Quote Originally Posted by AFDavis11 View Post
Larry,

Excellent point. As an aside I have owned and used a balsa paddle strop, made exclusively for me by Tony Miller, for years.

I enjoyed this post a lot myself. I prefer stones but can certainly see a need for more conversation about strops with pastes.

I've always been under the impression that they would be great for beginners.

I think the main reason that I have found them difficult to use in the past is that they can be so effective at honing. Deceptively so. But, once you learn how to do something correctly it can become a wicked tool in the sharpening arsenal.

I did a little research too, as I like to apply graphite powder to my strop on occasion. I notice this sits at about .6 micron which as you can see would produce a nice edge. Nothing like a 50K hone for 2-3 cents.
Are you still using the #2 pencil on a piece of paper through rubbing and then applying the pencil to the strop with the paper? I saw the old thread where you mentioned this and I am very curious.

I am going to start experimenting more with pastes, sprays, and other strop media off the Norton 8K. Last night I finished on a Swaty and used some .125 Boron Nitride spray and the shave was awesome...