Hey guys, I know you can buy blank holders, but I can see the point where you want to replace the leather. Is there a source for leather or balsa? I can cut my own but I would like to keep the thickness uniform soooo
Is Has anyone found them?

I have tried several different things and have found it is easier to by the replacement leather and balsa strips from WEPS. I do this for the very reason you cited ..."consistency"

The old leather pulls off fairly easily if you heat a hair dryer before removal. It is a little messy to clean up. You can use Goo Gone to clean up the residual glue.

I tried using a hot glue gun, but I do not seem to be able to move fast enough before it begins to harden. I found a Leathercraft Cement (from Hobby Lobby) that is much easier to work with. This glue is easier to clean up.

Regards,

Ralph

I'm glad you brought this up. I was wondering at what point should the leather be changed out? I have the 5/3.5 and the 1/.5 strops and a couple of them are very dirty (black in color). Should I continue to add more diamond past to them?

Thanks!

Just a thought, having done this on some old leather strops myself.
I had some strops with the higher grits on them. I wanted to reuse them with different abrasives.
I sanded down the existing leather with 400 grit wet and dry sand paper, until it was nice and even. No evidence of the old abrasive. I then went up to 1000 grit. It ended up looking like very fine suede. Nice and smooth, and enough fiber to hold the new abrasive. I then spread new compund on the rehabilitated leather. Works great for me.

I have replaced the leather with some hard rolled horse hide too. Same deal with heating the old strps to where you can take the old ones off, cleaning with goo gone or similar solvents. I applied some 3M double stick tape to the paddles, cut the horse hide to fit and pressed it on. Horse hide it thicker, but if you reduce your angle by a degree or so when stropping, it does not make a significant difference to the edge. If using an angle cube, the angles will take care of themselves when you set you angles properly with the cube.

I would try the reconditioning method first. it is easier in the long run. It has worked for me going from the 14 micron paste down to the 1 micron diamond spray.

You can order blank holders from WEPS if you want to start from scratch.

www.wickededgeusa.com/index.php?option=c...uemart&Itemid=85

scroll to the bottom!

Phil

Clay posted that he uses his laether to the point that it is real ugly, only changing it if he was going to a show.
I agree, and the compounds last a really long time. Add a bit when you are not getting the results that you want. I have used mine when they have major slits and are pretty black. They just work.

I say, mess with them when you find the efficiency dropping off... you will be able to tell !!

Phil



JimMitchell wrote:

Here's an easy technique I've just started using and it's working wonderful: I moisten the strops lightly with rubbing alcohol before each use and the performance boost is significant.

Clay, what made you choose rubbing alcohol. It dries very quickly and in the process, I think it would also have a negative reaction with the natural oils of the strop that make it pliable and soft. Why not just use water or some sort of oil? or something like saddle soap maybe? I am just wondering because it seems counter intuitive.

Good question. I used it one day because it was right there and I went for it. I was very surprised by how well it worked. I've used distilled water before but wasn't too impressed. Oils and conditioners lubricate too much. What I wanted, and ostensibly got, was to increase/restore the "stiction" of the leather against the metal which has a wonderful affect on the surface of the bevels.

ScottSherman wrote:

Will do. Thanks Phil!

PhilipPasteur wrote:

Between the old man and I we've nicked up and taken little slivers off of our strops at an alarming rate, but they seem to work fine after you wear in the raw spots a little. It just feels funny during the strop stroke due to the added friction.

This reminds me I might need to recharge my 5 micron strops a bit, they seem to be taking a very long time to get much polish out of now. Though I also have been using Clay's trick dropping the angle slightly (1-2 degrees) to strop, which may contribute to the polish taking longer as well.