Restoring an old paddle strop.

[Gustav]

I have an old paddle strop that I bought at a flee market. The leather is hard and shiny but not cracked. Can I restore it by sanding off the shine with some fine sandpaper or will that destroy it? If that works what type of oil should I use to give it back some softness?

[LarryAndro]

You might or might not be able to resurrect the leather. My experience is that even very small bumps, sliced leather that flips up when the blade passes, and similar things can dull the blade. Soft leather that has a slightly bumpy pattern doesn't seem to be a problem though. It is when the "whatever" that extends above the plane has some hardness to it that you get in trouble.

Do you have enough experience to recognize a sharp blade and a dulled blade? And, do you have a way (barbers hone, maybe) to resharpen the blade? If so to both, then try. If not, then defer the project.

[Luc]

I would start with leather conditioner and see how it goes. Have a look here: http://wiki.badgerandblade.com/How_to_Restore_a_Strop If you can, please post some pictures.

[Sando]

I've reclaimed a hanging strop and a paddle strop by cleaning the leather over and over with saddle soap then mink oil. A light sanding may help too.

...Ray

[Gustav]

Thanks guys!

[Alum of Potash]

I restored an old loom strop caked with old pastes by following a 240x/400x/600x wet-dry sandpaper sequence using a light touch, circular strokes, and a small block of wood. The faces were then immediately re-pasted with the Dovo red and black crayons. Works great.
http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/251919-Paddle-strop-restoration?highlight=