Cant get my knife as sharp as it came, help please

[HeavyHanded]

My best advice is to start out at a coarse grit and master that - burr formation, burr removal, optically flat scratch pattern, physical movements. Move to finer abrasives as this is learned. The margin of error visually and tactile, is determined by the size of the abrasive - you can have more angle variation at a coarse finish and it won't be a factor - at a fine finish its a real problem. Tactile feedback diminishes as the abrasive size diminishes.

Relax, make some real hard user's edges and the finer ones will follow quickly enough.

 

[philllll]

As far as a strop can I use an old belt and glue it to a 2x4?

Yes! A strop would probably help a lot and an old belt should do just fine.

 

[wolverine_173]

Yes! A strop would probably help a lot and an old belt should do just fine.

do i need compound? if so what kind?

 

[philllll]

It will work fine either way. If you want the edge to look more polished, get the compound. I'm not well versed in the differences but I tend to like the green compound the best. I picked up a strop and pack of 3 compounds on the auction site for under $20.