Finally invested in a strop

[Miketbass]

Not much of a thread, but I do not post often and thought I would announce that the solid advice obtained on this forum finally led me to purchase a strop. I got the strop and BR compound from KSF and have spent the last few hours refining my technique. I cannot believe I waited so long!

I blew my tax return on a Gayle Bradley and an EP Apex 4 and have been able to re-bevel and keep my knives hair popping sharp. I usually set the bevel on the EP and use the Sharpmaker with UF stones to micro bevel and maintain my edges. Got the itch to invest in a strop and..... wow. If I go through EP>Sharpmaker>Strop I can get a hair whittling mirror edge on any knife!! My next move will be to pick up some balsa and diamond paste. I guess you can never have too much sharpening equipment.

Many thanks to this forum for always pointing me in the right direction~

 

[Undertow82]

Gotta love the EP. I talked to Ben, the owner, and he said he's the best freehand-sharpener he knows and the EP can still get a better edge than he can freehand. He said human hand strokes are never gonna be perfect at holding the angle, no matter how good or practiced someone is. The EP takes all the angle error out of the picture. I can't believe I waited so long to get one.

Now, maybe I'll get a strop.

 

[Miketbass]

Agreed. Taking anything up to the 3000 tapes is just mind blowing. The strop will be an easier way to maintain those edges after a days use on my blades. I saw a nifty trick using a drill bit collar on the angle guide to take the stone thickness out of the equation and will be picking one up ASAP. No more sharpie for me! I do have to say, the green chromium oxide compound on leather just takes it all a step further. Definitely worth the investment IMO.