My new paddle strop

I got a chance to spend some time in my wood shop this weekend and started a couple of projects. My first set of scales is coming along nicely (I think). I'll have to re-post pics as that thread went missing in the site changeover. However, I thought I'd share a couple of pics of my new paddle strop.

The main part of the paddle is a water oak board that I milled about six months ago from a tree that came down in my yard. The wood has been stable enough to work for a while so it went into this project. It is quarter sawn from the hearwood so is quite stable. The paddle surfaces are 3/16 thick 3x12" balsa wood that will be pasted with 0.5 and 0.25 micron diamond paste.

Cheers,
Ed

Great work Ed.

Edit: I am an idiot, asking stupid questions without registering what I read in the post. Sorry, Ed, I meant no disrespect, just got a major headache.

Nice work Ed! I wish I could afford to do shaped handles like that on the strops i sell. It is a nice looking touch.

I have been using the balsa with fine pastes but have not really tried it with more coarse ones. let us know how it performs over time.

best,
Tony

Looks great!! Don't you love it when a tree decided to fall down on your property and then you can acutally use it to create something:) Talk about making lemonade from lemons.

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Originally Posted by Tony Miller

Nice work Ed! I wish I could afford to do shaped handles like that on the strops i sell. It is a nice looking touch.

I have been using the balsa with fine pastes but have not really tried it with more coarse ones. let us know how it performs over time.

best,
Tony

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Thanks Tony.
The handle was actually pretty simple (much easier than turning it separately on a lathe and then attaching it to the strop--I hate turning oak!). I freehand sketched the outline of the handle, rough cut it on the bandsaw, did the rough shaping with a rasp, finish shaping with a half round file, then hand sanded to finish. Total time before attaching the balsa was maybe 45 minutes to an hour.

I'll keep you posted on the 0.5 micron balsa. If it does not perform as expected, I'll plane off the balsa and attach a piece of 3x12 natural leather I have left over from an earlier order I placed with Keith at HandAmerican.

So far I'm pleased with the paddle strop. The only downside is that it's likely to reduce my hone time...as that tends to be one of my few true relaxations, I may need to start buying more razors on e-bay:eek: . Oh, this is a vicious cycle.

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Originally Posted by FiReSTaRT

Great work Ed.

Edit: I am an idiot, asking stupid questions without registering what I read in the post. Sorry, Ed, I meant no disrespect, just got a major headache.

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Never saw the post, but don't worry...I rarely take offense being a grand master of foot in mouth myself.

Cheers,
Ed

I overlsept and woke up with a headache, so I missed the part about using balsa wood and asked about the leather thickness. Got fixated on the shape of the handle, which really was lovely lol. I am actually going to make a bench hone or two using locally available materials (if possible). However, I was planning on using leather, so I'll see if I can get some easily. If not, I can always order from Tony and expect great quality.

Ilija,
Just spoke with your friend david on the phone about this. I gave him some tips based on a few I have been making and we talked about sending some leather his way.

Tony

That's great Tony. It would save me the hassle of searching for good leather and I know what to expect from you ---> top-notch quality. I just had a couple of questions:
1) Would smooth leather be better for abrasive compounds or should we go for Latigo?
2) What width would be the best for this? I was thinking of doing the X on 2". However since it's not a narrow paddle, 3" would also be possible. Could I go straight across (heel leading) on a 3"?
Ok time for me to shave and visit the lumber yard :D

Thanks for sharing that strop Ed. It's beautiful and great to hear that oak is already going to good use.

X

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Originally Posted by FiReSTaRT

That's great Tony. It would save me the hassle of searching for good leather and I know what to expect from you ---> top-notch quality. I just had a couple of questions:
1) Would smooth leather be better for abrasive compounds or should we go for Latigo?
2) What width would be the best for this? I was thinking of doing the X on 2". However since it's not a narrow paddle, 3" would also be possible. Could I go straight across (heel leading) on a 3"?
Ok time for me to shave and visit the lumber yard :D

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Ilija,
I would go with smooth leather or Balsa as Ed did. these are great for fine pastes. latigo contains oils and many pastes are water based. Not a good combo. If using wood don;t go too wide as cupping could be an issue or seal the back really well. ed used a very stable wood and with his background I am sure he knows exactly what would work well for this.

Tony

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Originally Posted by Tony Miller

Ilija,
I would go with smooth leather or Balsa as Ed did. these are great for fine pastes. latigo contains oils and many pastes are water based. Not a good combo. If using wood don;t go too wide as cupping could be an issue or seal the back really well. ed used a very stable wood and with his background I am sure he knows exactly what would work well for this.

