Stropping, what to get

T

texasrimfirenut

Joined
Oct 13, 2013
Messages
168
Hey gang of outlaws. Got a few questions about stropping. Got a F1 coming in and was putting together a couple stropping tools for sharpening that convex blade. Got my leather and wood as was shown here on the forums.

What I don't know is where I can get the abrasive that goes on the leather and which one to get. Seems green is one most used and then red and rarely white. I dont know what those colors mean or what its called.

So where can I get it. I've heard I can get it locally but no one ever said the word Walmart, Hobby Lobby, Academy Sports or anything like that. I can call these places but I dont know what I am asking for. Whats the compound called? Do I just get green and red and will green and red always be a consistant grit or do i have to watch for that.

Also is stropping good for my non convex blades as well?

Thanks for helping the novice out!
 
Sears has it, and any place that sells wood working supplies like Woodcraft. It's called rouge buffing compound. I use white and black myself, but green is good too just a higher polish than white.
 
I do not like designations by color.

Chef Knives to Go has Cubic Boron Nitride and Diamond abrasive in spray, paste of cream from 80 microns to .025 microns.

Their "green" is chromium oxide at a consistent .5 microns.

I would not buy any abrasive unless I know the exact grit.

A more economical approach is DMT Dia-Paste in a kit of 6 micron, 3 and 1. DMT also has a diamond spray at .5 micron.
 
texasrimfirenut said:
Ok, thanks but what micron do i get?
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For general stropping I highly recommend Flexcut Gold. Is a very nice formula for hand stropping and will leave you with a near mirror edge, yet still have good bite for EDU. It can be had at Woodcraft, or other woodworkers supply shops - is made for carving tools.
 
Stropping your non-convex blades (in my experience) can knock the lil wire burr off pretty good, and is beneficial, in a small, as in 5-10 strokes a side, amount.
 
Lowes has it too. I think I paid 3$ for a stick of green porter cable brand. Its not the best but it works well for my needs.
 
Ben hit the nail on the head.

Before I can recommend a proper compound I need to know whats your finest stone.
 
Try Minnesota lapidary supply. They should have all the paste spray you want at reasonable prices.
 
Thanks This is mainly for use on a new F1 headed my way and I was hoping I could keep it touched up with stropping and never have to get it on a stone. I did buy the Fallkniven DC4 stone for in case or later down the road so it will be a new knife that has never hit a stone.
 
Try 8u CBN on Kangaroo , should get you in the range of just slightly finer than factory scratches , and the roo provides great burnishing.
 
Sadden said:
Try 8u CBN on Kangaroo , should get you in the range of just slightly finer than factory scratches , and the roo provides great burnishing.
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Just gotta ask, where do you get the kangaroo leather?
 
chefknivestogo has some , jendeindustries also has some but they are running a bit behind right now and any orders could take a few weeks to get out.
 
Ahh. Thanks so much, I need some of that. Forever in pursuit of the perfect edge.
 
Depending on the knife, I sharpen up to about a 1,000 or 1,800 grit. Every night I strop using a paddle strop with cowhide . On the suede side, I use Chromium Oxide .5 micron rouge and bare leather on the smooth side. Then, I annoy my wife by making confetti to test the blade.

I have a Kabar that has been through 2 wars and fifty year's service. It makes confetti just like my newest Spyderco because I strop it.

Scarface
 
Rennd said:
Just gotta ask, where do you get the kangaroo leather?
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Sadden said:
chefknivestogo has some , jendeindustries also has some but they are running a bit behind right now and any orders could take a few weeks to get out.
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Do be aware that the website selling the kangaroo leather states that it's good for convexing an edge, rather than for a flat bevel.
If a convex edge is what you want, that stuff will work well.
Also be aware that it will work no better or worse than cowhide when used with compounds on top of it, yet cost a lot more. On the plus side, it does sound more cool to say than cowhide. :)


Stitchawl
 
For what it's worth I've never bought a strop, made them all from leather scraps (5 bucks a bag around here). I then glue them to a 1/4" thick paint mixer stick, so I can get 2 different leather grains on a strop I can take into the field or use at home that weighs less than my knife does.


What i look for in my main strop is a very evenly packed grain on the inner. I then put an even finer packed outer on the other side for use with no compound if I'm bored. Trial and error with grain size/feel + compound is needed imo. The side I put my compound in I use this: http://www.amazon.com/Woodstock-D29...02+1-Pound+Extra+Fine+Buffing+Compound,+Green


I use this strop for knives that I take to the 6000 grit king stone, so it's pretty fine. But I also use this strop on my field axe after touching it up with a puck (800 grit). These edges have yet to let me down.
 
If I recall correctly blue and red compounds polish without any cutting. Then come green, white, brown, etc. with increasing cutting properties.
 
stitchawl said:
Do be aware that the website selling the kangaroo leather states that it's good for convexing an edge, rather than for a flat bevel.
If a convex edge is what you want, that stuff will work well.
Also be aware that it will work no better or worse than cowhide when used with compounds on top of it, yet cost a lot more. On the plus side, it does sound more cool to say than cowhide. :)


Stitchawl
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Precisely where does it state that , I just looked at all 3 of the Roo strop pages and found nothing of the sort.
From CKTG 3x8 roo strop page: "and is EXTREMELY thin, minimizing inadvertent edge convexing"

Ive tried making strops , ive tried strops made by well known makers (stropman etc) and not one of them works as well as Kanagaroo. If I had found one that did you could bet id sell all my strops and use that. So lets have a look at what convexing looks like under a microscope

Here is a knife , that had an 8k finish , it was then stropped with a strop by a popular maker. Applied sharpie. And made a couple swipes with an 8k stone again. See the convexity in the form of leftover sharpie?


Here is another knife , given the same procedure , but with Kangaroo instead.


Fwiw you don't get this kind of depth of field on a convex blade. CPM3V finished on 1u CBN loaded Roo


Its also been my experience that Roo burnishes more than Cowhide , Horsebutt , and Russian Leathers. This is something I haven't documented yet as I no longer have any non Roo or non Nanocloth strops. Nothing else worked as well.
 
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