Thread: Nicks in the strop

So...I am very new to straight shaving, but so far, I love it. As a newbie, I initially made a couple of mistakes. Now, my new strop has a couple of small nicks in it. I'm afraid if I use it, the straight edge will get damaged. First thought is to use a light sandpaper to sand down the nicks, but I don't want to do any further damage. Any suggestions? Thanks.
-Dan

Depending on the size & depth of the nick, you can use a pumice stone to remove them. You can probably use light sandpaper, but take a chance on some of the grit accidentally being left in the leather to wreak havoc on your edge later. I've used a nail file to sand them down. Afterward I finish with a little strop dressing (practically any leather conditioner will work) and it's about as good as new.

I remove nicks with a pumice stone, and then rub the area very well with an old sock. That removes the stone pieces very well. Then I rub in a little strop dressing and let it sit for a while, and then rub it again well with the sock.

E

Follow Eric's lead. I used sandpaper first which worked, but left the affected areas a little rough. I also tried lapping it with a barbers hone which improved the situation. Finally a few light passes with the pumice stone and except for some discolouration you'd never know there was a problem.

X