Strop Compound Colors

[SwissHeritageCo]

Has anyone here tried kangaroo hide, for either razors or knives?
Curious to how it works compared to horsehide.
I found a source on Etsy but shipping from Australia makes buying cost prohibitive, imo

You can purchase very thin italian veg tan (2-3oz) that is hard tempered without much give.

No idea how kangaroo would be superior unless we're talking smooth side.

Obsessed with Edges , I'm surprised to hear that you don't strop.

 

[knucklegary]

You can purchase very thin italian veg tan (2-3oz) that is hard tempered without much give.

No idea how kangaroo would be superior unless we're talking smooth side.

Obsessed with Edges , I'm surprised to hear that you don't strop.

I use Horween horsebutt hide strips, some call it hard ass horse hide;-)

 

[SwissHeritageCo]

I use Horween horsebutt hide strips, some call it hard ass horse hide;-)

Interesting. I'm familiar with shell cordovan but I never considered it for a strop.

Kangaroo really shines for it's use in leather lace. I've seen wallets made from it too, it's unique for sure.

I've had incredibly dense and rock hard tempered leather I've made strops from with zero give (even though it was thick). But even when sanding the smooth side of the leather it never really took my compound right. White gold is pretty dry and non waxy though.

 

[jfk1110]

Kangaroo leather.is.some very tough stuff........All the nanny states in the US has banned itas.typical.... Years ago actually...... A Few companies use it... Tough to find though..... Last I saw was Browning .boots in roo leather......Probably a decade + ago.......Maybe...Alzheimer's...

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

You can purchase very thin italian veg tan (2-3oz) that is hard tempered without much give.

No idea how kangaroo would be superior unless we're talking smooth side.

Obsessed with Edges , I'm surprised to hear that you don't strop.

I still strop, but very minimally and with no compound. I've come to like the bite in an edge as it comes straight off a medium-grit stone, like a Fine India or Fine DMT, for example. That sort of edge suits me very well in my typical uses. When I strop, I just do it on the back of a leather belt, or sometimes on clean paper laid over the stone as I'm finishing up. For almost all of the deburring I do, I prefer to do that using something like a medium ceramic, like Spyderco's medium rods on the Sharpmaker.

Most of the steels I use are simple stainless like 420HC from Buck and Case, and similar steels from Victorinox, Opinel, etc. I've found that stropping with compound will pretty quickly polish out the 'teeth' that I like in my finished edge in those steels. So, over time, I decided I wanted to minimize that with the blades I use regularly.

Having said that, I'm still intrigued with stropping in general terms. And periodically, I have a habit of circling back around and re-testing my assumptions about what works for me or doesn't. Always something new to be learned. I've never tried leathers like horsehide or kangaroo, but they do have me curious and if I were to try them out, I'm sure it would still likely be without compound.

 

[knucklegary]

Kangaroo leather.is.some very tough stuff........All the nanny states in the US has banned itas.typical.... Years ago actually...... A Few companies use it... Tough to find though..... Last I saw was Browning .boots in roo leather......Probably a decade + ago.......Maybe...Alzheimer's...

I viewed a roo hide seller in Melbourne on Etsy. Shipping to US is nearly same cost as the stropping block. Also,, like you mention, it may not ever make it to US passing through customs.

 

[jeffbird]

Interesting. I'm familiar with shell cordovan but I never considered it for a strop.

Kangaroo really shines for it's use in leather lace. I've seen wallets made from it too, it's unique for sure.

I've had incredibly dense and rock hard tempered leather I've made strops from with zero give (even though it was thick). But even when sanding the smooth side of the leather it never really took my compound right. White gold is pretty dry and non waxy though.

Shell cordovon is used for the highest end straight razors strops. I tried one by Kanayama, but prefer horsehide with Ted Pella 0.25 micron diamond spray.

 

[Gottagofishn]

When Wootz discussed strops, I’m pretty sure he talked about how aggressively roo leather is compared to cow leather. I believe he stated horse leather would have been his second choice.