Smoothing my strop

[Kees Heiden]

I think I have done something stupid (won't be the first time...). I had some scratches on my strop and I wanted to smooth them a bit. So I took a scraper and scraped over the surface. It is now a LOT worse. Any tips to get back to a smooth surface again?

This is leather from a very old motorcycle saddle bag. The smooth side of the bag was lackered, so I used the rough side for the strop. But that rough side was very smooth allready. Now it looks more like regular rough leather.

[Malcolm Schweizer]

Use a very sharp low angle smoothing plane. I did this to smooth out a rough piece of leather and it worked perfectly. You can also sand leather to get a smooth but sort of suede finish.

[Kees Heiden]

I'll give it a try with my low angle block plane, sharpening it first.

[Maurice Ungaro]

If that does not work, try burnishing it after treating it with some neatsfoot oil.

[Pat Barry]

I'll give it a try with my low angle block plane, sharpening it first.
Now you're in a bit of a pickle because you really will want to strop that low angle block plane blade before you attempt to use it :)

[Matthew Hutchinson477]

Sandpaper always works. I always sanded the surface of my strops before applying compound and it seemed to help the compound work into the leather.

I think sandpaper would be a safer bet than planing it because there's no risk of gouging/tearing the leather.

[Kees Heiden]

Plenty to try. I have enough leather so I have some leeway, but I had this strop nicely glued down on a piece of qs maple with a matching cap to keep it clean.

[paul cottingham]

Just a quick thought; my strop is covered in scratches and a few gouges. It still works fine. (If you get a chance, take a look at Paul Sellers strop in one of his videos, it is shredded on the side he strops on.)

Another thought; if you rough it up while removing the scratches, won't that just make it a like a flesh side out strop? They work fine don't they?

[Kees Heiden]

Yeah, maybe I am overthinking it. But it was so nice and smooth...

[Kees Heiden]

I did a quick test. The block plane didn't do much. I think the strop is a bit hollow, so that would mean a complete flattening sequence. So I tried with some sandpaper, 180 at first, then 320 grit. It is a lot smoother now, jyst diffferent. It is more like suede.

Next experiment. I can't find chromium oxide overhere, but I had some rouge, feric oxide. I put some on the strop together with a bunch of oil. Hmmm, everything turns pink now! I don't think that was such a terribly great idea either! I'll get myself some autosol, that might be an easier stropping compund.

[Maurice Ungaro]

......but I had some rouge, feric oxide. I put some on the strop together with a bunch of oil. Hmmm, everything turns pink now!
Kees, it's called "rouge" for a reason!