Make a leather strop

Joseph Loveland said:
I've been looking for some leather like ya talking about. Where can I get me some? I've asked about everyone that I know that either has a Razor Strop or have seen with leather, so far I'm batting ZERO!! Can ya help me out? Joseph Loveland
Click to expand...

These three have inexpensive vegetable tanned leather sold in smaller pieces good for making 3-4 strops. All three ship all over the world, and can be found by typing their name into Google Search.
Jantz Knifemaking Supply
Texas Knifemakers Supply
Tandycraft

There are dozens of leather suppliers online, but most want to sell in larger sizes, such as shoulders, sides, etc. Their leather tends to be much better quality, but for strops, the three companies above sell leather that is perfectly usable if you process it correctly.

Stitchawl
 
A good hint is to find 1.5 inch wide blanks for belts and straps, then buy 2x1 premium lumber. All you have to do is cut the length down and glue them together.
 
knifenut 1013 I read here ta use an old belt. I found my old uniorm belt, 1 3/4", and in my shop found a piece of 2" X 3" wood for my base. Since my belt was dyed on one side I used the back side of the belt. I followed your design but cut a handle in one end of the wood. After finishing the wood, I then glued the leather ta the wood and used a seperate piece of wood and the C-Clamp ta apply even pressure ta the project. Sorry I don't have any pics for I'm still trying ta figure that part out, I'm not that Computer literate, I just barely understand E-Mail and how ta use it. But ya got a great way of stroping and so far all my EDC's are now razor sharp. Thanks for the idea and also ta all for the idea of the leather belt idea. Joseph
 
Thank you for the great info! I just got into knife collecting and I have been looking for instructions as to how to make a strop. Thanks for the clear, simple instructions.
 
knifenut1013 said:
You will need to start with a good base and quality leather. For me I like MDF as my base and my leather of choice is Hand American compressed 4/5 Oz. bark tanned cowhide. I have tried a few different types of glue and found that rubber cement seems to work the best.

I know there are many other ways to do it but with all the recent questions I figured there needed to be some sort of "how to".
Click to expand...

Thanks for a clear presentation.. Stropping is a art-form ... but starting with a quality system is important .. thanks ..

You 'let slide into the discussion' a lil factoid that suggests you know much more than you reveal! Very clever of you to mark the edge of the board with " 0.5 " !!! It would take an experienced person to notice the significance of such a label ... and i mean that it suggests rather strongly that your stropping system is more advanced than you describe:

0.5 must refer to a micron grit of diamond paste that is to be used on that particular strop. It also suggests that you quite properly use a selection of such stropping boards, each 'loaded' with it's own specific micron-sized diamond paste , perhaps 5u ('u' for 'micron') , and 2.0u and 1.0u and your shown '0.5'u ... NEVER cross-contaminating any strop with the residue of the previously-used board.
Yes , this means thoroughly cleaning each blade as it's advanced to finer and finer u-sized diamond paste ..

And you'll agree, im sure, that this entire 'extreme bladeliness' is unnecessary, except to us 'sharpenning nut-cases' ... (proving they exist merely involves reading some books that include 'electron-microscopic photographs' !

Your secret is out! you're a nut-case, like me, and i'm afraid there is no cure ....

jon
keenlysharp@gmail.com
 
These posts are always so helpful. I'm making a paracord belt and was thinking of adding a bowsaw blade to it by making an leather or sewde envelope type sleave sewed to the inside. Then i could strop my field knife too. Ciuld anyone advise a good leather for this purpose? The leather mentioned in the first post seemed a bit thick ;-)
 
Hi guys, i've been reading this thread with intrest and signed up just to give my view on things!!
I'm in the uk and a retiered joiner / chippie , i might be called a carpenter in the us ? , anyway over here after we sharpen a wood chisel or plane iron on a carborundum stone we would wipe away any oil / dirt with a rag then instead of using a strop to get rid of any fine burr that might be left we would pass the chisel or plane iron across the palm of the hand a few times, and this works the same way as a strop does.
You can do this with a knife too without cutting your hand, because the sharp edge is the trailing edge, -- but take care the first time you try it --
( just thought you guy's would like to know ) from cluedup. : )
 
