Petroleum Jelly on a Strop

I wasn't really interested in doing any more work on this strop, but I thought, what the hell, let me try a 1,000 grit wet/dry sandpaper on it.



I don't think it's any cleaner, but it might be a tad smoother. Now, on to reapplying the compound. I think I'm going to use a candle to soften the compound before smearing it on. If you have any thoughts on this, let me know. Also, I am somewhere between the less-is-more and too-much-is-still-not-enough schools of thought. The surface of my Knives Plus Strop Block is all green compound, no leather showing. I wonder if that's the way to go.
 
Mister Coffee said:
I wasn't really interested in doing any more work on this strop, but I thought, what the hell, let me try a 1,000 grit wet/dry sandpaper on it.



I don't think it's any cleaner, but it might be a tad smoother. Now, on to reapplying the compound. I think I'm going to use a candle to soften the compound before smearing it on. If you have any thoughts on this, let me know. Also, I am somewhere between the less-is-more and too-much-is-still-not-enough schools of thought. The surface of my Knives Plus Strop Block is all green compound, no leather showing. I wonder if that's the way to go.
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There is a simpler way to apply compound that i have had great success with, you are heading into Winter i am guessing which can make it harder to do, but leave the strop and compound on a window sill so it gets the full sun. Leave it for 20-30 minutes depending on how warm it is, this warms the leather and the compound making it much easier to apply. And LESS is MORE, you can always apply more if you feel it needs it, but too much and you have to scrape it off and start again.
 
For stropping with green compound, I've favored two particular methods for application, depending upon the desired outcome.

If pursuing a dark-green, saturated application, I've preferred to use a dry powder form of chromium oxide found at lapidary supply stores (for rock polishing, in other words). I mix it with mineral oil and 'paint' it onto the strop with a small, soft-bristled arts/crafts paintbrush. This leaves a very dark & uniform coating and works best on smooth, hard strops of leather or wood (or mdf). Strops of this type & application work best for polishing of simple steels, especially for use on woodworking tools like chisels.

For more subtle stropping intended for simple refinement and burr cleanup, I've used either the stick compounds applied very lightly by the crayon method, or the same powdered compound mentioned above worked into some suede-finish leather. In either case, it leaves a subtle, light green tint on the leather. A favorite strop of mine turned out to be the simplest, just applying the powder compound onto the back, rough side of a leather belt, used like a hanging strop. And to make the powder hold to the leather a little more reliably without getting dusty, I rubbed just a little bit of mineral oil-based hand lotion into it after the fact. That's been my most-used green strop of all, and took the least amount of effort to make it.

If using the dry powder form, you need to be careful with it. It's a significant hazard for inhalation, as the dust is extremely fine and gets airborne very easily. Also extremely messy, if the powder gets spilled on most anything. It'll stain most any surface green, as it's so fine at 0.5-1 micron, it works it's way into the smallest of surface pores on most any material. On hard surfaces like countertops or tile/porcelain, it seems to clean up pretty well using paper towel or microfiber towel wetted with some Windex. Use some disposable gloves when handling it, so it won't turn your fingers green. ;)
 
cudgee cudgee Sounds like a good tip. I tend to overdo things. Better to be more careful, as you suggest. :)

Obsessed with Edges Obsessed with Edges I'm not at the level where I am using dry powder compounds, but I will keep your advice in mind. Interesting how you are using mineral oil. :)
 
I prefer a smooth leather with my compound.

The stuff I use loads up and becomes hard/sticky with repeated stopping. I just rub it off with paper towels and start again every once in a while.

I have used oil on my strop, but don't much any more.
 
Mister Coffee said:
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Obsessed with Edges Obsessed with Edges I'm not at the level where I am using dry powder compounds, but I will keep your advice in mind. Interesting how you are using mineral oil. :)
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It's all about experimenting with it. There are many ways to do these things. Don't be afraid to try different approaches, to see what works for you.

If you're wondering, the mineral oil doesn't stay 'oily' indefinitely on the strop. It all dries completely within hours, or a day or two, after which you wouldn't know there was any oil at all. When I use it that way, it's a small amount, maybe 1/4- 1/2 teaspoon or less of the oil, mixed with no more than maybe 1/4 teaspoon of the powder. Even at that small amount, there'll still be plenty left over, after 'painting' the strop with it. A little goes a very long way.

