205H Double-Sided Leather Strop 13.2" x 2.4" Kit, Genuine Cowhide Stropping Block with 2 oz Polishing Compound & Angle Guide, Knife Strop for Honing Knives, Tools, Gifts for Men

This strop is a good size for just about any knife including large kitchen knives. The leather seems to be decent though the coarse side does seem like it will wear down easier than the smooth side and not last as long.I did not like the included polishing compound so cleaned that off and instead got some 3-6 micron diamond paste which works much better and is less messy.Using this after sharpening with a KME sharpening system gets a super bright mirror finish on my knives and gets them to be sharper than I ever got them before. Regularly using this strop on them to "top them off" allows me to go longer between sharpening sessions.I hope this strop lasts a long time. It works well and seems to be a good value.

Works really well and has lasted since I bought it a couple years ago. Black compound on rough side dose really well and honing and sharpening. Green on the smooth side really polishes the sage. I’m able to get my knives scary sharp. Size is suited for all my bush knives and bigger kitchen knives. Easy to use and dissent require precise angle because it’s barely taking material.

These are made like the old ones you remember from 30, 40+ years ago. They are very good quality and reasonably priced. The added angle guide is also a major plus and nudges this particular leather knife strop over and above many of the other cheaper ones. Included is also the quality green polishing compound many of us knife guys have used for decades. I used it too in the past on mine but for this new one I think I am going to switch to and load it with diamond paste to try it out. It might even work a little better, who knows yet until you try it. The diamond pastes are kind of pricey though. They do include the common green if you are not in the market for and don't have the budget for the extra diamond paste. You are going to spend as much or double the price of this whole strop kit if you go that way, so be mindful of that. The green still works though and it's what we all used for decades in the past.

Quick arrival, decent quality, as described and gets the job done!

I sharpen knives and tools professionally, and I wanted a new strop for that final finishing polish. My other strop already has green honing compound on it, and so I plan to use the green compound that came with this Sharpal paddle strop on my other strop.The Sharpal strop is mounted on a wood paddle with a good handle and 8 inches of leather on each side. One side has high quality smooth leather, and the other side has a suede side, also high quality and thicker leather than I usually see on other strops. I needed several uses on the suede side to get a uniform surface feel. The smooth side is very uniform leather with no irregularities in the fine grain.The strop handle has a hole in it so that the strop can be hung in the workshop. Because I travel to sharpen, I store my strop in the sturdy cardboard box that it came in.The strop comes with an angle guide, although this has to be used with care to avoid cutting the leather. Place the angle guide at the end of the strop, with the appropriate angle facing away from the leather. Place your knife flat against the desired angle and carefully observe how the knife appears. Then remove the angle guide, set the knife at the memorized angle, and pull the knife so that it drags across the leather, with the edge trailing behind the blade. (Stropping methods are easier to watch on YouTube than explain in words.)After you have stropped a few times, you probably won't need the angle guide except as an occasional reminder.The green compound that comes with the paddle strop appears to be of good quality. Not too hard, not too soft.One of the photos shows the smooth side of the paddle. A ruler shows the length of the leather. The angle guide also appears, along with a Puma skinner knife made in 1971.The other photo shows the suede side, and also a tall petty knife made from pipeline steel by Dao Vua, a Vietnamese forger.I am very happy with this Sharpal 205H double-sided leather strop and expect to get years of use from it.

The course strop on one side, the smooth on the other. A very nice wood handle makes this idea for edge touch ups while working. A nice little angle guide and fresh compound round out the kit. Comes in a heavy box appropriate for storing it all and keeping it in nice shape.I keep it on the bench while carving, or doing the weekly sharpening. Not sure it's a 'replacement' for your hanging strop, but time will tell. I'm very pleased, a professional tool, nicely done!

I have been using a leather strop that I acquired from an old barber shop several years ago. It recently became less than effective and I decided to upgrade to this two sided strop. The effect was immediate, and produced a very fine edge! Something about a good stopping session is quite comforting to me, and this one is especially nice!!

This is an excellent bargain, a great free-hand strop! The angle guide may be helpful for some, but learning to stope without it is not difficult since the green compound is very forgiving! The included compound could use a bit of an upgrade.It has nice soft leather and is designed well, it’s ergonomic and easy to use. and has a great price, This is highly recommended for your sharpening tool kit!!!I recommend getting two of them, even though they’re double sided having one for green compound, and one for white compound is very convenient. This leaves clean leather on the opposite side of each stope, and will avoid cross contamination of your compounds.

