How do I make a Leather Strop?

[Chef niloc]

1332695216[/url]' post='240909']

I have been experimenting with strops for a while. I make different strops depending on what they are being used for. I have five or six hanging by my bench. I have a very nice straight razor, but don't use it often enough to be good with it. I tend to think of strops like I do sharpening stones. There are different hardnesses and compounds you can use to get a great edge. For many people, the main purpose of the strop is to remove the burr after a blade has been sharpened. This can be done with vegtan, harness, latigo, or horse strip leather. I haven't used cordovan due to the cost, but I have one on the way from Horween to find out. Most people's perceptions of how the strops are not right either. Here are a few things I figured out:·

Draw: How much it "feels" like the leather is gripping the knife when it pulled over the strop. Horse strips have very little draw, soft latigo has quite a bit more. Most people can feel more draw on the softer leathers, so they think it is doing more. A hard horse hide will remove the burr faster than a soft latigo, but people like the feel of the latigo.

Paddle vs. Hanging: For tools and most knives, a paddle strop mounted to a flat piece of hardwood works best. Hanging strops are used almost exclusively for straight razors.

Hard vs. soft leather: Hard leather works great for razor or chisel grinds. For a convex grind with the last part of the blade that is rounded, a softer leather works better

Compounds: A strop is used to align the micro ridges in the steel. Once a compound is added to a strop, it is a final step in polishing and sharpening a blade, and will polish these away rather than align them. My charged strops have an aluminum oxide/ silicone wax compound from here, green polishing compound, and red polishing compound. (There are also diamond powders and pastes that work really well, but they are a pain to use.) I finish with a different strop that is oiled about twice a year. All of these strops are mounted to hardwood boards. The flesh side of leather takes compounds and holds them better than the grain side. The grain side is the best side for stropping with no compounds.

I have found that using a couple of different strops for my knives means less time spent on sharpening stones, as the compound charged strops do some very fine grit sharpening. If someone is looking for a strop to use on leatherworking tools, I would suggest making several and seeing what will work the best for your tools.

Are you doing any king of surfacing, or grain correction (sanding, boneing, carding, combing ext) to the leather?

[newfiebackflip]

Thanks everyone,

I guess I should of said what I was intending on making the strop for. I am making it for my Dovo Straight Razor.

I guess I could go with a thick piece of latigo and then make the ends out of vegtan as they will not be used for the honing itself. Carve something fancy in that, i suppose lol.

CDF the reason barbers have the canvas/linen fabric is to warm up the blade before they start on the strop.

Silly question, is Cordoven leather from Cordoba Argentina? If so I allllmost got a bunch of it last year for free. Reason I didn't get it is because my mother in law couldn't fit it in her luggage on her way back from there lol

[azrider]

Are you doing any king of surfacing, or grain correction (sanding, boneing, carding, combing ext) to the leather?

No, I haven't done any grain corrections. I cut away scars and such, but just use the natural grain for mine. I found gdliechty@alliedhightech.com that sells oil based carrier poly diamond that can be used to charge a strop, but it is sold in 16 oz containers. I bought some diamond powder last year, but its messy to get into the leather. It does a great job when it is in there though. I got mine from www.diamondtech.com for a straight powder.

[Chef niloc]

1332826421[/url]' post='241081']

No, I haven't done any grain corrections. I cut away scars and such, but just use the natural grain for mine. I found gdliechty@alliedhightech.com that sells oil based carrier poly diamond that can be used to charge a strop, but it is sold in 16 oz containers. I bought some diamond powder last year, but its messy to get into the leather. It does a great job when it is in there though. I got mine from www.diamondtech.com for a straight powder.

I got the diamond powder from the same place. I found mixing it into Blick #3 leather condisaner works great, you can really work it into the leather that way.

[Chef niloc]

Another good place to get different diamond compounds http://www.advancedabrasives.com/

[dirtclod]

What size grit powder did you get ?

[Colt Hammerless]

This is a very interesting subject. This is the first thread on this site that I've seen on the subject of razor strops. I've been wanting to start shaving with a straight for a while, and have been very interested in making strops. I've been shaving with old Gillete safety razors for a few years now. I've been lurking on "Badger and Blade", and "Straight Razor Place" for a bit. Are any of you members on either of those sites?

"Are you doing any king of surfacing, or grain correction (sanding, boneing, carding, combing ext) to the leather?"

