Making a paddle strop--questions.

Hey dudes and dudettes. I'm feeling all crafty and handy tonight, so I'm finally doing what I've been planning for ages and making a paddle strop. I got a sweet piece of wood (I think it's cypress...nice and pale.) and I got some leather and I've already cut the handle into the board. I'm looking at the leather and wondering if you could give me some advice about how to proceed...

So I got some shoe leather (I took The Verhoeven/SingleWedge route and went to a shoemaker, or rather a shoe repair shop, and got a big old chunk for pocket change) and it looks good. Dark and very smooth, almost like shell, but there is a slight--VERY SLIGHT--bit of wrinkling, like it's been bent at some point. Should I try to get rid of this? Sand it out? Or might it be ok? It's not really noticeable to the touch, just visual. After sanding, would treatment with camellia oil/mineral oil blend be ok, or should I try to find something more appropriate?

Also, the back of this leather is pretty smooth--not all rough and thready like most hide, but like velvet. It's soft, as well...would this be ok for pasting? I've got enough for both sides of the paddle, one pasted and one not...What do you think?

Last question--wood glue is ok, right? I don't need some special leather bond or anything?

Thanks, guys, and don't laugh, ok? I'm new at this!

Hi Jim!
I'm just about sanding off the glossy surface from strop leather.
Guess that there is some spray can finish on your leather as well.
IMO it has to be taken off. Then the wrinkles will b leveled out as well.

As far as paddle goes, you need something soft between the leather and the board.
Felt or flannel is about right.

Good going!

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Originally Posted by JimR

Also, the back of this leather is pretty smooth--not all rough and thready like most hide, but like velvet. It's soft, as well...would this be ok for pasting? I've got enough for both sides of the paddle, one pasted and one not...What do you think?

Last question--wood glue is ok, right? I don't need some special leather bond or anything?

Thanks, guys, and don't laugh, ok? I'm new at this!

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Jim I don't by any far stretch of the imagination claim to be anything of an expert on this, and if anyone else has a PROVEN method, I would defer to them.....

The velvety finish sounds like a perfect surface for pasting to me, I would also IMHO not use a wood glue to affix the leather, if it were me I would be looking more toward a spray style contact adhesive.... I am seeing that you would want a perfectly smooth surface, and the wood glue can not accomplish that, and would leave hard spots under the leather...

You've got to get the creases out or it'll never feel right. Try moistening it a bit and hanging it with some weights attached to the bottom to stretch it out.

As for mounting it to the board, you can just use barge cement and glue it straight to the board. Just ignore the instructions and go ahead and put them together wet. Then take a rubber mallet and beat on it a bit to make sure everything is evened out and thoroughly stuck. Let it cure for a day and beat it with the rubber mallet again just for good measure, then wipe off any excess with nail polish remover.

Do the same on the other side with a good solid piece of cotton or linen webbing, and and you've got one heck of a paddle strop.

Thanks Guys.

Olivia, I've never heard/read about putting something soft under the leather. Why is that important?

Old_School, I'll keep an eye out. Mink oil should be easy to find...I can't even find the Japanese word for "neatsfoot"...**EDIT** Found it.

Glen, thanks for the tip. The only thing I worry about with the velvety side is it seems fragile...

mparker762, what the heck is barge cement???

Jim it works like a cushion.
Probably to get you that second ankle.

Newer paddles have something else inbetween I can't find the right english word for.
Maybe a thin sheet of moss rubber would be another option.

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Originally Posted by JimR

mparker762, what the heck is barge cement???

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BARGE CEMENT For bonding wood, metal, DC071 QUABAUG CORPORATION

It's a type of contact cement. I suggested it becaues I figured it was something everybody kept around the house anyway, being the third leg of the adhesive trifecta (superglue, duct tape, barge cement). It handles the stuff that superglue can't. It's also useful for shoes, glueing in the padded inserts, fixing tears, etc.

I think you can sand out the wrinkles fine.

As far as glue goes, I used wood glue to make one before, it worked fine. You may want to thin it with some water. Also you might want to clamp the leather between boards after applying to make sure it stays even. I used cheap leather and clamped it hard to keep it even. If you have decent leather you might not want to use a great deal of pressure when you clamp it, but I'm just speculating.

Hi Jim!

The wrinkles might not be much of an issue -IF- they are only visual. I've used a lot of different strops and found that the very slight, barely perceptable wrinkling, not much more than a change of grain pattern rather than a raised/lowered surface doesn't have any impact. I'd try it as it is - you could always sand it with some very fine paper (wet'n'dry - one that doesn't shed particles) or pumice at a later date if you have to.

