat to the balsa and allow to harden before first use, now, what I moved onto was...keep the crox balsa and remove as much crox as you can, glue a piece of 3mm felt onto the balsa and reapply the crox, you get a much better draw and a better edge, the felt was about £2 on ebay and plenty for 3 or 4 strops, I also have a dia spray one on the felt, the spray is expensive at £25 for a small pump spray bottle....tho it has lasted a year with plenty left.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the detail, much appreciated. Yes, the balsa will be lapped. I had read about felt but was going to leave that for a while, but seeing as I have 3 blocks, I may as well do one or two of them with felt.

Where did you purchase the crox and spray from, if you can remember?
 
I use diamond paste on balsa and started like most newbies using way to much. Now I add some linseed oil and smear on sparingly trying to work it into the strop then wiping off the excesses. I am sure spray would be easier to apply but I am cheap so paste it is and it works really well on my razors but don't overdo the number of laps.
 
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Nisse said:
I use diamond paste on balsa and started like most newbies using way to much. Now I add some linseed oil and smear on sparingly trying to work it into the strop then wiping off the excesses. I am sure spray would be easier to apply but I am cheap so paste it is and it works really well on my razors but don't overdo the number of laps.
Click to expand...

Thanks Nisse. Which paste do you use and where do you buy it?
 
Thanks guys; I have ordered a few sheets of 3mm wool felt, green paste, red paste and .25 diamond to see how that goes. I also have a granite slab arriving tomorrow, and lapping film which arrived today, so will play about for a bit and see what works/ doesn't work, going for 'less is more' with everything.

At this rate, I think the next investment should be a few razors to practice on...any recommendations
 
Gold dollar are cheap and can provide a decent shaving edge, good to practice on without fear of ruining it. The GD 66 needs a little work before you hone it coz the shoulder interferes with the honing, just take one 1/8th off the heel and make it a bit rounder, the Gold Monkey 666 is another cheapo but can be made to shave well...the 66 is notoriously harder to hone for beginners tho. There are a few, so pick one that takes your fancy.
 
This is what I got and I am happy with it. The prices have gone up a bit. If I remember correctly I paid about 18€ with shipping for the 3 pastes.
They correspond with 0.5 mic, 0.25mic and 0.1mic
www.ebay.ie

Diamond Polishing Pastes Kit (H) 3x5 g; Size 200,000 100,000 50,000 Grit Mesh | eBay

Diamond Polishing Pastes Kit (H) 3x5 g; Size 200,000 100,000 50,000 Grit Mesh | Collectibles, Rocks, Fossils & Minerals, Lapidary Materials | eBay!
www.ebay.ie
 
SammieM said:
This is what I got and I am happy with it. The prices have gone up a bit. If I remember correctly I paid about 18€ with shipping for the 3 pastes.
They correspond with 0.5 mic, 0.25mic and 0.1mic
www.ebay.ie

Diamond Polishing Pastes Kit (H) 3x5 g; Size 200,000 100,000 50,000 Grit Mesh | eBay

Diamond Polishing Pastes Kit (H) 3x5 g; Size 200,000 100,000 50,000 Grit Mesh | Collectibles, Rocks, Fossils & Minerals, Lapidary Materials | eBay!
www.ebay.ie
Click to expand...

Thanks Sammie, very helpful
 
Bob1955 said:
Gold dollar are cheap and can provide a decent shaving edge, good to practice on without fear of ruining it. The GD 66 needs a little work before you hone it coz the shoulder interferes with the honing, just take one 1/8th off the heel and make it a bit rounder, the Gold Monkey 666 is another cheapo but can be made to shave well...the 66 is notoriously harder to hone for beginners tho. There are a few, so pick one that takes your fancy.
Click to expand...

I have just ordered a few GDs to practice on. Checking ebay for a cheap vintage Sheffield or Solingen too so will see what else I can find
 
As a newbie I bought a shave ready Gold Dollar from Billy on Ebay, heel and spine were modified, edge was as good as any. I also bought one factory fresh from China but never managed to get it shave ready. So I would recommend vintage Solingen without hone wear or smile to practice on for a newbie.
 
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Nisse said:
As a newbie I bought a shave ready Gold Dollar from Billy on Ebay, heel and spine were modified, edge was as good as any. I also bought one factory fresh from China but never managed to get it shave ready. So I would recommend vintage Solingen without hone wear or smile to practice on for a newbie.
Click to expand...

Those are my thoughts exactly after reading a few threads. If I can manage to get one of the GDs shave ready myself I'll be winning, and if I ruin them trying, they won't owe me anything.

I'm definitely still on the lookout for a smiling Sheffield or Solingen, but the state of scales on a lot of the current examples put me off; anything more than cleaning and trying to hone will be beyond me at this stage

I'll give it a week or two and see if anything comes up, and in the meantime can continue to watch videos and read threads to get more of an insight into what to look for/ avoid.

Ideally buying a shave ready vintage from someone like Billy, then buying the same vintage to play with myself would be my approach. I do enjoy a good learning curve, and it looks like it will be a while before I'm back to work anyway so it will give me something to do in my spare time
 
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