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- Jun 4, 2010
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- 6,642
It will always be an alternate method to stone sharpening and IMO, will never be able to perform at the levels a bonded stone can and this instantly puts you the sharpener at a disadvantage.
The closest one can get IMHO is through the use of a sharpening board - an oak or other open grain hardwood sprinkled with relatively pure silicon oxide. These were common in a lot of places where there was ample abrasives, but not bound in good quality natural stones.
The outcome is not bad to very good depending on how well you can manage the variables, but a stones is going to be way better for sharpening. The advantage to "stropping" is the action by its nature is unlikely to create a burr and likely to eliminate one. The downside is you lose some precision and are likely to dub the edge into a much larger angle than intended