why leathering a knife after sharpening works…

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Leathering is what I call it and idk the correct term. But after sharpening a blade you drag it along a leather strap on both sides and miraculously it becomes razor sharp. The seemingly subtle motion on a softer surface makes a night and day difference of the sharpness of the edge. WHY?!? Edit: the it

In: Engineering

7 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

Like the others said it’s stropping.

Sharpening with Steele can only make it so fine. Leather makes it like a razor blade

I use a straight razor to shave and I have to strop every few times. Rough edge on the leather 10 times and smooth edge 40 times.

I can feel the difference on a freshly stropped blade

Edit: microscopically leather can fine tune the edges to sharpen the thinnest of a metal surface without breaking it. Thats what happens with a harder compound. Think of it as trying to sharpen a stick with a saw vs a knife

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