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Nice and solid . Any internal divisions ? Chris

Check out "Badger and Blade " forums , in as far as shaving is concerned . I have an assortment of paddle mounted strops for different styles of tools . One trick I've heard reported is diamond paste , smeared on a straight square , closegrained hardwood . Some Old Skool barber's strops have wierd stuff on the rear face of the strop , ie: hard felt , linen , fire hose canvas . No clue about their reasoning . Chris

Central vac. tube works OK and is pretty thin . I would avoid cardboard . If your rods will ever be in checked baggage , go with ABS . Another quick tip , make the case openable from both ends , if you fly the TSA may want you to prove it's not a bomb carrier / or has anything hidden inside . Never had the issue myself , but others have reported it . Just a piece of general flyrodding advice - try to go multipiece , if affordable . Good ones perform as well as well as two piece , and can be carried on . Chris

I'm going to try and make one , Ash isn't too hard to bend ( used lots for boats / canoes ) , I have a good local source , and a buddy with a good shop . I'm thinking of changeable jaws , to go from small to larger projects . I'll post pics if it works . BTW , as you are not talking about extreme bends , many other hardwoods would work . Chris

BTW , if I had my time over , I don't think I would have bought one . I think I would go with an Osbourne . Chris

Mine is a "0" grind , (no secondary bevel , or a tiny microbevel from final stropping) . Mine was very dull out of the box , I got a piece of plate glass I use for truing up waterstones , I loaded the plate with an abrasive slurry , and worked the whole bevel ( full contact between bevel and glass ) , I used a strop to de burr the back edge . YMMV . Any shop that sharpens machine knives should also be able to help you out . If you have any contact with custom knifemakers , they might be able to help you with a buffer , I sharpen lots of stuff on a buffer , but a machine knife is way too scary for me ( nothing safe to hold onto ) . Chris

I've been looking to try the "Serpa " paddle , I can see lots of applications for it . BTW , very nice , clean work . Chris

One option I would strongly consider would be a J frame S&W , either a .38 or a .357 Air Lite Pocket Rocket , ( not fun to shoot -but will do a number ) , and get hold of a good pocket holster . Revolvers have their place , lots of peeps aren't aware that in a contact shot situation- ( muzzel against target ) a semi can go out of battery . Most civilian shoot em ups are between 3 and 7' , reloads don't usually factor . Just a thought . respectfully submitted , don't want to start a wheel gun vs semi flame war . Chris

I prefer a natural oil finish , followed by Fiebings bag Kote or Tan Kote , followed by wax . Grows old gracefully , and patinates nicely . Neatsfoot is variable as all get out , as a result i have often used raw linseed oil ( boiled can go rancid ) . The result after a light application is slightly darker and richer than neatsfoot . Are there any other options i should consider ? Chris

I was checking out a website that supplies lots of straight razors etc , in addition to felt and canvas , linen is used on some strops . Some strops use fairly light leather , might just be a stiffener . Europeans often use much thinner lighter leather than we do , witness some Euro. holsters , and knife sheaths . One tip I got from a pretty good woodworker - don't glue the leather to the wood block , just stretch the leather over the block and secure the ends with nails or staples . Never tried it , but might be worth a look . Chris

Pancakes take up a lot of belt realestate , tho they conceal quite well . I never found them comfortable . I'm more of an IWB guy , loved the Sparks summer special . Of the two I would take the avenger . Just me but my fave position is "appendix carry " . Failing that just above the main trouser seam , just like a duty holster . Just get yourself a baggier cover garment . Behind the hip is great for concealment , but very hard to reach in a vehicle , especially with a seatbelt on . Ditto if you are on your butt , or pushed against a wall . Chris

Dremel in the drill press stand will solve all your problems . Use a bit just a gnats hair over 1/16" . Dremel is a handy shop tool anyway , the drum sander can be great for sanding the edges in hard to reach spots . Chris

IIRC , lots of old skool razor strops were grain leather on one side and a very dense felt on the other . What was the felt used for ? I'm a big fan of stropping , and have tried a variety of abrassives , and a couple of metal polishes - haven't settled on anything yet . Anybody tried any of the new diamond pastes ? Chris

I mostly do small belt pouches , and other work related stuff . I hand stitch , and mostly do plain oil finish . Most of my stuff is undecorated . Chris