Strop Compound Loading

[Cait_Sith]

So I recently purchased a double sided strop and loaded it with some compound and while it has worked well so far, I've been wanting to put more compound on it. Would it be alright to just scrub more compound on the strop, or would the metal filings from the strop transfer onto the compound bar and cause problems?

And a second question as well. Considering that I strop with a courser compound then the finer one right after. Is there a chance of cross contamination from the compound rubbing on the knife?

As usual, any input is much appreciated.

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

Unless you're putting true mirror bevels on your edges, I wouldn't worry too much about metal particles getting onto your bar of compound. Chances are, there are already enough impurities and/or larger abrasive particles in that compound bar anyway (bar compounds are cheaply made, and aren't typically that pure to begin with). Any strop that gets used, will inevitably become somewhat 'dirty' with metal, dust, stray particles of other compounds, etc. For a multi-sided strop block, just lay it down on a clean paper towel, to minimize the dirt & other particles collected from the bench top. Store it wrapped in a clean rag or a plastic bag, to keep dust & other contaminants from settling on it. Before using each strop, use the palm of your hand to wipe the obvious dust & large particles off the strop, or wipe it with a clean paper towel. Beyond that, it's generally not worth the worry.

And if you're concerned about cross-contamination of the different strops, via the leftovers on the blade, then just wiping down the blade between strops would minimize that. Windex works very well for this.

I wouldn't worry at all, unless the strop actually got dropped in the dirt. The metal 'dirt' associated with normal sharpening/stropping activity isn't going to do significant harm to your edges, unless you're trying to maintain perfect mirrors on them. At some point, I think most people find it too bothersome to keep everything that perfectly clean, for knives that actually get used. Typical use of a knife blade will put more scuffs & scratches on it than any contaminated strop can do.