breaking-in strop / repairing nicks

i decided to touch-up a few little nicks i had in my strop (a really stiff, somewhat un-even surfaced Illinois 827) - i used my razor to shave off the super thin flaps, and sanded things smooth(er) with some 180 grit paper. Liking how this sanding made the strop feel velvety, i decided to sand the whole thing, by laying some doubled-over sandpaper over my knee and 'stropping' over my knee. I then conditioned the strop with a little Zymol leather conditioner (very much like Lexol), and then i took the strop to the handle of my Louisville-slugger: standing on the bat, run the strop under the handle and two-handedly I essentially try to friction-heat the strop, working it real vigorously. After all was said and done, the strop now has a fantastic draw, the nicks in the strop are much less noticeable, and my razors are sharper than ever - very smooth, comfortable shaving. happy.

Great job and happy shaving!