Thread: 1st Paddle Strop

So my friend mrsell63 was kind enough to give me a piece of horse leather to make myself a paddle strop. I'm no woodworker but I managed to put this bad boy together over the past few days.
The plan was to keep the leather raw for starters. Unfortunately I made a beginners mistake and got some masking tape residue on the good side of the leather. I managed to remove it with a damp cloth but it left an ugly stain so I started some light sanding. I was planning on going from 150 grit all the way up to 1-2k. Grrrrr, how frustrating. Am I on the right track? Suggestions would be appreciated. Here's a pic.

Maybe a bit of alchohol on a cotton rag would remove the damage from the tape. You should have emailed me pronto. I wouldn't do any sanding just yet. Relax, we'll fix it.

Someone else will have suggestions.

You said you removed the residue with the damp cloth. If that is the case and only stain remains I would say leave it as is. The stain is not going to effect your blades while stropping and the whole of you strop will darken as you use it over time.

So, I over reacted to the tape stain. After sanding the leather up to 600 grit and treating it with CrOx, I got myself a winner!

Thanks JS!