How To: Load a Strop with Compound

This was highly requested, so here you go! If you already know all of this then I'm sorry, I can't please everyone. Haha
Hopefully this answers all of the questions that were asked. It is fairly straight forward, but there are a few tricks that are helpful to know.
I greatly appreciate any amount of Paypal donations, and as always please do not feel obligated to do so:
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[@benjaminoaks3293]

I'm new to stropping, I like the way you take you're time covering things. The video helped me out a lot. I look forward to checking out more of you're videos.

[@jdavis882]

Glad this was a help! Enjoy your sharpening journey!

[@marcn8750]

@@jdavis882thanks for your informative video. I use compounds to polish stainless steel watch cases. So recently, I’m been rubbing white or green compound on a new A4 sheet of paper. I cut it to the size I want. And I this to achieve a high polish on parts of the watch case. Just thought I would share the paper trick. Best wishes from Singapore 🇸🇬

[@kentuckycowboy2]

Just wanted to say thanks , this video fixed my problems . Both my before & after strop photos would of mirrored yours to a Tee ! Now thanks to you I've went through my knives & I don't have a hair left on my arms . LOL Good thing they'll grow back .

[@bigbubba5037]

I'm in the process of putting together a How-to video for how I make one of my own strops. I do an extra step to the leather when I essentially sand the surface with a disk sander to create a really fine, super effective knap of the surface of the leather that creates a surface that gets hair whittling edges, while accepting compounds extremely well. Nothing like a good strop :) Great vid.

[@Vextos]

You've helped me with sharpening so much it's honestly ridiculous. You are still my favorite knife channel.

[@jdavis882]

Vextos awesome man, I’m very glad to hear that!

[@Vextos]

Thanks for the reply, please come back!!

[@LONGIRAFFE]

Thanks for the video mate! I'm a knife noob and just made my own strop but wasn't sure exactly how to apply compound, so thank you!

[@HenryGonzalez]

You can also use a bit of honing oil or mineral oils (same thing I suppose) and put it on the strop and then load up the compound - it makes for a runny paste which can then be smoothed into the leather. It's a great way to load up lots of compound and get a nice smooth finish. The downside is waiting for the oil to dry - not a problem out here in AZ, where we have 115 degree days with 14% humidity.

[@gspade14]

wow u are really pumping these out today... thx for the great info .. this was a great help because i have not been exposed to strops and my stropman should be coming in by the end of this week... cant wait.

[@mellowb1rd]

The KZbin algorithm takes ratings into account, but not whether they are positive or negative, just that people ARE rating. Your hater is giving you more than just the views; he's helping push your videos further up lists of search results and spread it via suggested videos lists.

[@Samcraftcom]

I appreciate this video very much -- very helpful for me as I learn to stop my wood carving knives!

[@BenTheDream1018]

Hey man thanks for this video I've been curious about compounds for a while now and you've cleared things up for me.

[@chetbryant9210]

Thanks for the video, just got a stropping block, very helpful!

[@sherman614]

Great video, thank you! I have a Stropman HD compact strop with white and green compound coming today in the mail because of your video. And this video REALLY helped! Because I had no idea how to do this lol.

[@nathanfritz3130]

I had a tough time with putting on my compound (both the compound and strop are pretty cheap) but I tried the stove burner trick and it finally worked. Good tip!

[@itsneight1260]

Thanks for the video! Heating the leather up worked GREAT!

[@drjthornley]

Thank you so much for passing on your knowledge

[@jdavis882]

Cleaning out the old compound is a good idea ever so often, but I only do it like twice a year. Maintaining a strop is a whole other vid. I'll make that one soon. :)

[@dirtrider88]

we call the "eye" of the stove a burner.

[@paulneumann7739]

Thank you. This video and comments have helped me.

[@jdavis882]

LOL! Whoever dislikes my vids in the first minute, just know I love the shit out of you! You're the only one I know of that watches every single vid I make. Thanks for all of your support!

[@alessandrofirmani700]

jdavis882 well u start a video saying something like if u dont know this is not because u r stupid, that its not a very smart thing to say in a vid

[@pantolonyilani8371]

Alessandro Firmani, listen that comment again... It's actually a very nice thing to say if you listen the entire comment.

