30x loupe and stropping

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KennyB

Joined
Jan 19, 2010
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2,312
I got a new 30x loupe today with an illuminated LED. It was less than $5 and works great too! I've used 30x loupse, but not with illumination like this. I have a feeling the batter might run out since it's LED, but it held up great for today's use.

However that's not what this thread is about. I realized I hadn't stropped my Trapper yet, and it presented both an opportunity to try out the belt-stropping method another member here suggested, and check out the before and after on my blade.

The 30x really helps me understand what is going on with stropping, especially the way it deals with dents or nicks. It doesn't really get rid of the dent or nick per se, it just gets rid of all the metal on the edge they raised up and basically sharpens over the nick. So instead of being there being these little metal wings hanging out over the edge where the nick is, there's just a very small recess as if the edge just drops down a few thousanths of an inch and then comes back up. I can barely feel it with my finger, it's more noticable with my EdgeTester, but as far as shaving, paper cutting, etc. goes it's like it's not even there. I think stropping probably just meses over these nicks that most people don't even see without large levels of magnification.

I had a rather large nick... Well, it looked large under 30x Anyway, I stropped for probably a few hundred strokes and I couldn't get the nick completely out, but it's barely visible even under 30x.

So the loupe served very useful, but holy cow, I'm glad I learned how to strop quickly so I could do it for longer. The spey on my Trapper is now so shaving sharp I didn't even realize it cut hair until I looked down at the collection of hairs and the big bald spot on my arm. Plus I cut the thinnest, most weak hair I had right up on the front of my wrist. Never been able to do that before. I don't even think a Gilette would have been that smooth. :thumbup:

So I'll make you a deal... Here's a link to the loupe. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001QDMFTO/ref=oss_product

Now someone repay with me a link to a good, cheap strop. I used an old leather belt and I'm pretty confident I could have got the job done quicker with a better strop. I don't really need it to be fancy, just wide and long.
 
Most LEDs draw little current and should last a lot longer than a similar output incandescent bulb.

You can get some leather yourself and glue it to a board. It can be as simple or fancy as you want. Check the phone book and see if you have a hobby lobby or better yet a Tandy leather in town. There are probably other places as well if where you live is of any size. Get some spray adhesive or rubber cement and glue it to a board.

Or there is a Mr2Blue on the forums that makes some great strops. He usually sells 2 of them for around $30 with some really nice wood. Message him and see what he has available.

You should really do yourself a favor and get some 1 micron diamond spray/paste. You will be amazed. I have had great luck with the stuff handamerican.com sells. Great product at cheaper prices and bigger containers than most other places.
 
FlaMtnBkr said:
Most LEDs draw little current and should last a lot longer than a similar output incandescent bulb.

You can get some leather yourself and glue it to a board. It can be as simple or fancy as you want. Check the phone book and see if you have a hobby lobby or better yet a Tandy leather in town. There are probably other places as well if where you live is of any size. Get some spray adhesive or rubber cement and glue it to a board.

Or there is a Mr2Blue on the forums that makes some great strops. He usually sells 2 of them for around $30 with some really nice wood. Message him and see what he has available.

You should really do yourself a favor and get some 1 micron diamond spray/paste. You will be amazed. I have had great luck with the stuff handamerican.com sells. Great product at cheaper prices and bigger containers than most other places.
Click to expand...

1 microon stuff you were mentioning stropping compound or what?

Also, I thought about making my own with some leather scraps, but I wasn't really sure what kind of leather should be used so I thought I'd just save myself some trouble and get one from a reputable manufacturer.

I mean, the belt worked fine, but I'm wondering if I couldn't achieve better results or perhaps faster results with a better strop.

Oh, and I didn't meant to insinuate anything about LED. What I meant was more along the lines of LED lights like this powered by watch batteries don't seem to last very long. I'm sure compared to their incadescent counterparts (if any exist) they'd last much longer though.
 
KennyB said:
1 microon stuff you were mentioning stropping compound or what?

Also, I thought about making my own with some leather scraps, but I wasn't really sure what kind of leather should be used so I thought I'd just save myself some trouble and get one from a reputable manufacturer.

I mean, the belt worked fine, but I'm wondering if I couldn't achieve better results or perhaps faster results with a better strop.

Oh, and I didn't meant to insinuate anything about LED. What I meant was more along the lines of LED lights like this powered by watch batteries don't seem to last very long. I'm sure compared to their incadescent counterparts (if any exist) they'd last much longer though.
Click to expand...

Yes, the 1 micron spray/paste is made for stropping/polishing. The consensus among many of the sharpening experts here on BF is that the Hand American brand seems to be the favorite. DMT also makes diamond paste. Here's a link for the Hand American spray:

http://www.handamerican.com/diamchrom.html

Nothing wrong with buying a quality strop to get acquainted with the process. That's what I did, initially. Lately, I've been making and 'experimenting' with my own strop blocks, using oak hardwood purchased at Home Depot or Lowe's, and leather purchased from Tandy (you can also get a large bag of leather 'scraps' at Hobby Lobby for around $6 or so; great deal). I use double-sided carpet tape (also from HD/Lowe's) to stick the leather to the wood plank. I've been applying the green compound to mine (Chromium oxide), which can be found in bar form from many suppliers (woodworking shops in particular, or online). Haven't tried the diamond compounds yet, only because my finances are a bit tight right now.

I'm kind of curious about the LED loupe. Ordinarily, with standard batteries (AA or AAA), I'd expect the batteries to last a long time. Don't know what to expect from a watch battery though...
 
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