Just leather to strop?

[Monofletch]

I have been using a Lansky system for a few years with decent results. Recently I saw a Youtube video and the guy just uses a raw piece of leather (with no compound) to strop after sharpening and to maintain his edges. I tried it and was WOWed at the increased sharpness of my blades.

I guess my question is --
Does this have any negative effects on my knife? Also, will the use of compounds get me an even better edge??

 

[ChrisJS1]

I'm not an expert sharpener, but yes, compound should get you better results.

 

[dalefuller]

I use bare leather for the "final" touch as I'm finishing a blade. I also use 1 micron diamond spray on a balsa strop and .5 micron paste on a leather strop before I get to the bare leather.

I think stropping helps my edges after they come off the SM. The knives seem to respond well to stropping, at any rate. Some of the test cuts on paper and nylon strapping material seem smoother and easier.

 

[Rudeco]

add some green compound...

 

[Jason B.]

Depends on the method for sharpening. I at one time used several strops with compound to produce a mirror type finish that would turn hairs into little fuzz sticks. Now I use bare leather typically in the form of horse hide or Kangaroo hide. The trick to using leather bare is getting better at finishing the edge on your stones.

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

Stropping with compound can improve results, but it's not guaranteed. Some compounds won't perform well, if mis-matched to the steel being sharpened. And it's also possible to 'overkill' the stropping step, with compound that's too aggressive for the steel or the pre-existing condition of the edge. If an edge is already in very good shape, sometimes bare leather is all it needs. You've seen this in your example; you saw significant improvement in your edge with bare leather stropping. A less-refined edge wouldn't have responded as well to bare leather. The more refined an edge becomes, the less abrasives are needed to touch it up. Sometimes, all that's needed is to gently straighten/realign the edge, or to clean up some very fine burrs, either of which can be done with bare leather (or fabric, like denim).

It's always good to try things out though, so you'll develop a feel for what compounds can help fine-tune your edges. Especially after re-sharpening on stones, an edge can almost always benefit from an additional sequence of stropping steps, with gradually less-aggressive compounds (for example, 6, 3 and 1 micron diamond compound, in sequence), and then finishing on bare leather. Different steels will respond in vastly different ways, too. This is why it's beneficial to experiment as much as you can afford to.

 

[Humppa]

Hm... leather strops

I built two of them a couple of months now. One I run with compound, the other one I use with leather only.

I prefer the "just-leather-strop" before the one I run with a aluminium-oxide-compound.

It just feels better while stropping. You just have to look on a lower antle than during sharping. On a 20° edge (each side) I use to take a 10° or 12° on the strop.

Let me tell you, I used an old leather belt for stroping before I got these two self-made-stropes.

My well used strop some months before

Kind regards
Andi

 

[stitchawl]

Now I use bare leather typically in the form of horse hide or Kangaroo hide.

What caused you use Kangaroo hide? I've been trying to find some sort of evidence of perhaps higher silicate percentage, but there doesn't seem to be anything listed for it other than it's stronger and denser than cowhide. The strength is completely irrelevant to me in a strop, and if cow hide has been properly processed it will be almost as dense as MDF. Most of the kangaroo hide that I find on the net has been drum stuffed, which makes it more pliable, and better as garment or lacing leather. It can't be cased or compressed because of the grease used in drum stuffing. What do you find to be an advantage?


Stitchawl

 

[Jason B.]

Horse hide tends to produce a smooth and sticky edge while the Roo tends to produce a toothy & sticky edge. Just a slight difference but having the availability of choice when sharpening many different blades and steels can help to give just the right edge to each.