A better way to strop with a guided system ?

[wade7575]

If your like me you get sick of paying for expense leather to strop with on a guided system and it's easier to cut a strop on a guided system then it is free hand stropping,a while back Beansandcarrots on this forum posted a thread about using MDF and cheap Badak Diamond Paste from ebay and it got me to thinking if you can MDF to strop free hand why not use it on a guided system to strop with.

Here are the result's I got using MDF strop's I made up and mounted to blanks 4 8 and 10K Badak diamond paste I there is a 3K in the picture that's just a mistake on my part,I found that the Badak diamond paste cut alright but was not as fast as the next paste I used witch I will talk about next,I also have made up some strop's out 1/4 MDF the ones in the picture are 3/4 either will work fine but I decided to switch because I have some 2x8 bag's I use to store my leather strop's in and these would not come out of the bag very easy and I do not want to tear the bag's all the time.

From what I can tell the black stuff is metal that the diamond paste removed as the paste's are pink and other color's.

I next tried Poltava Diamond Tool's .5 1 and 3K CBN paste and their .1 diamond paste,when applied to the MDF strop there is a light grey color to the strop and that's about it and the more you strop the more dark the MDF get's with swarf,I also found the Poltava product to much faster then the Badak diamond paste and I think the Poltava stuff is what I going to stick with from now on.

The nice thing about using the MDF is that you can much faster if you want to,I used my Tsprof K02 and I did not use sweeping strokes when I stropped I just pulled the strop back and forth full length in the same spot on the edge and worked my way down the blade and you can also use a surprising amount of pressure and the MDF does not get cut into either using a back and forth stroke method,I'm not saying you should use a ton of pressure when stropping I was playing around to see what would happen.

Here is a picture of my Spyderco Valloton I just picked up for cheap off of a seller on ebay,I also was not going for a perfect mirror polished edge just a really good sharp polished edge,I also sharpened and stropped a Manix 2 XL with the MDF method and both have S30v blade steel.

 

[RadialBladeworks]

Nice results! It’s nice being able to go back and forth eh?

Hey, what are your thoughts on the CBN pastes that you use? I’ve had some pretty peculiar results with my CBN. Would you recommend the Poltava stuff?

 

[wade7575]

I really the Poltava stuff they are a company with a very good record and they make stuff for industrial use as well and they make everything from the Metallic bonded CBN and Diamond stones to grinding wheels that go big industrial machine's for sharpening stuff as well.

What I like about the Poltava paste is that they tell you on the bottle they put 4 carat's of diamond or CBN in their paste depending on witch one you buy plus you get 40 grams at a very reasonable price,it's a bit like the Badak stuff but much better the Poltava is a bit thicker then the Badak.

 

[RadialBladeworks]

I really the Poltava stuff they are a company with a very good record and they make stuff for industrial use as well and they make everything from the Metallic bonded CBN and Diamond stones to grinding wheels that go big industrial machine's for sharpening stuff as well.

What I like about the Poltava paste is that they tell you on the bottle they put 4 carat's of diamond or CBN in their paste depending on witch one you buy plus you get 40 grams at a very reasonable price,it's a bit like the Badak stuff but much better the Poltava is a bit thicker then the Badak.

Excellent. You make a great point, too. They are the only manufacturers that I know of that actually put the specific abrasive density on the bottle. That's a massive thumbs-up from me

 

[sparkyvega]

I had no idea one could use MDF instead of leather for stropping. Thanks for the info, wade7575.

 

[wade7575]

When I seen 4 carat's I thought that was pretty high and was very impressed.

Excellent. You make a great point, too. They are the only manufacturers that I know of that actually put the specific abrasive density on the bottle. That's a massive thumbs-up from me

 

[RadialBladeworks]

I'm hyped. For the same price as 2oz of BRK CBN, I just order 18 40 gram pastes lmao. Looking forward to testing them out. Poltava makes good stuff, so I have high hopes

 

[M-S-T]

I think that Poltava pastes are average at the best. 4 carats per 40grams is a standard 'medium' concentration for industrial polishing pastes. If you have some kind of unknown diamond/cbn paste without marking it's most likely the same or very similar concentration. They also make high concentration pastes, but I have not seen them on the market. Because they were not designed for stropping, the formula of the paste is far from perfect. I'm not saying that it does not work, it does, but it can be very waxy. It sticks to the blade and if you are using several grits, you have to clean the blade and sometimes it is very time consuming and annoying. Also, I have noticed that if you have a corse edge and you trying to strop it, the paste sticks to the apex like wax in some spots. Cbn pastes are a little better in that regard.
As for the stropping. If you are not going for the mirror edge you can strop basically with anything, wood, MDF, paper, old jeans, etc.

