Are you using a lighted magnified visual aid like a jeweler’s loupe. Or maybe a USB Microscope .
Being able to see your sharpening results are invaluable.
I’d suggest you simplify the issue. Only sharpen to 1000 grit, to start. Visually inspect your sharpening progress and finished edges to be sure the apex is true, exposed and there are no remnants of any burr. That the knife is sharpened well and properly to begin with.
I suggest you use an alternating side, left-right-left-right, edge leading stroke, down and against the knife edge, as your final sharpening strokes to end each grit, you use.
Drop the extra fine stones and the strops. Don’t do any touch ups with the Sharpmaker or even your pants leg.
Use that knife as usual. When it looses it’s sharpness, visually inspect the knife edge. This should let you see exactly what you’re dealing with. Inspect the entire length of the edge and both sides.
Now, with just that one knife, alone, add the sharpening steps back, only one extra step at a time. Finer stones, then stropping. Use the knife till it needs sharpening, again. (No touchups with ceramic rods). By isolating the indivual steps and adding them back systematically, one at a time, and visually inspecting the edge each time, you should be able to see how and where your edge failure is.
Stropping can add to or take away from your sharpness results. It’s a sharpening skill unto itself. Like sharpening, stropping takes practice, too. It’s suggested that you strop the knife edge at 1º to 2º less an angle than the sharpened bevel angle. That is if you sharpened at 20º, then strop at 18º-19º. This is to prevent rounding over the sharpened edge by stropping. Applied stropping pressure effects the results. The idea is to coordinate your angle reduction to coincide with your applied stropping pressure. (Start with 2º)
The S30V is a really tough steel, but brittle. I’d expect it to stand up well to use. Cardboard and paper are two of the toughest substrates to cut with a knife. I’d expect the S30V steel to wear off, or chip off, not roll the edge.
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