[@fafafuhi2231]

Lol I love it

[@jeffsmith8958]

??? That makes no sense! That’s a perfectly logical thing to say

[@Animallovingpermie]

I like how you point out not knowing it doesn't make you stupid. in my opinion, the only stupid people are those that aggressively refuse to learn. Going along with that, in the north we just call the eye of the stove the element, or coil if its an electric.

[@captron7250]

Thanks so much for posting this. Heating the strop before applying the compound worked fantastic. Could never figure out why the strop wouldn't take the compound. I found using my heat gun works better, with more control.

[@moodyblue8122]

Also had a problem with the green compound. Had an idea, got a clothes iron as hot as it would go. Placed parchment paper on top of the leather and got it good and hot. Too hot to touch the leather. Rubbed the compound evenly all over the suede nap. Put fresh parchment paper on top of the leather and ironed it, frequently checking my progress. After a few slow passes with the iron, I was satisfied. Had an even thin coating all over! I was worried that the heat would harm the properties of the leather but it didn’t take too much contact time to do the job so I think I’m good. Time will tell.

[@terryandteresa]

Thank you! Just the info I was looking for!!👍😁

[@Trappersdead]

I'm new to hand sharpening and have watched all your videos and wanted to say thank you. This is another great tip. I've also sent you a pm with questions.

[@perspicacity89]

Great video! Does one need to clean the loaded compound off before applying fresh compound or not? How do I maintain a strop?

[@powerlinegf]

Nice video. It would definitely help some one new to stropping. If you are new, don't forget to experiment. With somethings knowing what not to do isn't as important as why not to do it.

[@tacitus7]

7:40. One can also just use a hair dryer to melt the aggregate into the leather.

[@justforever96]

Here in the heart of Original Yankeeland we call them "the burners". I never even considered that there might be any other term for them, LOL. Always learning something new. I tried your heat trick with my cheapo strop board and green compound, because the compound wouldn't spread smoothly, liked to form thick streaks and bumps when I tried to rub it on. When I heated the compound-plastered board, the green compound turned a whiter shade and transformed into a kind of chalky deposit that scrapes off as powder when you scrape it with a knife. So not perfect success, but it did allow me to level the layer down a bit, and it seems to be taking metal off a little. At least it darkens when I run the blade over it.

[@jdavis882]

Oh good! Glad to hear it worked, if even a little.

[@Birdman884]

Thanks for making this video! Good stuff!

[@vinfish4697]

thought this was an excellent video and very informative .I've got a Tandy Leather store down the road, been wanting to try stropping my knives I'm sure I'll be impressed

[@alex-op5ls]

+Vincent Foti he`s the wizard of sharpening

[@Kactusdog]

Tempe?

[@KnifeCrazzzzy]

Thank you for your wisdom. What brand of compounds do you use?

[@Bigglesization]

Who is the guy who takes his time to dislike all your videos he must really like them if he waits for them every day. Nice videos by the way :).

[@weaponaficionado]

The low pressure high speed application might get me better edges than i do now. Great tips.

[@mak140208]

Great vid. Question: how often do you recommend stroping with Crom OX with every strop? How often do you replenish the application of chrom ox on the strop? Thanks

[@Pablito46]

0:20 Words of encouragement.

[@Survived4Real]

Once again, excellent video my friend. Both entertaining & educational. I'm curious, have you ever attempted to make a strop? If one were to make one, what leathers would work best? I know the surface is the nap. I have an old expensive leather jacket that's worn out. It's thick lamb leather & was gonna make one. Thoughts? Thanks.

[@gqixkaes]

which brand of compounds and color should i use i am thinking of buying the enkay pack of every color!! i really want a mirror finish on my edge i already have green and red which gets it pretty good but i am a perfectionist what do you suggest i try?

[@chasedanley9518]

I just got mine in! Great video 😃

[@lorenwoodson9164]

Thanks for this. My strop problem is that the leather is so rough it seems to flake when I try to crayon or butter the compound in. Can't recall where I got the strop but it is probably 30 yrs old.

[@npat7842]

Thanks for the video! Learned what the eye of a stove is 😂

[@Thestripper1]

I have some good organic tanned leather to make a strop out of. But, should I glue it to the wod batten with the raw side of the leather facing out or the smooth (fur side) out? I've heard people saying very contradictory things about this. What's your take?

