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Thread: A few beginner questions
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08-06-2015, 04:20 AM #4
You need to strop your blade.
It can take time to learn how to use a strop. I nicked up 2 of them and cut one in half in the first few months. And every time I nicked the strop, I messed up the blade. Luckily I already knew how to hone, so I could touch my blade back up.
The trick to stropping is going slow and practicing. Practice with a butter knife so you don't nick up the strop. Start with a speed around 2 seconds to go up the strop and 2 seconds to come back down the strop. Do that about 100 times for a few days to build up muscle memory. When you can do it without rolling the blade into your strop, then try it with a razor. Then slowly speed the process up.
You may also want to try a paddle strop. They lay flat on the countertop and many find them easier to use.
I wouldn't recommend learning to hone until you can strop, but the first stone to start with would be a finisher like a Naniwa 12k for touch ups. You can't do a lot of damage with it, but it will repair weekly damage and you can learn on it.Some people never go crazy. What truly horrible lives they must lead - Charles Bukowski