Leather strops where?

bikedaddy75

bikedaddy75

Joined
Sep 13, 2013
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I have a very cheap, small strop that I use to touch up my knives but it doesn't always give me the quick, sharp results I want (probably some of my doing) so I am looking for information on different brands, polishing compounds, and where to buy a quality strop and any tips to maximize function. I use a Wicked Edge sharpener for reprofiling and proper sharpening of my knives and its incredible, but sometimes you just want something quicker for touchups.
 
Check out the links on this page:

http://www.handamerican.com

I guess handamerican doesn't sell direct anymore, but they make the finest strops and glass smooth steels I have ever laid eyes on. Their web page lists site where you can buy their products. I very highly recommend them.
 
rmbonham said:
Make your own. There are a ton of you tube demos and it is super simple to do.
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Yes, but it's nice to have good leather... I made my own and bought the leather from handamerican when they were still selling direct. (Which has been years and years) I took a piece of their excellent leather (which is hand picked specifically to make strops from) and cut a decent size. I think it was around 4" wide by about a foot long. I cut a 1" thick pine board into a size that was about 1/4" bigger than the leather in each direction. I glued the leather to the piece of pine with epoxy. Let it dry overnight, then mounted some anti-skid "feet" to the bottom in each corner. I made 2 strops in this way. One to use with SiC compound, one to use without. They came out great! I've been using the same strops for years and couldn't be happier with them. The leather cost me all of $8 or so.

I took the leftover length of leather - it was a lot, and poked a hole through it. I mounted it to a peg on my squat rack for when I want a flexible unmounted strop. I just pull on the end and strop away. Works great!
 
Stropman.com son...

[video=youtube_share;DU6i_dAj-Wo]http://youtu.be/DU6i_dAj-Wo[/video]
 
I got into a strop making craze awhile back and still have quite a few left. If you PM me an address, I'll send you a couple of them if you'll cover just the postage. They aren't treated but do have a fine and a course side.

They're on decent handles for usage. Work well. I have like 8 or 10 still. Lol.

There are also some great selections on Amazon. I like those square 4 sided ones.
 
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I have one from flexxxstrops that I keep in my desk drawer at work, does the job. I have one side with the green compound other side bare leather. I use it for touch ups between sharpening.
 
bikedaddy75 said:
I have a very cheap, small strop that I use to touch up my knives but it doesn't always give me the quick, sharp results I want (probably some of my doing) so I am looking for information on different brands, polishing compounds, and where to buy a quality strop and any tips to maximize function. I use a Wicked Edge sharpener for reprofiling and proper sharpening of my knives and its incredible, but sometimes you just want something quicker for touchups.
Click to expand...

I use a stropman with green and white compounds.
I hear good things about flexx strop too
 
Joe58 said:
I got into a strop making craze awhile back and still have quite a few left. If you PM me an address, I'll send you a couple of them if you'll cover just the postage. They aren't treated but do have a fine and a course side.

They're on decent handles for usage. Work well. I have like 8 or 10 still. Lol.

There are also some great selections on Amazon. I like those square 4 sided ones.
Click to expand...

Would you be willing to send me one to try if I paypaled you postage? I've been trying to learn but have just been using a full grain belt taped down . Would love to experiment with something others have had success with .
 
Thanks everybody for responding, I have been trying to pick up as much info as I can about the different polishing compounds to decide which ones are suitable to keep it simple and functional. Question-to the guys who have both do you notice a difference in a fixed strop on a board vs. a flexible hanging strop and any major differences?
 
bikedaddy75 said:
Thanks everybody for responding, I have been trying to pick up as much info as I can about the different polishing compounds to decide which ones are suitable to keep it simple and functional. Question-to the guys who have both do you notice a difference in a fixed strop on a board vs. a flexible hanging strop and any major differences?
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I use a fixed strop with polishing compound. It's just because you have to be careful if you only want the edge shiny. If you drag the flats, grinds, or bevels on the compound it will make them shiny too! I use them the same as a benchstone, only dragging the blade backward instead of forward.

I use the flexible strop I have hanging from my squat rack with no compound. That way if I don't want to polish the edge, but still want to strop it, I don't have to be as careful. The bare leather won't shine up the rest of your blade like a strop with compound will.
 
Stropman make top shelf stuff. Have a Billy strop and 4 compounds. Haven't had hair on my arms since
 
Thats funny you say that jfk1110 my wife shakes her head and asks why I shave the hair off my arms after I run a few through my Wicked Edge, "well if they are not shaving their not sharp" oh well it grows back.
 
http://www.jreindustries.com/strops.htm

^ Leather strops THERE

stropbats.JPG
 
I have a strop made by Knives Plus that I've been using for a few months now. It came preloaded with green compound on good leather glued to a wood block. I like it and it's a noticeable improvement over my previous strop of a recycled leather belt.

Go to a search engine, type in "leather strops" and enjoy reading the results.
 
Like Lee48, I really like the one from knivesplus. I don't have any experience with the others mentioned here.
 
Joe58 said:
I got into a strop making craze awhile back and still have quite a few left. If you PM me an address, I'll send you a couple of them if you'll cover just the postage. They aren't treated but do have a fine and a course side.

They're on decent handles for usage. Work well. I have like 8 or 10 still. Lol.

There are also some great selections on Amazon. I like those square 4 sided ones.
Click to expand...


I tried to mail you but I don't have permission to apparently? I dunno. Wouldn't let me.

I'd be willing to buy a strop from you though. Please let me know how to get you squared away if you're able to part with one for me. I'll get you the money and address. Thanks!
 
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