Stropping a Khukuri?

A

Amko

Joined
Jun 15, 2017
Messages
485
Have any of you done it? Expecting my first leather strop tomorrow. This is double sided cowhide on ash wood and made, go figure, in the Ukraine, and picked up cheap on that auction site. Measuring 2" X 8" so really not sure if it's the right size for a large khuk. Looking forward to your views.
 
Amko, being a big time user of leather strops for some 45 years, I believe you'll be disappointed in the performance of that strop on such a large blade. You'll find that you must go slow- - this can be bad-- and that the strop just does not contact enough of the blade to make your efforts worth while. It can be done successfully though.

A leather strop backed with wood is very easy to make. They don't have to have a fancy bone in its body. I believe you'll want something that is about 14 inches long and something over 2 inches wide, but 2" wide is a good place to start. If you are wanting a shaving edge on that, use 3 in 1 oil to cover the leather and then apply some white honing creme on it. That will shine the blade as well as put an edge on it that will literally shave the hair off your eye lids and forehead. For wood carving on rifle stocks, I use common red jewelers rouge on the leather. I must have an an edge that will cut chips or shavings so thin that light passes through them.

I made two strops just last week and try to make the strop fit the blade proportionally. A small pen knife would shape up super with the strop you currently have. I normally use cow hide, but will use mule hide for large sized khuk blades. For fine and scary sharp edges I may use some lamb skin. My swords get a very long strop, but my razors use a strop (a.k.a. "Russian strop") that is not backed at all and then a linen cloth strop for the ultra edge. It's about 24 inches long. The tops of an old pair of boots you might be wearing will hone knives & bayonets up pretty good and quickly, too. Apologize for running this out so long.
 
Bookie, thanks for the generous advice. Unlike you, who seem to churn out wondrous katanas, swords, knives, woodwork that just leaves me in awe, I am afraid am all thumbs. Still I'll look for material to fabricate a longer, larger strop which will be more suitable for a Khukuri.
On a personal note I make it a point to read all your posts and activities with interest although I confess I can't contribute. If I could afford to I would commission you to make a katana and I'm sure others here would too, after that gorgeous katana you made for Mme. Yangdu's father. Thanks again.
 
I strop my KLVUK on a piece of corrugated cardboard after convex sharpening with the mousepad method. Works like a champ.--KV
 
Just stropped the 12" Reti on the new leather strop. Now shaving sharp. Man, that's one underrated piece of Khukuri art.
 
Bookie said:
Amko, being a big time user of leather strops for some 45 years, I believe you'll be disappointed in the performance of that strop on such a large blade. You'll find that you must go slow- - this can be bad-- and that the strop just does not contact enough of the blade to make your efforts worth while. It can be done successfully though.

A leather strop backed with wood is very easy to make. They don't have to have a fancy bone in its body. I believe you'll want something that is about 14 inches long and something over 2 inches wide, but 2" wide is a good place to start. If you are wanting a shaving edge on that, use 3 in 1 oil to cover the leather and then apply some white honing creme on it. That will shine the blade as well as put an edge on it that will literally shave the hair off your eye lids and forehead. For wood carving on rifle stocks, I use common red jewelers rouge on the leather. I must have an an edge that will cut chips or shavings so thin that light passes through them.

I made two strops just last week and try to make the strop fit the blade proportionally. A small pen knife would shape up super with the strop you currently have. I normally use cow hide, but will use mule hide for large sized khuk blades. For fine and scary sharp edges I may use some lamb skin. My swords get a very long strop, but my razors use a strop (a.k.a. "Russian strop") that is not backed at all and then a linen cloth strop for the ultra edge. It's about 24 inches long. The tops of an old pair of boots you might be wearing will hone knives & bayonets up pretty good and quickly, too. Apologize for running this out so long.
Click to expand...
I have red rouge, green rouge, and tripoli... hmm I might have some white 'watch face/plastic' polish too.. and some simichrome.
Are any of these like 'white honing creme'?
 
stwm said:
I have red rouge, green rouge, and tripoli... hmm I might have some white 'watch face/plastic' polish too.. and some simichrome.
Are any of these like 'white honing creme'?
Click to expand...

My white compound came in a 1oz block. Got some from Tandy Leather and Also from Stropman Strops.

Made a 1-1/4" wide by 16" long strop out of some 8/10oz Saddle Skirting, an old paint stick and the white compound mentioned above. It works so good! Have made a few strops in the last few years, this one is the best. Am hoping that the narrow width makes it easy to do the recurved part of the Khukris edge.
 
Since I use my KLVUK with monotonous regularity on brush, saplings, and small trees, stropping the blade is unnecessary. A very fine edge does not last long when engaging in heavy work.
 
I've used a stop on several large blades including Kuks. Stropping works well for aligning the edge.
 
I's pretty sure the sharpening method for kuhkri's described on HI's website involves liberal mounts of stropping. I also think there's a video of the guys from knives ship free or Bark River using strops on a kuhkri "how to sharpen a kuhkri" or something like that. I can't get you links on my current computer.

I prefer to sharpen with sandpaper on a semi-solid backing like a rubber sanding block. There's a video about sharpening axes this way and the person reference the rooster method, basically like stropping with sand paper but using the paper on the edge instead of dragging the edge on the paper.
 
Stopping doesn't remove or thin out an edge. It only aligns the edge. If you think about it, a roughly sharpened edge (one with very small valleys, as well as an off center edge) is easier to damage than one that is honed.
 
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