Thread: Wood block strop

I missed part of your question I sharpen knives on that strop. Now that I have read and watched some videos I have a different understanding of stropping straight razor, its more like a smooth steel on a German knife than polishing the edge on a Japanese knife.

Most all of those “colored” compounds are various abrasive compound designed for polishing. They are aggressive and work well for polishing metal and on tools and knives. But are too aggressive for razors that are much thinner and will be used for shaving.

On razors they will micro chip the edge and that will make for an uncomfortable shave. For razors we prefer to use compounds that are pure and of a known grit.

Is it the size of the grit or what it is made of? I see cubic boron, chromium oxide and diamond as stropping compounds is there a preference? I have been shaving more than half my life who knew there was so much more to learn?

Both, and more importantly the result you are trying to achieve.

For example .50 Chromium Oxide, Diamond and CBN will all produce very different results of all the same grit size, mostly because of the grit shape. Additionally the stropping medium will also affect performance.

Diamond will cut deep and on a razor can make the edge harsh, on a knife or tool that may be a good thing. Chrome Oxide will smooth a Diamond edge and make it more comfortable. CBN can do both, depending on the substrate.

For razors, pasting is done mostly to create smoothness, most begin with Chromium Oxide, but Razor Quality Chrome Oxide is different from buffing “Green” polishing compounds, which often contain little or no Chrome Oxide.

Thank you for all your help.

Use balsa wood. it's perfect for chrome ox and sprays. mount it to something flat and have at it. No need to guess if some other product is useful when you can get some balsa wood and be set.