One last observation I have, though, is that I don't think people generally strop enough to get the full benefit of the green compound. Even finishing on my finer stones, I find that I need as many as 40-50 strokes to get a the full benefit of the strop, if not more, depending on how much pressure is used.
One of the books in my library suggests no more than 10 strokes on either side of a blade when stropping.
Today off of my 8000 stone only 5 stokes on the strop were used on either side to get to a fine polish.
My strop is leather and is loaded with green compound from a lapidary supply store.
My experience with stropping much more than 10 strokes is the likelihood of rounding the edge.
jtk
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
- Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)