Chef, when you talk about "grain correction," specifically sanding on the grain side, what grit of sandpaper are you using? I would imaging it would have to be very fine. Also the other methods are unknown to me. Are any of them similar to slicking with a glass slicker?

In regards to horsehide for a hanging straight razor strop, I remember reading somewhere that soft rolled is better than hard rolled. What are your opinions on this?

Have any of you used bridle leather? I would imagine it's draw being lighter than latigo, and heavier than horsehide.

Paul

[Chef niloc]

1333129381[/url]' post='241691']

This is a very interesting subject. This is the first thread on this site that I've seen on the subject of razor strops. I've been wanting to start shaving with a straight for a while, and have been very interested in making strops. I've been shaving with old Gillete safety razors for a few years now. I've been lurking on "Badger and Blade", and "Straight Razor Place" for a bit. Are any of you members on either of those sites?

"Are you doing any king of surfacing, or grain correction (sanding, boneing, carding, combing ext) to the leather?"

Chef, when you talk about "grain correction," specifically sanding on the grain side, what grit of sandpaper are you using? I would imaging it would have to be very fine. Also the other methods are unknown to me. Are any of them similar to slicking with a glass slicker?

In regards to horsehide for a hanging straight razor strop, I remember reading somewhere that soft rolled is better than hard rolled. What are your opinions on this?

Have any of you used bridle leather? I would imagine it's draw being lighter than latigo, and heavier than horsehide.

Paul

I haven't perfected it yet but here are some of the things I have learned both from reading very old leather working text and a lot if trial and error.Start with as thick and even piece as you can.

Give yourself extra inches on all sides so you can trim to the right size when done. I have been working with 8x30" pieces, then trim to two 3x28" strops

I case/quick 5 min soak in very warm water about 120-140 F Then I slick it to a piece of plate glass, grain side down bathroom shelf I bought at hardware store for $20.

So far I have had the best luck with a random orbital sander, I have beef thinking a drum sander may be better but I don't have one.

I start with 80 then , 120,220,400,600, 800, 1000Then I hot soak it again (note I have not let the leather dry all the way yet since the 1st soak) and slick it grin side up. Sad to 120 to get velvet texture.

Now I have a French top stove that when off states about 140F so I put the leather on the glass grain (velvet Side) up and work 1 micron diamond mixed with Blick #3 considerer. I work it in with a 1" hard wood stick " bottle necking" the rubbing on a hot surface helps work the compound into the cells as well as giving the flush side a glass like look and finish. I then hit grain side ( still a little damp) with a brass brush to lift the cell back up. Then back to the sander with a 220 grit. It should be almost dry by nowLet it sit over night then "beam" it over something, back of chair, broom stick. This softens the strap up.Now trim to size

[Colt Hammerless]

Thanks for the reply Chef niloc. So if I understand it right, your doing the progressive sanding on the flesh side, then 120 grit on the grain side? This would remove the grain and leave it a velvety texture? I haven't had a razor strop before, and thought that it was glass smooth on the grain side, with the grain intact, but it sounds like I was wrong. I assume this is the procedure you use on regular veg-tan cowhide, not latigo or bridle.

[Chef niloc]

1334000362[/url]' post='243056']

Thanks for the reply Chef niloc. So if I understand it right, your doing the progressive sanding on the flesh side, then 120 grit on the grain side? This would remove the grain and leave it a velvety texture? I haven't had a razor strop before, and thought that it was glass smooth on the grain side, with the grain intact, but it sounds like I was wrong. I assume this is the procedure you use on regular veg-tan cowhide, not latigo or bridle.

Yes the flesh side is the side I make glass smooth. The only razor strop I have an thus used as reference is a kanayama strops, but from what I have been told they are high let regarded as being top quality? I use horse but straps but made one out of shell cordovan as well. Knowing that shell is the polished flesh side I only thought it logical to polish that side. To get leather glass smooth takes a lot of sanding to working the "rougher" side can only result in a more finished looking strop as the grain side is much much easer to get a nap like texture to. I like the draw of the velvet side too. If you only wanted a one sided glass like strop it would be easer to just polish the grain side, but I found it hard to get a truly flat uniform strop without finishing both sides. The way I did the above give you a strop that looks and feels like it was made from shell cordovan.

I love horse hide and use it almost exclusively for all my leather work. I have not tried or worked with latigo leather at all, for anything, never had a pice p, been wanting to get some. I have herd that it makes for a great strop.