I'm a firm believer in the nominalist philosophy that "the simplest solution is (usually) always the best."

On that note, can someone please explain to me why it is always suggested to mix dry chromium oxide with oil to apply to a strop surface?

IMHO and FWIW and AFAIK, it has always been very easy for me to apply chromium oxide on most anything dry. Since the average particle size is 0.5 microns (most of the particles are much smaller actually, I can bring up a paper to read on the subject if you like), it gets in every little nook and cranny available.

Balsa grabs on to the stuff and keeps on holding. Horse leather grabs the stuff and keeps on holding. Newspaper grabs onto the stuff and keeps on holding. Bovine grabs the stuff and keeps on holding. Printer paper grabs the stuff and keeps on holding. MDF grabs the stuff and keeps on holding. Nexxcare paper tape grabs the stuff and keeps on holding. Canvas strops grab the stuff and keep on holding. Hard Felt grabs the stuff and keeps on holding. I don't ever mix it with oil. I just get a cottonball, dab it into my giant vat of CrO, and dab dab dab all over whatever I feel like turning green today. It just works. On EVERYTHING I have ever tried.

All you need is something that has a microscopically porous surface with tiny little holes, valleys, nooks, crannies, dips, dings or whatever else that a .5 micron particle can get into.

It might not make super concentrated areas like the oil mix does, but you don't need it to. It only takes just a teensy weensy itty bitty bit to be enough to smooth out a razor, or one of my carbon steel kitchen knives for that matter.

I think it's the honing version of peer pressure. Everyone does it because everyone else does it, and they kind of don't know why. (Don't take that too seriously - I'm sure some of you just prefer the oil and like it better for some dang reason or another. I'm talking about the majority here...)

I'd be grateful to hear why some people use oil, if they do it just because they think they're supposed to, and if you've ever tried to use it just dry. Or if you've got a four dollar packet from ChrisL and you've only got a couple of shots to get this thing right, so you do it with oil to keep from you accidentally sneezing all of your chromium oxide away!


Thanks guys,