Tony

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Just to expand on what Tony said. That water oak board is quarter sawn, the growth rings are perpendicular to the face of the board. This results in a very stable piece of wood. The balsa (or leather for that matter) is very pliable and will conform to the shape of the underlying wood. I would not recommend using plane sawn wood for a paddle strop or bench hone. Looking at the end grain of plane sawn wood you will see a series of arcs across the board. The board will tend to cup slightly toward the top of the arc as is absorbs moisture.

FWIW,
Ed

Nice work on the paddle handle is nicely shaped. I have yet to come across using balsa wood in the forums for paste's. Will have to do more study on this one. Thanks for the information.

They "receive" the pastes in a flatter, slightly more pourous, application. It turns the soft flat wood into a "hone" of sorts. Stropping on it cuts slower I think, not necessarily different than leather.

Damon,
You may find that bare wood like basswood and balsa have been used for a long time on paddles. The open grain structure holds the pastes well while providing a firm yet slightly resiliant base. The bals actually comes pretty close to duplicating leather for this purpose and if damaged can be quickly resurfaced to new condition.

I have been using it on my paddles as an option the past year and it seems a popular choice for many.

Tony

Verry cool, I may have to make one to try. You guys are awsome when it comes to this stuff. So is there a proper way to apply the pastes to the balsawood to give even application?

I just read this thread and realized that although I understood the different cutting method between quarter and plain sawn, I wasn't exactly sure what the grain differences were... so I googled ;). I found this informative article: http://www.allwoodwork.com/article/w...uartersawn.htm

Hope this helps anyone else who wasn't up to speed in this area. :tu

What if the wood is protected from absorbing moisture? Would warpage occur anyways?

I would either seal the entire thing oir leave it completely bare. Uneven absorbtion of moisture is what causes much of the warping. In reality most sealants are not 100% moisture proof.

This is why I limit the size of my wooden paddles to widths or cross sections (square) that will not cup or warp easily.

Okay......back to the shop to make a fancy handle strop for myself now........
(just when I thought I needed nothing else....)

Tony

Oh I do like that paddle strop!:)

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Originally Posted by ForestryProf

I got a chance to spend some time in my wood shop this weekend and started a couple of projects. My first set of scales is coming along nicely (I think). I'll have to re-post pics as that thread went missing in the site changeover. However, I thought I'd share a couple of pics of my new paddle strop.

The main part of the paddle is a water oak board that I milled about six months ago from a tree that came down in my yard. The wood has been stable enough to work for a while so it went into this project. It is quarter sawn from the hearwood so is quite stable. The paddle surfaces are 3/16 thick 3x12" balsa wood that will be pasted with 0.5 and 0.25 micron diamond paste.

Cheers,
Ed

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wel it certainly looks a lot more professional than my first effort, well done
Kind regards Peter

Nice paddle strop indeed!

What type of glue are you intending to use to attach your balsa or leather to the surface? I have a piece of leather I would like to make into a paddle stop too. Was thinking of using a peice of 2x4 timber to begin with. I'm pretty sure that won't cup or warp, but could be wrong.

Not sure what the best type of glue to use is or even whether to staple it on.

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Originally Posted by Bobbo

Nice paddle strop indeed!

What type of glue are you intending to use to attach your balsa or leather to the surface? I have a piece of leather I would like to make into a paddle stop too. Was thinking of using a peice of 2x4 timber to begin with. I'm pretty sure that won't cup or warp, but could be wrong.

Not sure what the best type of glue to use is or even whether to staple it on.

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For the balsa, I used a standard wood glue, in this case Tightbond II. For leather, I'd suggest using a contact cement such as Weldbond.

As for the 2x4, it depends more on the species of wood, orientation of the grain, and how it was milled to determine whether it is likely to twist, cup, warp, check...etc. I would not use a building stud (typical 2x4 made of fir, spruce, or pine) to make a paddle. Most furniture grade hardwoods, plywoods, and MDF should be more than stable enough to serve as a base for your strop.

Hope this helps,
Ed

Ed those paddles are sweet, what type of balsa do you use?
is it the type bought in craft stores?
what thickness etc
and what do you use to glue them down.
I gotta make one of them!!!
I can see straight razoring, is gonna be never ending,


Shower, lather, put on a Dean Martin lp and go to heaven!!!!

Mike