What Are the Best Leather Strops in 2024?

Tips on Choosing the Right Leather Strop

Every experienced wood-carver knows how important it is to maintain their woodworking tools sharp and keep them in good condition. By taking care of my wood carving knives and other tools, I’ve learned through years of practice the best tricks to always keep my tools sharp. My goal for this article is threefold::

• First, I share my thoughts about the best sharpening strops and provide short reviews about some of them.

• In the second part, I will share an easy, five-step way to create your own leather strop.

• Lastly, I explain how to use a sharpening strop correctly.

BeaverCraft Best Leather Strop

This leather knife sharpener by BeaverCraft is about 14.5 inches long. The best part of the strop leather is the material: It is very durable. The majority of knife strops are smaller, but I prefer having leather sharpening strops of different sizes. Tools are also different, so sometimes it is better to edge a tool with a big paddle strop rather than with a small one. Besides, a larger honing strop means it will last longer.

I prefer when the leather strop for knife sharpening sets have the sharpening compound. Then I don’t have to waste my time buying it separately. BeaverCraft’s leather knife sharpener set includes a green honing paste, which helps to make all your tools shiny.

The paddle strop set also includes two ebook tutorials about sharpening your knives. These can be helpful if you’re new to sharpening your tools, but the content is helpful even if you just need a refresher. Finding such detailed instructions on the internet is difficult.

Sharp Pebble Classic Strop Kit

One of my favorite paddle strops is by Sharp Pebble. This one is very helpful for sharpening and has an attractive, classic design. This leather strop can be used for all purposes, whether it is keeping your tools flawless, making them sharp to keep on working, or fixing a curved edge. The honing leather is very reliable and pleasant to use.

The biggest advantage of this knife strop block is that it can be used without hands. A woodworker can place the honing leather on any surface and use both hands to make their knife sharp again. Of course, many wood-carvers use one hand to sharpen their tools. However, you simply might want your other hand free. If you prefer to carve without being distracted, this leather strap for sharpening knives is for you. 

Its base has rubber on the bottom, so the strop block will not slip when you lay it down. This makes the strop leather very practical and means you could take this leather for honing anywhere.

BeaverCraft Paddle Strop Block

As I mentioned before, I like leather stropping sets that include a strop paste. With this model, instructions for working with your tools are included. Polishing also requires some skills and knowledge, and even though the process may seem straightforward, you should learn how to do it first. It is important to cover the paddle strop with a stropping compound correctly, choose the right angle of your tools towards the honing strop, and make precise moves.

As for the leather strap for sharpening knives itself, it is compact and comfortable for regular usage. Plus, it is super affordable. I suggest buying this leather strop for knife sharpening if you are not very experienced with wood carving and need something simple to start with.

My Favorite Paddle Strop: BeaverCraft LS6P1

This stropping leather is similar to the first honing strap from BeaverCraft I mentioned. The reason I prefer this one is that it is smaller and more convenient. This one is designed both for those who have just started wood carving and for the professionals as well.

The leather strop sharpening does its job perfectly and is simple and light. All you need is to take this honing strap in one hand and the tool in the other, and the leather strop will do everything for you. It is truly very comfortable and requires almost no effort for sharpening.

Lavoda Leather Honing Strop

Unfortunately, this kit does not include a block. You could put the leather strop either on something solid or find a piece of wood with the same dimensions as the best leather strop (8 inches by x3 inches). With its 4-millimeter thick leather piece, this leather stropping kit is definitely worth the attention.

You will find two leather strop compounds in this kit. Unlike other strop kits, this one has a white one and a green one. If you have tools made of different metals, you would probably need these two strop pastes, as the white one works better with hard metals, while the green one works best on stainless steel, platinum, and chrome.

In a word, this leather honing kit is very effective. However, you should be prepared to have your own wooden block.

Upon Leather Honing Strop Kit

This leather honing works better for horizontal sharpening and polishing, so this leather strop is best used with carving knives. Like many others, this honing strap has a suede side and a smooth side. It’s not easy to decide which one is better. Some wood-carvers use the suede side for sharpening their tools and the other side for honing. However, those both sides are versatile, so variations are possible. Usually, every woodworker decides for himself which side to use.

This knife strop includes three stropping compounds. One of the disadvantages of this stropping leather is that the block is not included. You will need to attach the honing leather to the surface yourself and find a block of the right size (10 inches by3 inches).

BeaverCraft Strop

This is one of my favorite honing straps because it is compact and easy to travel with. I have been using one for a couple of years 

and am very satisfied with its quality and durability. When someone asks me for advice about leather strops, I usually suggest buying this one. It always gives good results and is very cheap. Moreover, the stropping compound is included, so no need to look for one somewhere else.

Why Is It Important to Have Razor-Sharp Knives?

After a quick search on the internet, you will find many tricks to keep your wood-carving tools sharp. Nobody likes to be frustrated with a blunt knife. They can damage your woodworking project because cuts made with dull knives are uneven. When sharpening my knife for whittling, I always slap the blade against a leather strop a couple of times. Many barbers use this simple move before shaving their clients. The trick will keep your tools extremely sharp longer because it straightens out little curls of your blade.