[@jdavis882]

@NBKnives Doesn't work nearly as well. The low heat from the hair dryer is mostly overcome by the breeze is makes.

[@bvacs12]

thanks for the video, i am just about to get my first strop. i heard allot about ovens and heating it up, but it didn't make since. i know detailing cars and bikes, so heating it up didn't make since. Good tips, i am about to buy my first strop from stropman (any advise).

[@extrastuff9463]

I had never really considered heating it, I'll have to try that sometime tomorrow if that really makes much of a difference. It might allow me to get some use out of an old strop that ended up sitting in a dark closet since forever because the other two that I made myself somehow just work better for me. I'll probably do mine by leaving the strop on a central heating radiator for a while first to get the wood reasonably above room temperature (air coming out of the top tends to be 35-40 degrees celcius here). Then I think a gentle treatment with the wide nozzle from the hot air rework station to heat the strop surface and compound up locally would work pretty well since it has a reliable fully controllable temperature. I'm quite amazed how often I end up using the Metcal HCT-900-21 that I picked up second hand for relatively cheap for other things than my electronics hobby. Not sure how leather deals with extreme heat but I suspect careful use of those paint heating devices (don't know the english word, those things to warm it up before scraping it off) could be a good way to locally heat it up if you don't have an oven available. Wood and leather aren't the best heat conductors so you could probably get away with not gently preheating the surface but I guess its another habit from preheating PCBs to a reasonably high temperature before working on them with the hot air rework station.

[@UncleSamsDeplorable]

Does using mineral oil help or is it more of a preference? Also can i use like a hair dryer to heat up the surface of the strop to help with the application of the compound?

[@jasonchang2836]

Let's say I sharpen a knife on the edge pro apex to get a mirror polish. Do I strop it with the white compound then with the green, or skip the white and just go straight into the green.?

[@user-dn8kg1yk6x]

I mimicked your knivesplus strop with my old one - loaded the BRKT compound on so thick it's kinda like stropping on the compound bar itself lol. The results were definitely a lot better than when I had light amounts of compound applied, got more polish. I just bought a new strop that has a very fine almost polished finish - I was thinking of getting some liquid green compound for it. Have you thought about trying the diamond pastes at all? That's another option I saw while browsing compounds.

[@aball423]

if your strop has a a smooth side, and a rough side, which color (white or green) would you apply to which side?

[@salvadorreyes5322]

Very informative I’m just getting into the hobby thanks brother

[@RKnoll74]

Is the green compound that comes with the stropman the same compound as the strop block from knives plus?

[@jdavis882]

@CliffStamp So pretty much we have no consistency in the compounds we buy? That sucks.

[@swiggamortis5521]

Very helpful, trying to get hair popping sharp but not there yet.

[@randy5520071]

When are you going to make a video on how to strop the rigt way angles presure would be a great help to a lot of people i bought 3 of the strops one hd compact one reg. compact that came with pocket size strop i also got the red green and white found out the compound went on better going from side to side maybe because of the grain.

[@tactigearjunkie]

great vid man. i have the same strop with all 4 of his compounds. have you tried the red compound? supposedly it's even finer than his green, but i can tell the difference, than again i have the red on a belt so that's probably not as good as if it were on the strop.

[@kansascityshuffle8526]

Stropping compound and polishing ompound is there a difference?

[@andrewdoyle6747]

Sorry I am new to this but I have got a new strop and have used it without compound.. first time trying to sharpen a knife.. it came out ok but is compound a must..?

[@chrismcdonald6481]

I just got my cheap $25 Amazon strop with 2 types of compound, white a green. My strop has a course and fine side. Which color goes on smooth a course side. Any help be appreciated.

[@cjbevan2704]

you seem like a nice; guy; may you be blessed in all your honourable endeavours. thank you for the good advice.

[@CliffStamp]

Note you can get the MSDS sheets on abrasives (or anything else basically) and if you do this on the compounds you will find that most of the chromium oxide buffing compounds only contain enough actual chromium oxide to make them green (its main use is as a pigment). They can be as little as 5-10% chromium oxide and the rest is aluminum oxide (which can be just as fine or finer).

