Thread: Finishing the Edge

Well what I did is use some mink oil on the edge. I had the tool for repairing/replacing window screens. It has a wheel with a valley in it where the spline that holds the screen in would fit. It was the perfect size for the thickness of the leather. I laid the strop down on the table, held a piece of 1x3 on top of it with about 1/4" of the strop sticking out. I rubbed a very, very small amount if mink oil along the entire edge. I then took the screen repair tool and ran the wheel back and forth up the edger of the strop. I did so firmly and quickly kind of melting the mink oil into the leather and as I continued you could see the edge burnishing. Turned a darker color and all the fuzz went away. Did it to both sides of the strop. Then when done I took my hands and worked the strop working the very small amount of mink oil from the edges into the entire strop. It came out fantastic. Thanks again to Neil for the guidance. I couldn't be happier with the strop now.

I sand my new strops edges round with 400 600 grit sandpaper and i use few drops of liquid parafinum to soften the leather. Rub your palm and rubb thestrop ,after24 hours the parafine is dispersed evently because the leather is very higroscopic and sucs trou evenly.We dont have neastfoot oil here.I have experimenting with pretty much everything and liquid parafin is the best for me.

of the three strops i've made i only beveled the edges for fear of making the edge hard. is it a cosmetic thing or are the little fuzzies harmful?

Yes, that is exactly what the burnishing wheel looks like, a window screen spline repair tool, except a bit larger and it does not roll, you want to burnish the loose threads down and the glue/edging, glues the fibers smooth.

Hide Glue does not dry hard, sort of rubbery, a bit stronger than rubber cement, which would also probably work. Hide glue was used for years in leather crafts and I think still is, in saddle making.

It is mostly cosmetic for strops, for belts and leather straps it is to aid in the easy sliding of the belt or strapping though hardware or belt loops as well as looks, I am sure.

You can still buy Hide glue at hardware stores, both dry and pre mixed, it is not expensive or as said Tandy carries it, they call it Eco-Flow Gum Tragacanth, below the photo of the Gum is the nylon Circle Edge Slicker and a wood version.

https://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/.../2620-140.aspx

I use the Tandy Preparation with no problems. Done a few of the strops over the years.
~Richard
And... I've used a good bit less than an ounce of Neetsfoot for over fifteen strop renewals. A finger should be wetted at the tip with the oil and applied from center out to the harder parts of the strop fist and then lightly the same way to them all. The strop should draw well and be able to be bent to almost 90º and slid back and forth over a table or counter edge with out showing any cracking nor should the strop be very dark in color or look oily. Some of the strops I have took close to six months of bi- weekly work to be a "good" strop. If the strop is almost there, give it a couple weeks and don't add more oil right away. Start massaging it over a table or counter edge with only about a 45º bend to start and then see how the hard and soft areas are coming. very lightly oil the hard area the same way and give them time to release the fibers.
Mostly I got this information from Hidestoart. A profile of his work:
http://straightrazorpalace.com/strop...op-review.html

Did anyone else have to look up Salubrious from Neil's post? I did and it seems I have to do it more in his posts than anyone else's. For the lazy readers: "Salubrious is a fancy way to describe something that’s good for you or is generally favorable to mind or body, but it need not be limited to describing healthy foods or liquids.
We salute each other with the cheer, "To your health!" as we chug down something that probably isn’t that good for us. But if it were salubrious, it would be. The two words, salute and salubrious stem from the same salus, meaning "welfare, health.” To further the cause, "Salus (Latin: salus, "safety", "salvation", "welfare")[1] was a Roman goddess. She was the goddess of safety and well-being (welfare, health and prosperity) of both the individual and the state. She is sometimes equated with the Greek goddess Hygieia, though her functions differ considerably."
I know no one axed for this.....but it could be a way for an Englishman to look down on the Colonies by tossing out obscure words. Luckily for us, most of his post was not related to spit.

Originally Posted by WW243

.....but it could be a way for an Englishman to look down on the Colonies by tossing out obscure words...

My Dear Bill, I beseech you not to look askance at me with such baleful countenance. Let me assuage your adamantine heart by assuring you that I have none such benighted intentions, neither am I one of those who is inebriated by the eloquence of his own verbosity. I sincerely hope that this undoes any confustication on your part, my daffodowndilly!

Regards,
Neil.

I have alway understood Neil's language use, especially when he delves into the depths of the dictionary and pulls out classic words that the world once used and understood. That has gone by the wayside, discarded like an empty soda can because of the infiltration and dissemination of jargon, slang and other attacks on the English language.

While my marriage was still a viable entity I would daily brings my now ex-wife a new word from the dictionary, exploring among the little used words. These days, when the devil is in me and the topic is not serious I like to revert to the use of these words to obfuscate the landscape, confuse the populous and in general be obtuse and verbose. Much joy can be had with such antics.

Now you've put a twist in my Alan Whickers dadgummit.....all fancy now in your velvet Whistle and Flute. Truth be told my real name is Whimpley Lowborn great great great grandson of Piltdown Man. You cannot offend me China Plate as I am the poster child of offensiveness. So carry on....I'll figure out what you are saying eventually: unintimidated, humpbacked and semi-proud. ,

Originally Posted by Neil Miller

My Dear Bill, I beseech you not to look askance at me with such baleful countenance. Let me assuage your adamantine heart by assuring you that I have none such benighted intentions, neither am I one of those who is inebriated by the eloquence of his own verbosity. I sincerely hope that this undoes any confustication on your part, my daffodowndilly!

Regards,
Neil.

Nice to see that a descendant of the Piltdown epoch has survived with the niceties of extravagant and exuberant usage of the proper language for both clarity and confusion on the unenlightened masses of unshaven and unwashed peoples of the common era of electronic neuterance of soul. Indeed, Mr Piltdown, spew forth with the best of us in defiance of the current shorthand use of language. U no wht i mean?