Thread: Help with wrinkles in new strop!

Hi there,
This is my first post in the forums but I've been roaming the website for a while.
I used to shave with a Shavette but it was always my dream to start shaving with a straight razor.
So I bought what apparently is a good starter pack:
- Dovo Best quality 5/8 Full hollow
- Norton 4000/8000
- Norton SiC
- Chromium Oxide compound
- Fromm Strop Dressing

And off course, the strop.

The strop I bought was this one:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Now, I have to say, I don't live in America, I live in Colombia, so everything was shipped from the U.S. down to here.
Everything seems to have arrived in a good condition.... Except for the strop, apparently.
It was rolled inside the box, and on unpackaging it, it has developed some rather coarse wrinkles (check pictures)
I have seen enough to know it's a bad idea to use it in that condition, so I need your advice.

How can I make the strop functional again? If at all?
Remember I don't live in the U.S. so mailing it back asking for a replacement isn't really possible.

EDIT: I wrote this message not 20 mins after unpackaging
EDIT 2: It may seem that the side photo might show larger wrinkles than there are due to the shadow of the back light.

Many thanks in advance.

leather conditioner softens leather, and could help make it flexible enough to fall back in place.

but best to wait for more opinions, im new to this too

was considering buying this very same strop a few days ago myself..[emoji15]


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Personally I would wipe it down with a damp cloth daily and let it hang, adding a small weight is optional, until it straightens out. When it does and is dry I would lightly condition it with saddle oil, neets foot oil or your dressing. Returning it is an option too if shipping is not prohibitive

The strop was folded in thirds, not rolled, it appears. The top grain is stretched at the folds. It can help to stretch the backside while supporting the top grain side. How I do this is with something like a rolling pin supported between two chair backs, or something like that, I put the strop smooth (top grain) face down against the roller, and then holding the ends of the strop I use my weight to pull the ends straight down and work the strop back and forth. You want the strop contacting the roller so that the surface is supported.

This will work best if you soak the leather in warm (120F) water. Then repeat this rolling periodically as the strop dries, because it will tend to stiffen if you don't. Then when dry you want to assess if you need to add some leather dressing.

Send it back. A quality strop does not have wrinkles. The folds can be corrected but the wrinkles not so easy.

To be frank that strop looks jacked up. Looks like there is very large ridges where it is bent, meaning the surface won't be as flat as you need it to be for stropping. I personally would return it if possible. I've only done very minor strop repair but that looks beyond repairable to me. If you are purchasing from the USA there are great strops to be had for under 100 bucks, SRD has a lot of nice ones. Your kit looks great besides the strop obviously, the strop dressing probably isn't needed for a good quality strop either.

First, there is no excuse for the shipper to have done that to your strop. No excuse whatsoever. I would contact Amazon and let them know you are returning strop because of shipping damage, include a note with the strop indicating the damaged areas from folding.
Make it clear that your replacement strop be shipped correctly.

Second, the strop you received is not the strop in the Amazon sales photographs. The finish side of the strop you received is not the finish on the strop Amazon pictures that you bought. I would make it clear that you want the strop you ordered if you want your strop replaced.

Getting a refund from Amazon will leave you short on money for purchasing a strop from SRD. If you cannot afford a strop from SRD with your refund then go ahead and get the replacement from Amazon. Your budget is your budget and I understand the need to stay within your budget. Good luck and please let us know how this works out for you.

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

Send it back. A quality strop does not have wrinkles. The folds can be corrected but the wrinkles not so easy.

Those wrinkles look like belly leather. You won't see those on back leather.

I agree with the others. This is NOT a quality strop.

Get Amazon to refund your money.

It is not a quality strop, but you knew that when you bought it.

Do the least aggressive first and see if it will straighten out. As said dampen with a wet sponge on both sides and lay flat, or hang with light weight, do not soak or add any oil/dressing at this time.

You may need a couple applications to relax the leather, you may be able to save it.

If you do add oil, do so on a damp leather after 10-15 minutes, where it has had time to absorb deep into the leather. Apply a small amount to a cloth or paper towel, then wipe a thin layer on the strop.

Try just water first.

$16.88 does not a quality razor strop buy.

You have two choices, return *as is* for a refund, or attempt to save it, in which case you accept that you forfeit your money if it doesn't work out, unless explicitly instructed by the seller to attempt the repair using their suggested method.

If you just cannot afford to purchase a quality strop, then by all means, see if you can find a way to live with the one you got. Returning it for a replacement will likely not improve the situation, based on cost alone.

If you would rather have a better strop without these issues... prices start at around $40+ for an Illinois 827 (the only Illinois strop I'd bother with, and it's a good one), but be prepared to work on it a bit. If you would like to go this route, return the strop you have now, as is, get your money back, and save for the better strop. Naturally, you can get other strops with less issues for a little more money again, but this applies to anything you buy. The more you pay, the more you are entitled to get.

As for the Illinois strop, mine came quite shaggy.... the 827 is a flesh side out strop. I used my diamond lapping plate to get most of the shag off, as well as a sharp knife used as a scraper, and I've had it for about 15 years and it's still a great strop. The linen component is some kind of plastic coated material, and it too responded favourably to a good scuffing with my diamond plate.

I do have other strops that I'm fond of, but none that didn't cost at least twice as much as the Illinois (not counting the one I inherited from my Dad). The 827 is not a fancy strop, in fact it's rather cheap by todays standards, but it IS serviceable. For the $60ish range and up... there are the SRD strops and other manufacturers who make decent stuff. Why do they cost so much? Because they pay the same amount for a side of leather as the cheap manufacturers do, but they discard all the bad leather, instead of cutting it up and selling it as $16.88 strops.

As with most things in life, you pays your monies and you takes your choice.

Regards

Christian