A leather strop is the final, crucial step to achieving a truly razor-sharp edge. While your whetstone does the heavy lifting of grinding the steel, stropping provides the ultimate polish. It removes the final microscopic remnants of the burr and perfectly aligns the apex. If you skip stropping, your knife might feel sharp, but it won't have that ultra-smooth, refined edge that effortlessly glides through food.
To make sure you get that mirror-polish finish, here are 3 things you must know:
1️⃣ Don't overdo it. About 10 passes per side should suffice. If you find yourself stropping your blade over and over again without noticing much of a difference, you have to go back to your (super fine) stone and minimize the burr there.
2️⃣ Be careful not to use too much pressure, or you could round over the edge. The leather folds over the apex and causes it to become rounder, diminishing the sharpness of the blade. To avoid this, apply only light pressure and let the leather strop do its thing.
3️⃣ Strop in the same direction as the scratch pattern you achieved on the sharpening stone. If you scratched from tip to heel on the stone, make sure to do the same on the strop, so you are refining the existing scratch pattern, not ruining it.
And remember: the blade needs to already be sharp before stropping, or it won't be after.
Are you ready to put your stropping hat on? Check out our leather strop collection.
Want to learn more all about the process of sharpening? Our blog page has you covered!
