Need Help with Stropping Techniques for Woodcarving!

It sounds like you’re on the right track! You’ll definitely know when you’ve got the right angle—once you've practiced a bit, it becomes instinctive. If your knife isn’t sharp enough after stropping, you can adjust the angle slightly, but be careful not to overdo it; too much experimentation could dull it more.

For sharpening, it really depends on how much wear your knife has seen. If you want to stick just to stropping, that's usually sufficient for regular maintenance. But if you notice it getting dull, having a good quality whetstone on hand is a wise idea. Just make sure to choose something that’s available in your area since you’re in the UK.

Getting the angle right is key! I recommend placing your knife flat on the strop and then tilting it gently until the whole sharpened part is making contact. You'll start to feel the difference because if your angle is off, the knife will drag more. A good test to check your knife's sharpness is to slice through some basswood endgrain; if it cuts smoothly, you're good to go!

As for the strop setup, you can definitely mix compounds if you like, but I suggest sticking to one compound per side to keep it simple. An old leather belt with the rough side up on a board works great too. And remember, stropping does sharpen your knife; it removes tiny amounts of metal, so if you keep it well maintained, you might not need to sharpen often.