to condition leather strop ...

[alana]

… how do i do it ?

i found a card of leather and it’s a bit dry,
thought i might ask before doing the wrong thing

using it to hone single edge blade in a straight razor.
these resharpen pretty well on a sharpening steel!
and for in between sharpenings i want to just give it a run across the leather,
instead of on my hand ( - awareness of self care)

[SS369]

@alana post:1

… how do i do it ?

i found a card of leather and it’s a bit dry,
thought i might ask before doing the wrong thing

using it to hone single edge blade in a straight razor.
these resharpen pretty well on a sharpening steel!
and for in between sharpenings i want to just give it a run across the leather,
instead of on my hand ( - awareness of self care)

Good day Alana.

My strops are hard leather, some with smooth side out. I charge the surfaces with different stropping compounds, but have smeared coconut oil on one or two. (Love the smell.) Petroleum based products will degrade the leather over time. The stropping compound has a carrier for the abrasive that will coat the leather and reduce the drying out. The strop works best if the leather is affixed to some flat, hard backer, so you will get consistent edge and keep your hands safe.
Hope this helps.
SS

[Groundline]

@alana post:1

… how do i do it ?

i found a card of leather and it’s a bit dry,
thought i might ask before doing the wrong thing

???
instead of on my hand ( - awareness of self care)

I would go to a barber shop and have them show you their techniques. They might be able to get you supplies through their distributor.

[alana]

@SS369 post:2

My strops are hard leather, some with smooth side out. I charge the surfaces with different stropping compounds, but have smeared coconut oil on one or two. (Love the smell.) Petroleum based products will degrade the leather over time. The stropping compound has a carrier for the abrasive that will coat the leather and reduce the drying out. The strop works best if the leather is affixed to some flat, hard backer, so you will get consistent edge and keep your hands safe.
Hope this helps.
SS

thanks so much!
this helps,
especially since i was thinking of spraying it with wd40 :
stropping compund and coconut oil it is.
and the leather’s on the table, as i don’t really know how to suspend it.

[alana]

@Groundline post:3

I would go to a barber shop and have them show you their techniques. They might be able to get you supplies through their distributor.

super idea,
thanks

[frayedknotarts]

:DMy Da showed me a hard surface strop which was conditioned by neat’s-foot oil would last and last… I still have and use it and I’m 77.

;DWas in a Barber’s in Newport RI back in the '60’s (when Newport still had a real Chandler’s on Long Wharf!) and he kept each barber’s strop (there were four chairs) attached to the wall with a short steam gasket lanyard.

[alana]

@Frayed Knot Arts post:6

:DMy Da showed me a hard surface strop which was conditioned by neat’s-foot oil would last and last… I still have and use it and I’m 77.

;DWas in a Barber’s in Newport RI back in the '60’s (when Newport still had a real Chandler’s on Long Wharf!) and he kept each barber’s strop (there were four chairs) attached to the wall with a short steam gasket lanyard.

i saw a pic of your work station on your web page
and it motivated me to stack my reels (spools?) on a broomstick and tidy up a bit !

[ParLeijonhufvud]

@alana post:1

… how do i do it ?

i found a card of leather and it’s a bit dry,
thought i might ask before doing the wrong thing

using it to hone single edge blade in a straight razor.
these resharpen pretty well on a sharpening steel!
and for in between sharpenings i want to just give it a run across the leather,
instead of on my hand ( - awareness of self care)

There are special compounds made for sharpening, sold by stores (virtual och brick) that cater to woodworkers who use chisels, handplanes and knives. Or you can go to your auto-parts store and ask for a polishing compound, such as us used for chrome bumpers or the inside of cylinders. I use a product called Autosol (which may or may not be available outside Sweden, Europe, Earth, the solar system…) that is supposedly intended for the chromed parts of my car.

[frayedknotarts]

[quote author=alana link=topic=7331.msg48137#msg48137 date=1669106241]

i saw a pic of your work station on your web page
and it motivated me to stack my reels (spools?) on a broomstick and tidy up a bit !
[/quote

Great! But, a word of advice: If using the folding “Tea Table” as I did, be sure to have a couple in reserve as they get quite wobbly over time from the strains put on them and may collapse after “dancing”. Also, plastic conduit straps sized to your “broomsticks” allow you to mount a few up and down the legs of the table for more storage/better movement control. Limited only by interaction of the varying spools of line.

[alana]

sooo… i had loaded it up with coconut oil, it worked great,

then after a season of wet and humidity and floods in some parts, the piece of leather was done in by mould, filed it under ‘B’ for bin -_-