Pasting a Balsa Strop..

hey everyone,

so I may have bought the wrong thing here but I thought I'd check to see what you guys thought before I just threw it out.

I've got a balsa strop that I want to paste with chromium oxide. I bought some stuff from sharpshopusa.com with this purpose in mind, but didn't realize it'd be so hard. I don't want to mar the nicely surfaced balsa trying to rub this stuff in like I'm scribbling with a crayon, though. Is there a way that I can break it down to use it more like a paste? Maybe soaking a chunk of it in mineral oil or something? Or should I just forget about this stuff and get some powder or paste?

Any advice is met with much gratitude..

I use the crayons on leather and fabric for sharpening blades. I probably wouldn't try to use it on your balsa in crayon form. I have heard of folks using mineral oil for soften the crayons but have not tried it myself. Before throwing it out I would try mineral oil see if you can thin it up. If you don't want to go that route you could save it for a linen strop or something. If you decide to save it I would recommend you seal it cause some kinds dry out a bit and get harder.

If you want to coat a balsa strop you can get the powdered stuff from ChrisL, check the classifieds. I use it on my balsa strop and it works very well. ChrisL includes written instructions with your order so you know how to apply it.