Thread: breaking in strop

Thank you just clarifying, as I read in another post (in thread) talcum powder on a strop. cheers

Pure talc (magnesium silicate) is the softest mineral on the Mohs hardness scale.

Branded varieties have other additives though - some have an inclusion of iron(III) oxide - jewelers rouge. Jewellers rouge in a fine form (crocus) polishes.

The trouble is, its hard to know what is and isn't in the talc you buy.

Regards,
Neil

As an additional opinion, I find that because of the amount of oil and wax with a new Latigo, that you need to get past this to get to the nice draw. They usually start out a little slick. Hand rubbing every day for a few weeks will work as will a couple of treatments with a small amount of neatsfoot oil followed by hand rubbing. They key is to get past the oil and wax layer. There usually is some leaching associated with both methods which is not a big deal or problem and the little particles you feel can be easily brushed off. I agree with Neil on going with the thinner material as it is certainly more supple.

Have fun,

Lynn

Many old Barbers swear by the lather method. Whip up a nice lather, put some on your strop and with your fingers on TOP and thumb BELOW the strop, start away from you and slide your hand down the strop. This will work the lather into the leather. Repeat until lather is all absorbed.

According to a few Barbers, do this everyday for a couple weeks, and your strop should be nice and supple.

I've been doing it to my new strop I made, and it works wonderfully.

any reason why chrome tanned leather is no good for a strop?

Originally Posted by maniotas1

any reason why chrome tanned leather is no good for a strop?

It depends on the type of chrome tanning and subsequent finishing.

Chrome tanning is the most widely used tanning method in the world today. Chrome tanning can produce leather for garments and upholstery that is too thin and stretchy to be useful for stropping. Also a wide colour palette with often garish artificial colours is associated with chrome tanning.

Some chrome tanned leather has the outer surface removed by sanding and them is is finished with dyes and pigments and a plastic-like layer and has the grain pattern re-stamped into it to keep it nice and regular. The outer coating renders this type unsuitable for strops. It is usually termed "corrected grain" becuae of this process of sanding and re-graining, whereas leather with its original surface still intact is called full-grain.

Corrected grain leather is usually leather of an inferior quality, typically not good enough for vegetable tanning. The reason this type of leather is no good for stropping is because it has a thick pigmented artificial layer over it to hide the flaws. You are not stropping on leather with this type of stuff, but on the layer of pigment that they have coated the inferior leather with.

Vegetable tanned leather is generally used for strops because leather of a heavier weight are tanned that way.

However, if you have a full-grained, non pigmented leather of the right weight that has been chrome tanned or part chrome tanned (some latigos are part chrome tanned - involves both vegetable and chrome tanning) then I don't see why you couldn't make a decent strop out of it. I have never used it myself, so I am only guessing, though.

Regards,
Neil

good thread!
ex