Thread: Need advice re: strop maintenance

I read different approaches for maintaining strops. I recently purchased a Bison made English bridal razor strop (linen/leather).

What do I need to do for routine maintenance of the linen and leather parts of this strop? Is there a special way to break in a new strop?

Any advice welcomed! Thanks in advance.

Unless your trying to bring back a neglected strop that is dryer out and in a mess , you really don't need to do anything other than palm rub it some. A strop that s used really doesn't need much of anything. I know some add a drop or two of neats foot oil every now and then, but I have 4 strops, for about 4 years and have done nothing to them other than an occasional palm rubbing when they were new to limber them up and I wipe them down with a damp microfiber towel about once a month to remove any dust. I keep my strops covered when not in use.

So the real answer is just use them and keep them clean. The barber I used to use just wiped his down to keep it clean, and his was a lot older than mine. But I,m sure it's not going to hurt it to use the oil too, I just don't like a lot f draw. Tc

If you have a quality strop break-in isn't required. I know some say they use a rolling pin or a glass bottle to roll it over a strop to "break it in" but I'm not of that school. You just use it.

As to maintenance I agree just keep it clean. Over time if it seems to be drying out a tiny amount of neatsfoot will take care of that. As to the cloth strop if it gets dirty some soap and water will take care of that.

I wipe my leather down once a month with a damp rag. Once a year I condition the leather with a dab or two of saddle oil. The linen I just brush with a horsehair brush once a month.

Why not contact Bison for their advice on how to maintain their strops. However, they'll probably tell you to just palm rub your strop and avoid putting anything on it. I use nothing more than a clean, damp cloth every few months.

I just do the same as the gents above and have nothing to add.

Regards

Christian

In agreement with thebigspendur as to breaking in. I have in the past tended to over-do putting stuff on strops. Remember if you put an animal oil on a leather strop it will absorb it deeply. It can and will attract dust, be a little sticky and you may in fact affect the draw of it. Now, I say every half dozen days, I'll rub it with my palm. I haven't felt the need to apply any cleaning measures a year into a new strop, I have recently bought a different one a Kanayama, that I won't be putting anything on at all.

Go to Gander Mountain & pick up a can of Ballistol. Treat one side & rub it in good. Then do the other side. This stuff is the real deal. It was designed in Germany for leather treatment & as a gun cleaner & lube around the WW-1 era.
IT WORKS! Ballistol has a great web site ballistol.com, so many things it works on!
And "NO" I am not paid to say that, I just really like the product!

Slawman

I have a new PRC strop on order, which will be a first for me. I seem to remember some caution about hanging the strop in the bathroom due to all the humidity which could do whatever to the leather. Am I anywhere near correct? My grandfather had a strop in the bathroom for as long as I could remember, but that was over 50 years ago. Any advice would be appreciated.

It is generally recommended to keep them out of humid bathrooms. It really depends on the ventilation of your bathroom and the ambient weather. Althoygh, I haven't really really had a problem in the past, except for girlfriends dripping water on them after washing their hands. However, all my bathrooms in the past have had excellent ventilation or the shower could be closed off from the sink area.