Thread: My new hone . . .

People used to rub charcoal and allsorts into their strops to make them slightly abrasive. My great grandfather used a straight all his life, my grandfather said he (his father) didn't use a hone at all, Gramps thinks he rubbed ashes into is stop.
Here are two pictures of them one with my Great great grandfather
sorry if I'm off topic, but one of them is the oldest straight user you'll ever come face to face with
In the group photo the baby is Grampa, the Lady is My G G Grandmother Ma' Bennett (she had a renowned chippy)
There
The second picture is Grampa in uniform during WWII, he was on the landing craft. Not a nice job I'm told. He is 84 this year.

I like the idea of trying graphite to strop. I worked in the refractory buisiness years ago and one of the ingredients in a refractory brick is graphite. I managed to acquire about 6 ounces of the stuff before the plant shut down. I will try it on leather and maybe balsa or coldpress paper.

Another thought I had was regarding artist's guoache ( pron. gwash ) which is a water based paint used by calligraphers in lieu of ink because ink fades over time and guoache does not. The particular color I am refering to is 'Lamp Black" which has a carbon pigment base. Powders do not come much finer in grade than lamp black and it just might work as a strop abrasive treatment for leather or other strop surfaces.

I haven't tried either of the above but I intend to as soon as I get done trying cerium ox, tin ox, yellowstone and sapphire dust, ( I am going to forgo donkey dust for the time being ). If anyone wants to try the guoache, buy the Windsor Newton brand for the best quality paint.

You might also try it on a piece of 140 lb. acid free coldpress paper to strop with. Get it at the same store where you buy the W N lamp black paint. Paste a piece of coldpress on a piece of balsa or steel plate or tile. Brush some cerium ox or tin ox or any medium you like on the paper. It's a nice surface to strop on. Paper have what is called "tooth". A different tooth will give you a different feel or 'drag" as you strop on the surface of the paper.

Don't use hotpress paper, it has too much texture for the razor's edge. If you live near an A. C. MOORE art store, they have all this stuff including pencils with varying hardness.

Hopefully, other members will have more thoughts on different stropping media. Pretty soon you guys will have me stropping on my tongue !!!
That's O K as long as I don't have to use donkey dust !!!..... Jerry

rrrrraaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

NOW I'M GONNA HAVE PAD??

NNNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!


heh heh PAD

Originally Posted by littlesilverbladefromwale

People used to rub charcoal and allsorts into their strops to make them slightly abrasive. My great grandfather used a straight all his life, my grandfather said he (his father) didn't use a hone at all, Gramps thinks he rubbed ashes into is stop.

An old trick I learned on tobacco pipe smoking forums is to take cigar ash to polish tarnished sterling silver bands on the pipe shanks. The band can be black with tarnish and cigar ash will clean and shine it without affecting the nomenclature stamped into the band. So obviously there is a fine abrasive at work there. Cool photos, thanks for posting them.

Where's my THANKS !!!???

Here we go
+1 on the art supply stores, also for fine grade chromium oxide.

Jimmy, cigar ash together with saliva forms a very mild alkaline mix.
Thats why.
(Works with cigarette ash as well)

Originally Posted by mrsell63

Another thought I had was regarding artist's guoache ( pron. gwash ) which is a water based paint used by calligraphers in lieu of ink because ink fades over time and guoache does not. The particular color I am refering to is 'Lamp Black" which has a carbon pigment base. Powders do not come much finer in grade than lamp black and it just might work as a strop abrasive treatment for leather or other strop surfaces.

I remember reading that Dovo Black paste is lamp black.

Daniel Smith art supplies has great quality pigments.


Charlie

Then the next question is; which medium has the lowest micron rating - the Dovo paste or the Windsor Newton guoache ??? I honestly don't know the answer to that question and I doubt that it's worth the effort to find out.

Sometimes we take all this too far. If we start with a good bevel and end up around .25 micron after stropping the bejesus out of it, we should get a decent shave no matter how we got there.

Concentrate on the enjoyment of getting there..... JERRY

Just a quick thought about stropping on paper. It just occurred to me that paper money is actually not made of paper. It is made of good quality cloth. I wonder if it might work as a strop, pasted or not.....
For an open mind, it isn't all that far fetched.