[Woodcarver] a dull sharpening question

[Dave Andreychek]

Friends,

I have a 1" x 30" belt sander that I wish to use to sharpen carving tools.

1.  where can I find a leather belt for it to be used as a strop?

2.  a friend uses this tool to sharpen his knives using sanding belts 
with compound on them.  The belt rotates downward and he holds the knife 
sharp side upwards.  Is this the correct knife orientation?

3.  just a word of caution:  he cautioned me to first clean out all 
sawdust from the belt sander before using it to sharpen tools because 
there is a danger of sparks starting a fire.

Thanks for listening.

Dave
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A good wife who can find?  She is more precious than jewels.
                 Proverbs 31:10

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