Fisk and Becker have shown this in their videos - I guess it makes sense to some degree, depending on steel type, skin type etc. It seems that other than aligning (maybe burnishing if really hard leather?) the apex, if there is any abrasive properties in leather then it is due to casing process. Your hand leather (skin) has not been processed I assume so I doubt there is much abrasion going on - you probably have to do it a hundred of times or so.
 
I demonstrate that method here

[video=youtube;BSEKkuB59kU]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSEKkuB59kU&list=UUfsHYm19KjjnUlpG8WVMZOA[/video]
 
just as the video shows @ 11.53 only use the palm of your hand instead of the fingers, half a dozen passes or so in each direction is usually enough .
 
If you are going to use any sort of compound, why waste it on leather? It's unnecessary. Just use paint sticks or a strip of wood with your compound.
 
Great tips on making and using a strop. Mine are hardwood with a tapered handle and a wrist thong, 3/4"thick x 2''wide x 15"long. Strop area is 2"x 12" , leather is smooth side up, (Belt stock thickness, a gift from harness-maker friend). Glue is rubber cement, leather cement or 2 part 5Min Epoxy. Green polishing compound is my favorite dressing and when it gets too loaded I hand sand it with a piece of clean 80 wet/dry paper, then redress it with compound. Could you shave with the blade after ? Why yes, but why ? Schick makes a tool that'll do a fine job. It took me a while to learn and start sharpening my hand crafted knives PROPERLY, which in turn changed the way I make knives. Stropping is the final touch, it removes the burr and micro polishes the edge. This attention to detail and the results it produces allows me to understand the incredible amount of time and effort involved in hand-polishing and sharpening a Samurai sword. You can buy a razor strop from a barber supply co., but they're rather long and seriously expensive. Make one. Learn all you can about the physics of cutting and the geometry of the cutting edge. Then when four half-wits start bragging about "The Best Way To Sharpen A Knife", you can just smile and walk away. Stepping down from the pulpit now..., walking away, smiling.
 
Great tips. I've made my own but I had a question about applying compound. I use the black and green compound from Bark River. I'm curious which is better/correct, applying compound to the entire surface (where no plain leather is visible) or applying it in a zigzag pattern when you have a mix of compound and plain leather?
 
Vick, there is no need what so ever to completely coat the strop. The particles that are actually doing the work are microscopic, so if you just crayon on some zig-zag strokes, then rub it down with a cloth or the heel of your hand, you will spread sufficient amount of abrasive across the entire surface, even though you might not be able to see it. More is not necessarily better... just more.

Some people insist on spreading compound on like peanut butter on bread. If you can see the barest 'tinge' of color from the compound there is already more than enough to do the job. Remember, everything is happening on a microscopic level. No need to make it visible to make it work.


Stitchawl
 
Daub or roll on traditional rubber cement is a royal pain to use cleanly, plus it's usually got all dried up by when you next reach for any already opened can or bottle. Works good for movie special effects burns though... (my day job is setting things on fire & blowing stuff up in an entertaining fashion)


I totally cheat and use 3M spray on adhesive to attach leather to paddles, the types sold at art stores or the home improvement centre for attachjng laminate counter top materials. Quick, easy, no squeeze out.

I like GLASS or Corian for the leather backing rather than wood, more dimensionally stable. Although this can bite you if adhering dry leather to glass, then finished strop gets stored in a humid area. The leather may "hump" up if it expands from moisture, similar to a hardwood floor in a damp basement- be warned.

Several grades of bond strength and intended permanence sprays are available, the more "removable" are also good for attaching wet/dry sandpaper to a piece of plate glass for large tool sharpening, if you let them mostly dry before mounting, these will release cleanly when you need to change paper.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top