Any use to strop a course edge?

[lewdog]

I can use my bench grinder and all my belts, building up to a high grit and finishing with a leather one loaded with chromium oxide, to get a really fine and smooth mirror finish on my edges. I kind of thought that was the panacea of knife sharpening (splitting harms and tree-topping them and what-not). What I've found, though, is that I really don't like that kind of edge--doesn't do most daily stuff worth a damn. I've decided that I want to stop with a mid-grade grit so that I can get some of that slicing love again. If I stop with, say, a 500 grit belt, is there any advantage to stropping it with the leather and Cro. Ox.? Or, would that just take away the better slicing afforded by finishing with a slightly coarser grit? I believe that the stropping will then just polish the micro-teeth, but how will that affect the cutting? Hope this is making sense.

 

[John Frankl]

Makes perfect sense, and, yes, many people do just that. But, as you mention above, it will give you yet another type of edge and performance. Some people feel this sort of edge is a good compromise for an edge that needs to both slice and push cut.

John

 

[HoB]

Yes it works and give an edge that is very good for certain applications. Very agressive but still fairly durable and clean. Never used power equipment but I have taken an edge from a 220 DMT to a strop. Not bad when you go for ultimate slicing ability. You should make sure though that you don't carry too much of a burr with you. The edge should already be pretty clean coming from the coarse hone. In the end, not necessarily what I personally look for in an edge but definitely something to try at least once. If I had a dedicated rope knife, this would probably the finish I would put on it (or one of the variations). There are some variations to that theme that you might try. 220 -> fine/UF sharpmaker rods, or 500-700 -> Strop. All depending on how large and how polished you want the teeth. Makes also a great SD edge, goes through cloth like nobodies business.

 

[Jeff Clark]

You should try cutting several different materials and contrast how your methods perform. I suggest seeing how various edge treatments cut cardboard, cloth, and paint stirring sticks. Try slicing and slashing at the various materials. See how long the edges keep cutting performance that you are happy with. Use the cardboard and the wood as materials to dull your knife with.

I would compare edges that you stropped lightly a few times with plain leather (no compound) with one that you stropped more agressively with a polishing compound.

You tell us what seems to work better.

 

[Cliff Stamp]

If I stop with, say, a 500 grit belt, is there any advantage to stropping it with the leather and Cro. Ox.?

WOuld there be any advantage to honing it on a UF Spyderco hone after the 500 belt?

[that is the same question with a more obvious answer]

-Cliff

 

[65535]

I get a great edge hand honing on a Spyderco unltra fine Ceramic Whet Stone, great edge long lasting tough.

 

[Allan Molstad]

I know how to put a very sharp edge on a knife.
So when I went fishing with a friend and his dad I guessed that sooner or later my friend would ask me to sharpen his dad's fishing knife before he cleaned all the fish.

I was wrong..

I watched my friends dad clean fish after fish faster than I had ever seen before.
I could not believe a knife could be that sharp!
The knife was cutting up the fish like it was a laser beam.

I just had to know how he could get such a sharp edge on his knives?
I expected him to drag out some type of new super-secret power sharpener...

But he took his knife to the sink, and used a normal file to sharpen it on...a file?

All I can guess is, that perhaps the deep scratches left by the file in the knife's edge must have really helped in cutting the flesh fish...other than that i do not understand how it worked so good.

 

[jiggybaw]

If I stop with, say, a 500 grit belt, is there any advantage to stropping it with the leather and Cro. Ox.?

Isnt that "factory edge" on most knives(serrated and plain)?

 

[lewdog]

WOuld there be any advantage to honing it on a UF Spyderco hone after the 500 belt?

[that is the same question with a more obvious answer]

-Cliff

Maybe I've got a hard head, but I guess I'm still left kind of without the understanding I'm seeking. I understand that, the lower grit you use, the bigger the micro-serrations and the better the slicing. If you continue building up the grit count, the teeth become smaller and the push cutting gets better If, however, you go directly from 500-grit to stropping, I would imagine that the teeth are still at 500 grit size, but smoother. Is this true? Maybe this is a good way of asking. On the following characteristics, what would be the difference in a stropped vs. non-stropped blade, both sharpened first with 500 grit media?:
-push-cutting
-slicing
-edge-holding
-any other important metric used to describe quality of a cutting edge

 

[Cliff Stamp]

I understand that, the lower grit you use, the bigger the micro-serrations and the better the slicing. If you continue building up the grit count, the teeth become smaller and the push cutting gets better If, however, you go directly from 500-grit to stropping, I would imagine that the teeth are still at 500 grit size, but smoother.

Stropping just defines the movement of the blade on the media. You can strop the knife on the 500 grit belt. If you strop or you hone edge into doesn't significantly change the tooth size just has an effect on the tendancy to burr.

So eliminate the stropping variable as it is inconsequential and ask yourself the simpler question would there be a benefit in jumping from 500 grit to 10000 grit.

The answer is that you will get something inbetween the two depending on how much time you spend at the higher grit. A much less complicated method of sharpening is to just use the intermediate grit directly.

Most people advocate stropping after coarse edges because the coarse edges are not properly formed and thy are trying to remove a burr. I would suggest instead if this is the case then work on the sharpening fundamentals.

-Cliff