What Olivia says makes sense - seeing as it was shoe leather, it may have some sort of finish to it that might not be suitable - they sometimes spray a pigment coat on it. Natural- or dyed-thru veg tan, bridal or latigo seem to be good choices to me.

I've taken apart a lot of old paddle strops, too - some had packing under them, most didn't. I usually found the padding in cushioned strops that were raised in the middle and lower at the edges - it was some sort of rough cotton wool or kapok. I don't think its necessary - the razor has just come off a flat hard stone, after all, so a piece of leather on a flat hard surface is going to polish the same bevel as the hone left. I know a lot of the older loom-type strops and padded paddles let the leather deflect, but there were a lot of old wedges back then that some people say benefit from some slack while stropping. Otherwise, you are just rounding the bevel.

My first paddle was just a strip of thick blockboard with a bad strop (cheap Ebay special) glued (with wood glue) to it. It had to be sanded, BTW, but left a nice velvet surface - which was soon reduced to hard and shiny again by stropping. Like Glen says, the velvety surface is great for taking powder. It worked great.

I hope it works out well for you!
Regards,
Neil

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Originally Posted by OLD_SCHOOL

Great link. I think I paid the same for the mink oil. Might have to get some of the horse oil to use on my cordovan strops.

I just want to point out for your benefit that the G17 glue can be had at the Daiso so that'll save you a couple en. Not that you'll probably buy it, but just in case.....

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Since I bought everything that is going into this project except the leather and the CrOx at Daiso, that is great to know. Thanks!

BTW, Daiso saws SUCK. Just to let you know. It's the only thing I've bought there that is completely useless. I mean, COMPLETELY useless.

Neil, that's JUST the kind of wrinkling I'm talking about. Not big creases, just a sort of extra-graining. I'll sand it out--I've decided to put one of each side on the paddle, velvety and smooth. Why not, I figure!

Thanks again for the advice, guys!

Hey, I want to thank you all again for your advice. ONe more question: I'm picking up some neatsfoot oil, and I was wondering if I should wait and treat the leather with it BEFORE I glue it down? My plan is to lightly sand the finished side of the leather and treat it with oil to get some nice draw, and treat the velvety side to try to press it a wee bit, just to make it a bit tougher.

Should I do that before or after gluing to the base? Or should I not worry so much and just make the frakking thing? :D

Jim I see two issues here.
Oil an glue don't go well with each other, so that would speak for oiling it afterwards.
Leather thats been treated, will become softer and possibly more elastic, which could lead to over length.
If you bet on tension, I'd oil it before you put it on, but then nail it onto the head sides of the board.

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Originally Posted by JimR

Hey, I want to thank you all again for your advice. ONe more question: I'm picking up some neatsfoot oil, and I was wondering if I should wait and treat the leather with it BEFORE I glue it down? My plan is to lightly sand the finished side of the leather and treat it with oil to get some nice draw, and treat the velvety side to try to press it a wee bit, just to make it a bit tougher.

Should I do that before or after gluing to the base? Or should I not worry so much and just make the frakking thing? :D

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Well, you seem to have a better quality leather then what I used, which were basically unfinished hides from the factory, but I felt it was necessary to treat the back side of the leather with oil before attaching it to make sure that it got a decent saturation. I guess I'd just see how greedy your stuff is for oil first... how much it really needs it.

You may want to look over your material after you attach it, I looked over mine today, and it wasn't quite level in a couple places, I had to go back over a couple surfaces and shave off material with a knife and hand sander. It seems the the outside cupped some, even after having been clamped. But then again, I didnt use very good leather.

You might actually consider a "first run" where you make a junk strop-just attach some of the surplus leather to an old board. That will let you test your techniques and how your plans and materials all get along. I've had to go back and try to fix the first paddle strop I made a few times now... it work alright, I guess, but I don't like it very much, and just use it for kitchen knives.

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_RiV3dzbrx_...0/CIMG0903.JPG

My very own, handmade, pasted paddle strop! That's some of ChrisL's Chromium oxide on leather, on a cypress (I think) board.

Here's some shots of the leather...smooth:
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_RiV3dzbrx_...0/CIMG0880.JPG

And not as smooth (wouldn't call it rough...more like velvet--this is the side that got pasted):
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_RiV3dzbrx_...0/CIMG0879.JPG

It's not perfect, but it's close enough for me, and it's MINE. I'm not a real big guy for making things with my hands, and this is the first time I've been really successful...so I'm really, really happy with it!

Well done! I'm glad it worked out for you!

Regards,
Neil