the simple finale when you come to
sharpen your chisels your edge tools is
to use a strop and I want to show you
the strop that I've used for the past 50
years they don't last that long 3-4
years they get yards you have to replace
the leather but I'm going to show you
how I make mine because it's very quick
very simple and they're great for
getting that edge you can't really get
any other way just using hand methods
I've got a piece of scrap leather here
and a piece of scrap plywood you could
use plywood you could use solid wood MDF
just about anything you want I'm using
plywood it clumps well in the vise and
it's nice and rigid so I've got square
and it's three inches wide and I'm going
to make mine ten inches long I don't
like them longer and I don't like them
shorter you'll have to decide for
yourself three inches is great four
inches is too wide so I'm going to go
with my preference of three by ten I'm
going to crosscut this tool and so I
want crisp edges underneath here so that
the leather is totally supported and if
I have that then I just use double-sided
tape what we sometimes call mounting
tape or mount tape cut it's a length
what you don't want is little bits of
wood like these little shavings
underneath between the leather and the
surface of your wood
[Music]
so the knife all going all the way
around as usual meant that this didn't
prey on this edge a little bit of
planing and we're ready to mount this
leather to the plywood break the edges
what I'm going to do instead of cutting
directly onto my workbench so I'm going
to put the scrout on the scrap of
plywood underneath here sharp knife now
I'm gonna leave my piece of leather
oversized I don't need to cut it too and
so I'm cutting here and it's because
it's much easier because you're going to
stretch this leather onto the base go
ahead and clamp it in the vise and I've
got the double-sided tape this isn't a
padded tape we don't want the padded
take what we want is the thin tape so
I'm just using super thinness no thicker
than sellotape or seller's tape
sellotape overhang you don't have to cut
it to length either press it on firmly
side by side try not to leave any gaps
the this I guarantee this will stay
stuck as well so nice and firm I'm going
to cut this width one off now like that
let the rest I'm just going to leave as
up as they are
and this is ready to receive the leather
almost there we go make sure there's no
substantial bits on the leather because
it will Telegraph through the surface
pull it as tight as you can press it in
the middle and then pull it out to the
outer edge and then pull this one out to
the outer edge and stretch it because
it's going to stretch when you put your
pressure on the blade that's going to go
on that that is how you make a strop so
I'm gonna just cut my leather off now
good sharp knife nothing to it no need
to buy one really because a scrap of
wood and a scrap of leather some old
handbag or an old jacket piece of
upholestry hide will work there we have
a great strop nothing else to do to that
and it's ready for use already straight
away we can use this we are gonna
sharpen the power chisel say we've just
ground the chisel we've honed it on the
stones this is just a buffing compound
the use for a stainless steel so find
any buffing powder
compound this is suspended in a wax pull
out on the surface heal down of your
hand there the bevel down and just pull
but don't push you don't want to push
that's what gouge is it about 30 times
and that's how you use the shot you've
got a good sharp edge the reverse side
of the strop can also be used now
because we generally don't polish this
side on the leather because the leather
isn't sufficiently hard so we can you
can use the buffing compound on the
reverse
side and this is the side you might use
just to polish out the face periodically
black is the steel and I've got the back
done I've got that bevel done and I'm
ready for chiseling work planing work
anything that has an edge tool
[Music]