Thread: Pasting a Strop, "Split-Side Up"

I recently came across a stated preference in a knife-sharpening manual for using a pasted strop glued to a block of wood with the split-side up. So let's say I have a vegetable-tanned piece of machinery belting and wanted to follow this recommendation. There is of course the smoothed side that I normally would consider stropping on, and there is the more "suede-like" backside. If I were to glue piece of this to a block of wood with the backside up, would this be "split-side up," generally speaking?

If it's a good length you could just make a hanging strop. And if you needed the strop to be firmer place it on a work surface.

That way you get to test both sides.

If you leather was long enough to make 2 strops you could always dope one with chrome oxide powder to give it some abrasion.

I make 3 x 12 x 1 inch bench strops from HandAmerica leather and 1 x 3 x 24 hardwood from Woodcraft. The split side works great on knives when pasted. Courser pastes turn the strop black with knife swarf. I would use only the smooth side loaded with the sprays or pastes customary for razors and never use my razor strops on knives. I prefer loaded bench strops for refreshing razors and Unpasted hanging strops for daily Stropping.

Very fine nap found on some razor strops is OK. It is far finer than the course nap of split hide.

The rough side is usually the flesh side, but there are caveats...

Some leather is just de-fatted and de-haired prior to full tanning, so the smooth side is actually tne skin of the animal and the rough side is the subcutaneous region nearest the flesh.

This is unusual in stropping leathers, when you get it it is called full-grain or uncorrected.

It is more usual for tbe skin to be removed by finely milling it off, rolling it with a top slip roller to smooth it, and pressing an artificial grain pattern, or pores. It is then called corrected or regularised.

Some leathers are thick enough to divide into two or more layers. This is done with a skiving machine a d is referred to as splitting. Each layer is called a split and has two rough sides, so they correct one side as detailed above.

So, the answer to your question about split side up really depends on whether the leather in question is a split, or not...

Of course, some leatbers have no skin side and no split side, like horse shell, which is really an encapsulated membrane which lies under the skin.

It does get even more complicated, but in essence there you have it.

Regards
Neil

Thank you for the quick responses guys. It does appear to be a complicated subject; I'm just supposing that the original source was referring to things loosely as the backside, this again being with knives rather than with razors.

The knife versus strop distinction seems important then. At one point, I was shown a method for razors that involved loading black and red ferox into the smoothed side of what I assume was generic machinery belting. Prior to do this, the surface was hand-sanded with 80x and 120x garnet sandpaper to create fine nap resembling Russian leather. Seemed to work well as a hanging strop. So following this, maybe I'll do the same with pieces glued to wooden blocks. I was just wondering if I could cut straight to the chase with the backside. Maybe not with razors, although I could always try and learn the hard way.

Give it a try with your knives but not your razors. Let us know what you find. I have a couple of pasted strops (suede,unfinished side) that I use my knives on and they work quite well. I've recently gone to synthetics for pasted and unpasted, love the sound and different draw.

I have made paddle strops for knives, chisels and plane blades with the rough side up leather with good results. Just make sure the rough side is smooth. I scrape it with a wood working card file, a flat steel card with a rolled/curled sharp edge, leaving a smooth, suede finish. It does hold paste well.

But the rough leather is too rough for a razor edge. Use the smooth side of leather or better yet, nylon/poly or cotton webbing, Poly or Cotton Canvas or craft foam glued to a smooth piece of wood, (MDF). Or make a hanging strop.

For a couple bucks you can make a few pasted strops from a yard of canvas or webbing from a Fabric Store.

Originally Posted by Euclid440

I have made paddle strops for knives, chisels and plane blades with the rough side up leather with good results. Just make sure the rough side is smooth. I scrape it with a wood working card file, a flat steel card with a rolled/curled sharp edge, leaving a smooth, suede finish. It does hold paste well.

But the rough leather is too rough for a razor edge.

Sounds good. Thanks. I like the idea of carting the backside like vellum.