restoring a strop?

Anyone have any idea what the best way to restore a strop is? I bought a vintage GEM with really nice looking scottish hide and it is stiff... I mean really really stiff any help will be greatly appreciated.

Most of the guys here say to use neatsfoot oil. It seems to soak in well and will soften it up.

You may want to try a small spot first. It did darken a piece of horsehide but did not alter the cowhide.

Yeah, neatsfoot is good. Put it on a cloth then rub it on the leather. Let it soak in a couple hours between applications to see if you need more, you don't want to put too much on there.

You might want to look at the Wiki for help concerning your strop.

Here is a link Strop treatment and repair - Straight Razor Place Wiki

The Wiki has been put together by experienced members and is loaded with information about all areas of straight razor shaving.

Good luck,
Rick

When I restore old strops, I start with saddle soap. Once I feel that the strop is clean I'll closely look for dry rot, cracks, etc. If working the leather will not damage it, I'll work a little bit of Neatsfoot Oil into the leather then I'll run the strop back and forth over a counter top edge in a buffing manner. I do this on both sides until it becomes supple again. If there are glossy hard spots on the finish side, I'll use a pumice stone to break up the glaze. To get a traditional smooth leather draw, I'll roll a glass bottle over the finish side to give an even surface. If it is a Russian style (very rough) draw, I'll use 80grit sandpaper to work up the nap and then hit with foot oil again. If I think it would do better with a suede draw, I'll sand it with 150grit sandpaper and not oil it again. I think it's neat to put an old strop back into service again.

I also use saddlesoap and toothbrush with stiff bristles. That will take all the gunk off everytime. After drying a couple of days if needed I'll lube it some with neetsfoot oil.
I have run across one that was so stiff and dry as well as a ton of garbage on it I used a 320 grit wet dry sandpaper then went the usual way with saddlesoap.
In order to rub it in I use an old junker razor and run the spine back and forth on it to even things up a bit.

A point here, don't over wet the leather on and old stiff strop. With saddle soap make it into a thick lather. Too much moisture is a kiiler for old strops till they are conditioned.

PuFF

If the saddle soap is fresh it's pretty moist as is so you may not even need any water especially if you use a stiff bristle toothbrush. More often than not I just wet the toothbrush and that has always worked well for me.