Also try not to overthink it or get bogged down in too many of the details. I almost always come back to some form of 'simpler is better', even after trying a lot of other things. But that's how we learn and develop confidence in the methods we've chosen, whatever they turn out to be.
 
Obsessed with Edges said:
Don't be afraid to try different approaches, to see what works for you.
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Obsessed with Edges said:
Also try not to overthink it or get bogged down in too many of the details. I almost always come back to some form of 'simpler is better', even after trying a lot of other things. But that's how we learn and develop confidence in the methods we've chosen, whatever they turn out to be.
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Like your thinking and your approach to things.:thumbsup::)
 
Bigfattyt said:
I prefer a smooth leather with my compound.

The stuff I use loads up and becomes hard/sticky with repeated stopping. I just rub it off with paper towels and start again every once in a while.

I have used oil on my strop, but don't much any more.
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Have you ever prepped a leather strop with something like Obenauf's? Just wondering.
 
Obsessed with Edges said:
Also try not to overthink it or get bogged down in too many of the details. I almost always come back to some form of 'simpler is better', even after trying a lot of other things. But that's how we learn and develop confidence in the methods we've chosen, whatever they turn out to be.
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Okay, but here's one last over-thinky question: Am I trying to strop the knife in compound that is sitting on the surface of the leather, or am I trying to strop the knife in compound that is embedded in the fibers of the leather (as we do using a suede-side strop)?
 
Mister Coffee said:
Okay, but here's one last over-thinky question: Am I trying to strop the knife in compound that is sitting on the surface of the leather, or am I trying to strop the knife in compound that is embedded in the fibers of the leather (as we do using a suede-side strop)?
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Realistically, it's both. Although any compound that's simply sitting unattached on the surface probably won't remain there very long with use. Burrs on knife edges will scrape most of that away, as will any cleaning/wiping done to maintain the strop. Most of the real work will be done by the grit embedded & held by the fibers of the leather, both exposed at the surface and down underneath. This is at least part of the advantage of a denser, deeper application of compound. Both the compound and fibers of the leather will be scrubbed off in stropping under normal use. So, a deeper application of compound will keep the strop working, as the surface material is scrubbed off. A deeper & denser application will also be more aggessive in polishing, as it puts much more grit in direct contact with the steel at the edge, on each pass.

If I recall correctly, leather is kind of like a densely matted carpet, as seen under a microscope. As the surface gets scrubbed by the blade, some of the fibers of the 'carpet' will loosen up and be freed to move back & forth under the blade, with any compound embedded in & along the length of the fibers being exposed to the steel. This is most of the reason why sanding to a high-grit finish on leather probably won't make a lot of difference in how the strop works in the long-term, because the surface character of the leather is mainly determined by the size & character of the fibers themselves, and how densely they might be compressed.
 
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The Bark River green CrO compound breaks down quickly into smaller particles as used, in addition the steel particles from the knife blade are deposited on the strop surface and cling to the was base from the Bark River. I do not like wax based compounds, I believe that is what clogs up the strop surface and makes it quickly less agressive.
Reapply some more green CrO to the strop and it will be refreshed. You can also scrape away the hard black surface prior to application of new CrO.
Diamonds are initially more expensive but last longer and for me, are easier to clean away the steel swarf and refresh. With a smooth leather I use some light mineral oil and rub the surface down with coarse cotton cloth to remove black swarf. You can use less compound with diamonds due to their superior cutting action compared to SiC or CrO.

Many disagree however, I will not use sanding to refresh a strop. The contamination from loose particles may or may not be a concern, depending upon stropping for burr removal or to achieve mirror apex.

Regards,
FK
 
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It must seem to you guys like I am moving very slowly, but here's the update.

I heated the strop with a hairdryer and softened the green compound in the flame of a candle. It went on nicely. I'm pretty pleased.

Thanks for all your help and advice. Keep it coming. I'm still a dummy knife newbie. :)
 
I've mentioned it before, here on the site, that I'm always learning something new, which keeps me lurking around. A lot of that is spurred by the questions asked by others - often other 'newbies' looking to get started. The discussions that follow almost always leave little tidbits of info that might, on the surface, look like same old stuff rehashed many times over. But sometimes, the 'same old questions' get asked or answered from a new perspective, which makes me think of the standard answers in a different way, from an angle I might never have considered. That's when the wheels get turning in my mind again, in rethinking how I do things and then considering some new twists to the usual assumptions. That is what keeps my mind open and my head in the game, and is what keeps me hanging around, looking to learn more.
 
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