Can a knifes edge be sustained using only a basic leather strop?

M

Mtty22

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Mar 1, 2013
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I have a knife with ZDP steel and I was wanting to know if I wanted to keep the blade
touched up could I just use a basic leather strop? And a compound if needed?
I'm always keeping an eye on my blade sharpness so if I don't let the knife get that dull would a
strop work just fine for sustaining the edge of my knife?
 
You may want to keep something else handy, perhaps a ceramic stone, but relying on a strop is an excellent idea.

"The more you know, the less you need."
 
You could keep it sharp, but will have issues if it should ever need repair. A leather strop can only do so much and then it can't.
 
IME there's no possible way *if* you are using your knife to cut anything substantial. Open a bunch of cardboard boxes, even with a ZDP blade, and you're not going to be able to stop it back with leather. *maybe* with black compound, and that's only if you catch it before it gets into "reflective edge" territory.

I carry a sharpmaker in my work bag and use it frequently.

Brian.
 
Mtty22 said:
I have a knife with ZDP steel and I was wanting to know if I wanted to keep the blade
touched up could I just use a basic leather strop? And a compound if needed?
I'm always keeping an eye on my blade sharpness so if I don't let the knife get that dull would a
strop work just fine for sustaining the edge of my knife?
Click to expand...

Is this a kitchen-type knife? A honing rod (good one) and strop may keep it sharp. But every user knife will need a stone sharpening at some point.
 
Another option would be just to try it out and see. If you can't get it back to your desired sharpness, try some compound (from fine to coarse), then go back to a stone or sandpaper etc. I guess the only problem I see in regards to maintenance on a strop (even if it is thin hard leather) is the continous tendency to more obtuse the edge/apex. Always "stropping" the whole bevel is what I do on my full convex blades to prevent this from happening somewhat. I also prefer very hard backing (HeavyHanded'd washboard, thin cardboard, thin denim on hard wood etc.) and my rule is the softer the backing, the more aggressive the abrasive should be so the less pressure I have to apply. If I use expensive CBN emulsion for instance, I would like to use it as long as possible, therefore I would not use a quick disposible backing but the smooth side of a good leather, if that makes sense?!
 
If using bare leather (w/no compound at all) on ZDP-189, the strop won't have much effect anyway, past cleaning up the loose remnants of weakened steel left immediately after sharpening. ZDP is loaded with hard chromium carbides, and they won't respond to a bare leather strop much, if at all, if using only that means to maintain the edge. ZDP is also typically hardened well into the 60s HRC (carbides aside; that's just for the steel matrix itself), and that won't make things any easier on a bare leather strop.

Bare leather can only do so much, even when stropping simple steels like 1095. At some point, some abrasive compound will be needed (at least, if not stone work as well), if wanting to make a somewhat dulled or blunt apex crisp again.


David
 
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It would depend on the strop and what you loaded it with. A hard strop backed with glass is your best bet. Roo and Nanocloth are my preffered varieties.

Then your going to want a medium coarse compound such as some 16u or 8u CBN (1k and 2k respectively) used properly this should allow you to maintain indefinately until the knife needs thinning or you do damage beyond what those can repair. This would make a nice entry level kit with the Nubatama 150/1200 combo stone.

I can sharpen a knife start to finish using nothing but strops. Its all about using the correct compound with the correct strop.
 
Well bare leather will do a slight bit to maintain an edge already kept in excellent shape, so expecting to rely only on this to maintain an edge is from a practical point of view too optimistic. Compound would be required. I have compounds as coarse as 80 microns that work well on leather strops, equivalent to 200 grit, so given a coarse enough compound, yes you can keep a knife in good shape with sufficiently coarse compounds. I also have 200 and 300 micron particles, 81 and 54 grit equivalent, respectively, but I consider these impractical for this sort of use. At 80 microns, you can work on minor chipping of an edge and if used on a powered strop - eg a leather or linen belt, you can precede it with a 120 grit belt or go as coarse as you need. Where you transition between a strop with compound vs a stone is an individual choice. I have my criteria, but that's going to be a long post.

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Ken
 
I use the coarse grit side of a norton economy stone wrapped with paper and crayoned with some flexcut gold as a strop and it won't bring back my edges 100% after I get done using my knives (tend to cut up cardboard primarily). But it will delay the time required for me to go back to the stone. I think a strop and stone go hand in hand together. Use the strop to bring out that final bit of sharpness out of a knife and than to help maintain it to delay the time between sharpenings. Than keep the stone to use for any repairs or when you need to actually go back and sharpen it.
 
In answer to your original question, yes, a blade's edge can be maintained but if you do more than slightly dull it you'll need a rigid stone/hone being the edge back up.

Also steel comp has a lot to do with it, damage to harder steels require more time bringing the edge back up and something more aggressive than a strop.
 
Please understand that a leather strop and a leather strop with compound are two different creatures as different as a new sharpening belt and one with all it's grit worn off. And a fine grit compound meant for polishing like Flexcut gold and an 80 micron compound are not the same either - comparing a 200 grit stone to a 10,000 grit stone and expecting the same results is a good comparison.

I'm not suggesting that you can't use a stone. Just that there are other approaches.

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Ken
 
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