I had some problems stropping with my strop as well, It just didn't seem to get the razor as sharp as I would have thought it should have been. In the end it needed some oil. I know the one you bought said it already comes conditioned, but it might have gotten dehydrated in storage or something. It might be wise to test it. All you need to do is put a little bit of a good quality oil on a small area of the leather and see how fast the oil is absorbed. If the oil is absorbed before your eyes in a few seconds then it will most likely need oiling, however if the oil just seems to sit there or is absorbing rather slowly it should have enough oil. Just a thought on something you could try. I'm not as knowledgeable as the other posters, but just thought that it might be a good thing look into.