If the bends in your blade get bad, you can run into problems. This happens often, therefore, I’d recommend fixing any bends before you make a bad cut or hurt yourself. You could also use a belt to straighten out the blade. Simply hang the belt on the wall near your workspace. With it always in your eyesight, you’ll be less likely to forget to do this simple move before carving.

How Do You Choose a Strop?

Choosing the right leather sharpening strop is also essential for a wood-carver. I have used many of them and will share my experience with you. However, you will also probably try out some of them to find the right one for you.

How to Make a Leather Strop in 5 Steps

Every once in awhile, people ask me how to make the best knife strop. By following a few simple steps, any wood-carver can make a leather strop with their own hands. In this section, you will learn how to make a leather strop and which items are needed.

Items needed:

• Backer board – I recommend using hardwood because it needs to be flat and stable to achieve better results. Maple or walnut are the best woods to use, in my opinion.
• Leather strip – When choosing a strip, mind its hardness. You should choose hard,  untanned leather if possible. The leather should also be quite rough so that you would not have difficulties putting a honing compound on the honing strap.
• Glue – Standard wood glue will do. I have also tried using five-minute epoxy, and it worked well.
• Honing paste – Your honing strop will be more effective if you use a stropping compound. There are several options, including compound sticks and pastes. Anything will be suitable. Those materials last for months, so they are a worthwhile investment.

Step 1. Cut and level the backing board.

I have chosen to use a thinner piece of walnut.  Make sure your wood piece is level and uses sandpaper if necessary to ensure that it is.

Step 2. Make the notch.

This is not obligatory, so you can skip this step and attach the leather to the woodblock. However, I wanted to make my DIY leather strop a bit better, so I made a crosscut sled and stops on both sides of the wood to make a notch in the leather.

Step 3. Cut the leather and then secure it.

This step requires a very good knife. I recommend cutting a bigger piece of leather first. Afterward, try adjusting it to the dimensions of your DIY strop block. Once you have made it fit perfectly, glue your leather piece to the wood. I used epoxy, but if you already have wood glue, that will work too.

Step 4. Apply a mineral oil finish.

Almost there. Now apply mineral oil to your whole project. When people ask me why they should do this step, my answer is always the same. The mineral oil helps protect your wood and simplifies the process of applying a stropping compound to the leather. The coat of oil should be thick. I simply rubbed the oil to the whole block of my DIY leather strop with my hands and wiped it later.

Step 5. Apply a honing compound.

If you google some DIY instructions on how to make a leather strop, you will see that most of the wood-carvers suggest not to skip this step. If you use a stick, rub it in on the leather surface. When using a diamond paste, apply a bit to the center and then spread it with a knife or other flat metal tool.

Now that you know how to make a strop, it is time to learn how to use it.

How to Use a Strop

In this part, I will give you a general idea of how to use a leather strop. However, if you want to find more information about using a leather strop, a deeper dive into other articles on the internet can be helpful. However, I think that the best way to learn how to use a leather strop is to take your leather strop block and practice.

When you put a leather strop to use, first apply a leather strop compound to your knife strop. I started this hobby long ago and learned quickly not to overdo it with the paste. Apply just a little of the leather strop compound to your knife-sharpening strop. Usually, the leather for stropping has to be covered completely. I’ve been in some unpleasant situations when I used either too much or not enough. You shouldn’t worry, though. You will get it with some practice.

Another tip is to lay the knife bevel on top of the leather strop block. Afterward, hold your strop still, and start slightly moving the blade away from the cutter. Repeat this with the other side of the knife.

The reason to move a blade away while using a leather strop is that going in reverse will make your knife blunt, and you will make cuts in the knife-sharpening strop, damaging it.

Stroking your knife six times is usually enough.

You should do this procedure regularly if the sharpness of the tools is your priority. And trust me, it should be! Even if you think your knife is not blunt, you should sharpen it again for better results.

Of course, this short guide is not enough to truly understand how to use a leather strop. However, if you ask any other wood-carver about how to use a strop, they will tell you the same. Everyone follows the same general rules, but every professional wood-carver has his own little tricks on how to use a leather strop. They might not work for you, because everyone has his own preferences, and only by practicing and experimenting will you gain this valuable skill of sharpening knives.

Final Thoughts

You should form a habit of keeping all tools in good condition. This was the very first lesson I learned at the beginning of my career. Believe it or not, I tended to avoid putting an edge on my tools and have damaged some of them. I just didn’t want to waste my time edging those tools and regretted it later. As time passed, I learned to love this process, and currently, it is some kind of meditation for me. In the case of regular carving, you should sharpen the knives daily. This way, your knives will have the best performance and serve you for ages. Remember that you should own a minimum of one leather strop for daily usage. I suggest taking your time and trying some of them before settling on the leather strop to meet all your needs.