Thread: DIY pasted balsa paddles in Oz

G’day all,
thought I would share this little project from last week
I bit info heavy maybe but here we Go
I decided to add a pasted Balsa paddle strop to my honing & stropping line up to possibly help smooth out some of my harsher edges.
So I decided if I am making myself one I might as well make one for my nephew also at the same time for up keep of his Str8's also
to reduce clutter i chose to make them double sided with 0.3µ Chrox & 0.1µ Ferrox pastes
All materials are locally sourced in Australia to save on postage etc. as much as possible

Paddle:
Base is 65mm x 12mm Tassie Oak - about $25 for 1.2m from Bunning’s
Balsa was 75mm x 3mm - about $5 for 0.9m from Bunning’s
PVA Glue - Bunning’s $5

Pastes:
Kremmer pigments from Art Spectrum in Melbourne
100g bag of each 0.3µ Chrox & 0.1µ Ferrox powder - $30 delivered
Singer sewing machine oil 100ml - $4 Woolies

Covers:
2 sheets of A4 embossed card - free from work

so materials covered the following:
2 off paddles 330mm long over all (13") with enough left over for a nice long leather paddle or 2 more 8" balsa strops with no handles
4 off Balsa pads 220mm (8 1/2") with no left overs
enough paste for a hundred strops
1 cover per sheet

So I cut the Tassie oak to length & cut out the grip with my coping saw, I was a bit rough hand sawing the curves but the file & sand paper hides most of it well.
once clean up I glued the Balsa to the Oak with a even coating of PVA glue & clamped them between some larger planks I had & left them over night to dry
once all dry I trimmed & sanded the balsa to match the base sides
then lapped flat with the 600, 800 & 1200 paper on glass as I do my hones.
sealed the exposed Tassie oak with a couple of coats of a bees wax polish (leather sealer) I have used on many a wood project to water proof it.

For the paste I put about half a teaspoon max of powder in a small tub then mixed an even amount of the oil with it until it had a toothpaste type consistency
I dipped the tip of my glove covered finger in the paste & applied it to the balsa, I did about 6-8 spots with the tip of my finger on the balsa then spread it all over with my finger then palm of my hand came out like oil based paint.
now half of this was still on my hands when finished & still got half of the batch left.
changed to new gloves & repeated with the other paste other side
hung them in the shed & left to dry overnight - checked next night & still wet
3 days later still wet to touch (was a wet week so could add to it), so I used a paper towel to remove the remaining excess paste which wasn't much but it goes a long way.
left overnight again & all was good to go.

Made the covers using the same basic principles as the Razor case inside sleeves only larger.

So total cost was around $70 for all materials bought, not to bad I think for 2 pasted double sided balsa paddle strops (plus spares) in my hand in Australia.
made a small jar of each paste for the nephew for up keep of the strop should last a life time as he only has 2 blades.

Unfortunately I gave the Nephews to him before I took any photos of the pair together & forgot to take the action in progress shots also (this might be a good thing after my sawing efforts).
but here are some photos of my finished paddle for reference.




next is to try make a paste crayon with some of the powder for better storage, travelability & ease of application & spreading the powders on other substances like a polishing pads?

If you have any luck with the crayon let me know how you did it. I've managed great pastes but never figured out a carrier for a crayon that wouldn't affect leather. Posted a thread for advice without any luck. Good luck with the crayon

After looking ant how they make crayons
I am leaning towards about a 1:1 mix of paraffin and bees wax maybe more bees wax if required to soften it more
Then equal parts wax to powder
I will post as I work it out

I use a 2:1 mix of beeswax and paraffin to make a soft crayon. The softer they are the easier it is to get them on strop. Of course, the softer they are the more careful you have to be with storage in a hot climate.

You can also just add the powder to warmed up mink oil, let it cool, and work that into leather. Warning - warm mink oil does not smell very pleasant.

Thanks Chris, do you maintain a 1:1 ratio of wax to powder or more powder to wax?
Regards Dion

2 parts beeswax, 1 part paraffin, and as much CrOx as I can add in. Probably close to 2 parts CrOx.

Excellent paddles brother! I make similar ones for teaching knives and razors. I use a spray adhesive to bond the balsa/leather to the paddle. The spray adhesive is light duty and enables me to change the balsa or leather when needed. Students tend to cut up the leather during the learning process so its nice to have the ability to change it out.

thanks Oz, I like the idea of easily changing of the substrat if required

Great paddle!!
Please do you remember the Kremer pigments codes for the 0.3µ Chrox & 0.1µ Ferrox powder.
I've found out the CrOx (44200) but not the right one for the 0.1µ Ferrox powder.
Thanks you for your help

see post number 8.

http://straightrazorpalace.com/gener...ide-usage.html