Thread: STROP PROBLEMS

Hello everyone Newbie here
I would like some advice on a new Strop I bought recently, basically at the bottom close to the handle there is a sort of rough finished to the leather which I don't think is suitable to pass the blade over (the white bit are little nicks that I've done while trying out my stropping technique ) , so anyway I would like some advice please, how do I smooth this rough out ? and with what I have been passing the ball of by hand through the length of the strop to sort off break it in because it is very stiff, the strop is winning so far !!.. can I press the rough bit out with a bottle or something ?

please have a look at the photo attached

p.s.
Any ideas on what the black material is I know it's not cotton canvas.. !!??
all my shaving stuff are here now, well except the horning stone that will come in the new year so
I am ready to try shaving with my straight Raz. just wait for the hair to grow back.

What a long wait.

the picture didn't work, try again!

Hmm -- I don't see an attached photo.

I've used high-grit (800) sandpaper to re-surface a strop before. I then proceeded with leather conditioner to keep the leaher supple. Finally, I covered the strop with paper towel while I rolled a rolling pin over it (to help smooth the surface).

HTH

ahh ok,
don't know why it didn't work the first time hope it work this time.

it looks to have ben bent over there, you dont need to get a razor that close to the handle anyway,

you know i was thinking that well, just don't go near that part.


Cheers mate

Wow - that's well bent! I bought one of these (or a similar make) off Ebay just to see what it was like. The material bit was some thin sort of man-made fabric, quite stretchy and quite useless. The leather side was in much the same condition as yours, but in several places so unusable. I ended up cutting the leather side off and gluing it to a board, then sandpapering it. It made a good pasted strop - I still have it, BTW, but it was no good for its intended purpose as bought.

Regards,
Neil.

Originally Posted by Neil Miller

Wow - that's well bent! I bought one of these (or a similar make) off Ebay just to see what it was like. The material bit was some thin sort of man-made fabric, quite stretchy and quite useless. The leather side was in much the same condition as yours, but in several places so unusable. I ended up cutting the leather side off and gluing it to a board, then sandpapering it. It made a good pasted strop - I still have it, BTW, but it was no good for its intended purpose as bought.

Regards,
Neil.

please tell us who sells them so we can avoid the same mistake

Andre - I couldn't possibly mention names as I'd hate the same thing to be done to me. The strops in question pop up frequently though, often with multiple listings at a ridiculously low price, always a black & tan combo with a cheap nickel-plated hanger (close inspection of which reveals the eyelet to be a nail with the sharp bit cut off), sometimes bundled with a brand new razor which is just as useless as the strop. They all used to be made of leather and the synthetic substance, but now they are appearing as leather and canvas combos. They aren't stocked by just one seller - they must be wholesale items available to businesses, so who knows their real worth - a few pounds/dollars?

Regards,
Neil

Let's just say that you should be very SELECTIVE when shopping for a strop.