[@widgerchicken]

What compound do you use when reloading that knives plus strop?

[@mikelynn7025]

Thank you for the information, awesome video 📸

[@LeeEngle]

Thank you - fantastic explanation - what was the name of the larger strop - the one loaded with green?

[@glennonggara]

Its called the Strop Block by Knives Plus

[@jeddfarley]

I have an old strop and made myself a few but cannot wait to get stropman order here. Have all colored compounds to play with and see what I like

[@99witz52]

Hey man I reckon you got the stropman by now, how is it?

[@jimmydaplumber4999]

just a great job . thank you so much.

[@snakewinslow2046]

Is there any difference between stroping with .5 micron green compound and .5 diamond spray? Thanks for sharing your knowledge. Otherwise I wouldn't even know to ask this question.

[@mak140208]

Part of question answered (on replenishment) but how often to strop with compound vs. Non compound strop?

[@desertratedc9596]

I like loading with a bit with a heat gun on first load or after cleaning the strop out. After that I typically just rub some onto it and call it good. Good to know my methods are very similar.

[@Kennynva]

I heard that using a paint removal heat gun will work for getting the green to adsorb into the leather better..

[@r.d.1056]

A lighter or hairdryer work fine. If you have women in your house, the hairdryer is free. If not a lighter cost $2 No need to purchase a heat gun.

[@keepermovin5906]

@@r.d.1056 I imagine this advice is helpful for people who already own a heat gun

[@r.d.1056]

@Keeper movin’ people with heat guns already know this.

[@keepermovin5906]

@@r.d.1056 noting what tools to use in a tutorial is a normal thing to do. It is easy to overlook a seemingly obvious solution when so many other options are available. If someone has a heat gun in the back of a drawer somewhere in their house it might not come to mind when the tutorial says to use the stove but they would be glad for the reminder because a heat gun is much easier to use.

[@r.d.1056]

hence my lighter & hair dryer recommendation

[@campfirewhittler]

Out west we call the "eye of the stove" the burners. Great tip.

[@usernamemykel]

Everybody but hillbillies refer to them as burners, their proper name.

[@geek211]

My strop on the smooth side I applied green compound by mistake, Is their a way to fix it? sand paper it off? what can i do? Or abandon it, and get a paper wheel?

[@TheMayflowerPilgrem]

dremel polishing compound works great as well. they also sell it in past form.

[@iltrainu1]

Good informative video! My question, being a noobie, is regarding the leather. I have a strop that has a smooth side as well as a rough side. Can you provide which side is best and the purpose of using the smooth versus the rough side. Thanks in advance

[@Imgonnakmsstg]

Smooth for razors and straight blades of the such for super fine edges and rough for knives and axes etc

[@matheusspecht477]

hi , please witch one are good for gränsfors axes ?? THANKS

[@pyaoliang]

Yeah, don't understand the dislikes... tools. This is a very helpful vid. I just bought the stropman. Did you see his website? He made some comments about you. I think you brought him a lot of business

[@stevenlengyel9701]

I like the videos that allow me to click on different parts so if I’m bored I don’t have to keep watching the boring parts to get to what I want to know.

[@jdavis882]

Yeah. This video was made WAY before that feature was available. Most of my videos are over a decade old.

[@jdavis882]

@CliffStamp That makes a lot of sense. Just another reason not to use tons of pressure.

[@jeremiahjohnson731]

How do you remove the heavy black from the strop on the white side.

[@wafflepack]

Excellent video! I just got my first strop, with green, and brown compound...where does the brown fall into the mix, fine? or coarse? Let me know when you get a chance. Thanks much. JT.

[@michaelhymovitz500]

wafflepack brown is more coarse

[@Shivaziv]

Thanks for the video. Just wanted to ask, on which side do you need to apply which compound? or it does not matter? And what is the difference between the white one and the green one? Thanks.

[@jdavis882]

Ziv V. Doesn't matter. Both sides of the strop have the exact same leather. (Most of the time at least, unless otherwise specified$

[@gstrader73]

That's pretty much like I do it... great vid man!

[@happycamper9300]

I have seen a few videos in which like you they are using Olive oil to clean the strop. What about mineral oil?