Straight out of the box this is a good product. The instructions are slightly awkwardly translated but don't let that make you think you made a mistake.This took a knife sharpened to the limits of what a grinding stone can achieve to sharp enough to shave with.If you're not used to using a strop then I strongly suggest you do your homework or you will ruin the leather. There's plenty of video guides and the guide via the QR code is sufficient to stop you messing up. The basic instructions on the box should also be read.Both leather slabs are very well fixed to a very sturdy board. Nothing flexes or feels loose.Both surfaces do the job they are required to do and do it well.This isn't a pick up and just go at it product. You need to take time to learn how to use it or you will ruin your blades or wreck the strop surface. I cannot stress this enough.I used this alongside the Sharpal dual-grit diamond stone to take an embarrassingly dull knife back to extremely sharp within half an hour of patient and careful grinding and stropping. I did this by learning properly how to use it and taking time over about a week before really going for it with any valuable knives.

Its a nice one. Comfortable and sharps good. Love the both side

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Super qualité, le couteau glisse tout seul sur le cuir, c'est super agréable.Mais en plus, il y a un vrai gros morceau de pâte à polir qui est bon pour durer des années et un guide d'angle pour l'aiguisage qui sont vendus avec le strop !Même si j'avais déjà de la pâte à polir ainsi que le guide d'angle de la même marque acheté il y a quelques mois.Je ne conseille pas du tout de chauffer la pâte pour la répartir sur le cuir, car ça risque faire des gros morceaux dans le cuir et il ne faut surtout pas faire ça.Le mieux est de frotter sans forcer tout le cuir, en prenant son temps, petit à petit le cuir deviendra vert et pour répartir la pâte encore mieux, venir frotter avec la paume de la main de haut en bas. Jusqu'à avoir un cuir bien vert, mais pas non plus surchargé ! Il faut qu'on puisse encore sentir le côté granuleux du cuir en dessous.J'ai souvent vu des personnes sur YouTube qui surchargent beaucoup trop leur cuir de pâte, c'est une erreur. Ça enlève tout l'intérêt de passer la lame sur le cuir, ça gaspille la pâte à polir et ça réduit fortement la durée de vie et l'efficacité du cuir.Sur ce strop, le cuir n'est pas très épais, alors il faut mieux y aller doucement avec la pâte à polir.Ça pourrait être vu comme un défaut d'avoir un cuir qui n'est pas épais. Mais c'est seulement avec le temps que je pourrai dire si oui ou non la qualité est largement suffisante, sans avoir besoin d'une grosse épaisseur.De l'autre côté de l'objet, il ne faut surtout pas mettre de pâte à polir, il faut laisser la matière telle qu'elle est. Ça sert à nettoyer la lame (même si c'est mieux de laver la lame après l'utilisation du cuir) est à ajouter un polissage de finition ultra fin.Et pour comparer avec ce qu'on trouve pour 3 ou 5€ sur des sites chinois, ça n'a strictement aucun rapport. Le prix est justifié. C'est du vrai cuir, pas une très mauvaise copie synthétique de cuir qui n'aura que très peu d'effet sur la lame.Suite à un aiguisage à la pierre Japonaise grain 1000 et 6000, la lame avait toujours du mal à couper du papier sans faire des petites déchirures.Une fois que j'ai passé la lame sur le cuir, elle est devenue tranchante et le papier se coupait sans la moindre accroche.Donc pour dire qu'il y a un vrai effet, ce cuir est très bon, utile et même obligatoire pour une finition soignée suite à un aiguisage à la pierre qui demande de la patience et de la concentration. Ce serait dommage de s'en passer, car la différence après un passage au cuir est vraiment importante.J'ai aussi utilisé le cuir sur un couteau qui coupait déjà, mais que je m'étais servi pour couper du plastique épais, donc légèrement abimé son tranchant.Le simple fait de passer la lame au cuir lui a fait retrouver son tranchant rasoir.Bref, très content de mon choix. Car en plus d'avoir un cuir de bonne qualité, on a un gros morceau de pâte à polir et un guide d'angle pour aiguiser au plus proche de la perfection.

Excellent product, well designed and made; the tiny pyramid is the key to maintaining the all-important stropping angle.Both sides of the paddle have the leather surface perfectly aligned to the wood base so there’s never any bulge or wave in the leather, that causes a change in the angle.And for those considering only buying the leather instead of this version: the leather fixed to the paddle- don’t!This is far more effective, you need the leather to be raised above your work bench (or kitchen platform) just that 25 or 30 mm, that this paddle provides.The included green compound (Al oxide) should last a long time.Good value, I initially thought this was an expensive purchase, now I don’t.