Thread: 4000/8000

Originally Posted by sicboater

as it is easier to roll and edge on a hard stropping surface.

Have Fun!


-Rob

That's interesting to me, Rob. I've found exactly the opposite to be true for me. "YMMV" can not be expressed more aptly I guess.

Granted, honing on flat stones is edge leading whereas stropping is edge trailing, but I've never rounded an edge when honing, and I've never rounded an edge while stropping on a flat surface. Rounding an edge on a chrome pasted hanging strop? I sure have.

The only way I can see coming close to rounding an edge when I've stropped on a flat surface was when I laid down too many sheets of newspaper on a flat stone. I provided too much cushion and assumed that the deflection and cushion of the newspaper was touching the edge during passes rather than strictly the bevels. I use two layers of newspaper cut into square sheets taped firmly to a hone when stropping and I've never come close to rounding an edge.

Can you go into detail about your experiences?

Thanks


Chris L

My question is this: why even use multiple sheets of news print? A stone is hard and doesn't give - so why do our news paper strops need to be? I don't get it. I hone, and if I want to use news print, I cut a sheet up into a 3x10 section, tape it down to my 3x10 glass substrate, and go to it. I don't get it.

Hey Ben, you don't have to do more than one sheet if one sheet works best for you. I use two sheets because I feel it's adding an extremely small amount of cushion. Maybe cushion is not to best word to use here. I could substitute conformity. A cushioned surface conforms to an edge and better yet conforms to edges that are less than perfectly flat. If I have to use a narrow hone or use a rolling hone stroke to hone a problem edge into submission, I have no choice but to do that. For stropping, I'm not going to strop on an extremely narrow strop and I'm also not going to futz with some form of reverse rolling stroke. We all find things work better for each of us since thankfully, there's no single "right way" to do these things.

Chris L

Thanks bokaba, for the post. I am at the same place, posted this same question a little while back. I have just tried the newspaper trick. I used two sheets of newsprint wrapped around my Norton Combo only to keep it from tearing on the sharp edges of the stone. It seemed to work fine, the blade seems great. I will give it the old shave test tomorrow. I knocked a dent in the edge of my new DOVO, and I'm just recovering from that. I hope it works, and I REALLY hope I can avoid any more moron attacks!!!