[@tacitus7]

I found putting the stick of compound in hot water for a bit helps softens it so it applies easier.

[@NBKnives]

Could you use a hair dryer to heat up the compound?

[@sKeM2k9]

Do you have the oil the strop when you first get it?

[@sexdrugsrocknroll420]

What angle do you sharpin your knives at?

[@djecpamba]

After reviewing this video I loaded up a strop with chromium oxide and heated it with a heat gun. Think of it as a hair dryer on steroids. Works like a champ. Thanks for all your efforts. Donald

[@Birdman884]

Ive done the same. My compound got all crumbly and I ended up wasting more than I wanted to but I liked the results. Some of the leather I get can be a PITA as it doesnt want to load, so the heat gun helped that.

[@samthai818]

We call it a stove, the oven is the lower enclosed portion where we bake or roast in. We don't know what an eye of the oven is but in Maryland (South-Mason Dixon line), we would say the burner on stove. Hope that helps. Great information regarding the grit difference between white and the green. I don't ever recall any manufacturer ever clearly indicating the difference between the two!

[@rmusic777]

Great vid man!

[@juanpa980]

What if im out of white? Can i use the green on the same leather?

[@babblelicious4357]

Should I remove the pre-existing compound that came on the strop paddle if I want to apply another compound brand? Black and Green are the compounds that came on a paddle... and I got a bright yellow compound (Flexcut gold polishing compound pw11)

[@ojile13]

Babble Licious once you have one type of compound on a strop, you shouldn't put another type one. Even if they are the same color. It's not likely they are exactly the same micron with exactly the same ingredients or particles. Usually people take some care not to cross contaminate compounds.

[@BK33REVIEWS]

Do you use the smooth or flesh side more

[@iwluisr77]

Thank you for doing this video.

[@bowdiersackett6433]

Doing it now, thanks

[@CliffStamp]

The issue with a heavy layer comes into play if you press hard. If the loading layer is thick enough the edge can actually sink down into it and thus you are then grinding the sharpened edge at a perpendicular to the abrasive (i.e. basically the same as if you cut into the strop) as the abrasive actually folds up around the edge. This is why heavy pasted strops will tend to cause "over honing" very easily, but again it is only an issue if you press really hard.

[@timblackburne77]

10 years later..... in Australia we call it a hot plate, and that tricked worked perfectly for my new strop. The leather was quite hard and smooth so the heat was the right thing. I figure the hard flat leather to be an advantage for a very fine knife edge so I wanted to avoid anything that might soften it. Anyways, thank you.

[@jdavis882]

Awesome, glad it worked for you! I’m jealous of you aussies because it’s nice and warm down there this time of year!

[@timblackburne77]

@@jdavis882 I'm in Queensland, its been a cool start to spring and it's nearly summer, still cool. I think 31°c is the highest so far. I love it 😄

[@JohnDoe-cd6ro]

What does the compound do? How does it sharpen metal? Also I've seen guys just use old belts, how does leather sharpen metal? I'm new to this.

[@perniciouspete4986]

Thanks for the video. Good stuff.

[@MemoGrafix]

HeeHee .. I'm from NYC. My Gr.GrandMother _(Virginia)_ & Paternal GrandParents _(S. Carolina)_ always called it *"The Eye."* They called TV's that also. My Mother & Aunts (NYC) called it *The Jet.*

[@gqixkaes]

the eye is a stove and a oven is often combined with a stove on top lol things are so different in the south lol love the vids bro

[@usernamemykel]

Oboy! Dialects all over the place!!

[@PainterDans]

Wayne from tucson top burner

[@jameswong6590]

Comparing Stropman green and white compound to Hand American Diamond Spray, which is better? Does the Stropman have enough bite for super steels like S30V?

[@sea9984]

It has for rex 121... lol... The abrasives in the compound are harder than all metals, even some ceramic blades.( For some reason my boker ceramic knives don't react to the compound) The thing with diamond sprays and cbns is that they are available in a wider range of grits, with diamond down to 0.025 micron and 0.1 for cbn

[@TheKerstingm]

Great info for someone just learning stropping. Any chance you can post links where you get your strops and compounds? Any other useful links would be helpful

[@jdavis882]

Chefknivestogo for the compounds. Stropman or knivesplus for the strops.