Thread: Why the linen strop!!!!

Originally Posted by Blade Wielder

And what I'm saying is that stropping does quite a bit to improve the edge, despite the fact that we're quantifying these improvements in angstroms. It all adds up in the end, from the initial strokes on the stone to the final ones on the linen and leather. It's a matter of incrementally improving the refinement. You're right about everything removing material, but you're wrong when you understate the strop's value. Earlier I jokingly said that you could probably fart on a razor and "waste a few hundred angstroms," beating your "even your finger removes material" comment to the punch.

Material is always removed and the edge is constantly refined. A thumb doing it just as well as a strop, though? Come on, now. That's pretty ridiculous.

This si the only part of your post that's on point and worth responding to.

Material is always removed, including by your thumb and by water flowing over a rock, but it's orders of magnitude less than even a .05 micron strop. So compared to whatever else you do on an edge material removal by the strop is insignificant. Look at the photo, and you'll see all it does is dull the 12K scratches or lend a little smootheness, unless you do a LOT of reps(hundreds). The important function is realigning. That's not rocket science. Even the barber manual of 1931 tells you that.

Sharpening is sharpening. It's just a function of what characteristics you're trying to get. We give up edge robustness for maximum sharpness, and we go for a steeper bevel angle for the same reasons. But all sharpening theory applies. I've even seen a recent video on tool sharpening where they're sharpening chisels up to a 30K stone. If you reject this, you reject the primary body of literature and science relevant to us. For what, a National Georgraphic show? That that's your only reference speaks volumes.

Bad typing is my affliction. It's something we never learned in school, and something I've never had to learn in business. That's what you're seeing. My spelling is pretty good. I apologize, but I'm doing the best I can, and it's SLOW.

Originally Posted by adjustme69

Tis exactly what I meant.

Lynn

Then your participation could be very valuable in the thread "Stropping is King", where one member is being challenged foe his assertion that because of his stropping ability, he can go for a year on a plain leather strop without touching an abrasive.

We seem to be embarking on an experiment and your input would be invaluable to keep us from going on the wrong track.

As far as I am aware, linen strop paste is very mildly abrasive;eg. talc or rottenstone is incorperated in the dressing. I make my own with rottenstone for one of my strops.
The use of the term, "strops only polish" does show that a strop removes enough material to effect the edge. A fresh honed razors edge will show greater shine and smoothness after a show on the strop. This to me proves that material has be removed, all be it a very small amount. When you are talking of such a microscopic edge this removal of material though small must have an impact on the edge let alone alignment.

PuFF

Originally Posted by PuFFaH

As far as I am aware, linen strop paste is very mildly abrasive;eg. talk or rottenstone is incorperated in the dressing. I make my own with rottenstone for one of my strops.
The use of the term, "strops only polish" does show that a strop removes enough material to effect the edge. A fresh honed razors edge will show greater shine and smoothness after a show on the strop. This to me proves that material has be removed, all be it a very small amount. When you are talking of such a microscopic edge this removal of material though small must have an impact on the edge let alone alignment.

PuFF

My edge looks shiny after a .5 micron strop, and I can't see a difference after leather, even at 100x. I didn't say normal stropping doesn't make a difference in the edge, otherwise I wouldn't strop after honing. I said it doesn't change the sharpness. It does smooth the edge by dulling the scratch lines left by a fine hone. Sharpness is usually measured by the thickness of the edge, and in a micrograph at 3,000x you can see it. To see the effect of stropping on thickness, you would probably need to go to 30,000x or more.

You need to draw the line somewhere on what you consider sharpening (significant material removal). Unfortunately, I don't know if there is such a line. I've seen 8K honing referred to as polishing (a leftover from knife sharpening), but to us it's clearly important material removal. I suggest that 5% of a .05 micron strop is not.

BTW, do you know what the abrasiveness of linnen paste is compared to diamond strop pastes (on some common scale)?

Joe
I would say that linen strop paste either talc or rottenstone is very very fine. It takes a long time for it to start to colour from stropping.
They are both used in French poilish for the final stages so thier abrasiveness must be very mild, more of a polish really.

PuFF