 

[wade7575]

I just keep a rag around and whatever cleaner I'm using to off the paste when I'm done stropping with one when I move to the next,I figure it's a small price when compared to the cost of CBN paste's and emulsions from sharpening suppliers online,a friend of mine just got 9 containers of Poltava diamond paste off of ebay for 26 bucks and another 12 for the shipping if you got that from an onlie retailer who's selling sharpening supplies I bet the guy would asking 200 to 250 for the who set and most likely the same stuff with a different label slapped on it.

Don't get me wrong I'd like to get 40 grams of each done up let a gel to make it easier to clean but at the same time I don't find it to much trouble to wipe off the excess either.

I think that Poltava pastes are average at the best. 4 carats per 40grams is a standard 'medium' concentration for industrial polishing pastes. If you have some kind of unknown diamond/cbn paste without marking it's most likely the same or very similar concentration. They also make high concentration pastes, but I have not seen them on the market. Because they were not designed for stropping, the formula of the paste is far from perfect. I'm not saying that it does not work, it does, but it can be very waxy. It sticks to the blade and if you are using several grits, you have to clean the blade and sometimes it is very time consuming and annoying. Also, I have noticed that if you have a corse edge and you trying to strop it, the paste sticks to the apex like wax in some spots. Cbn pastes are a little better in that regard.
As for the stropping. If you are not going for the mirror edge you can strop basically with anything, wood, MDF, paper, old jeans, etc.

 

[RadialBladeworks]

I think that Poltava pastes are average at the best. 4 carats per 40grams is a standard 'medium' concentration for industrial polishing pastes. If you have some kind of unknown diamond/cbn paste without marking it's most likely the same or very similar concentration. They also make high concentration pastes, but I have not seen them on the market. Because they were not designed for stropping, the formula of the paste is far from perfect. I'm not saying that it does not work, it does, but it can be very waxy. It sticks to the blade and if you are using several grits, you have to clean the blade and sometimes it is very time consuming and annoying. Also, I have noticed that if you have a corse edge and you trying to strop it, the paste sticks to the apex like wax in some spots. Cbn pastes are a little better in that regard.
As for the stropping. If you are not going for the mirror edge you can strop basically with anything, wood, MDF, paper, old jeans, etc.

Would you be able to recommend any pastes you consider top end? Norton and DMT have obviously been fantastic, but are there any other names you could provide? I am always interested in a new stropping compound (or waterstone, but that's beside the point)

 

[wade7575]

Really all the credit goes to Beansandcarrots if I did not see his thread before it was deleted I never would have thought of using MDF for stropping,his thread was deleted for linking to ebay or amazon from what I was told.

I had no idea one could use MDF instead of leather for stropping. Thanks for the info, wade7575.

 

[M-S-T]

I just keep a rag around and whatever cleaner I'm using to off the paste when I'm done stropping with one when I move to the next,I figure it's a small price when compared to the cost of CBN paste's and emulsions from sharpening suppliers online,a friend of mine just got 9 containers of Poltava diamond paste off of ebay for 26 bucks and another 12 for the shipping if you got that from an onlie retailer who's selling sharpening supplies I bet the guy would asking 200 to 250 for the who set and most likely the same stuff with a different label slapped on it.

Don't get me wrong I'd like to get 40 grams of each done up let a gel to make it easier to clean but at the same time I don't find it to much trouble to wipe off the excess either.

You are right. Your friend got a very good deal. But just make some calculation. Poltava paste costs around 15 dollars ( from local USA distributor). You get 40g of paste with 4 carats of abrasive. It works well with balsa, wood. It does not work very well with paper/carton strop ( oil softens paper a lot) and good leather. If you have some fancy leather stop the oil makes it softer. Of course, many users do not care much about it and it's ok. Sharpening is very personal experience . Now let's take the cheapest monocrystalline diamond spray/emulsion. It costs around 20-25 dollars per 2oz. which is around 56g, but it contains 10carats of abrasive. It contains only abrasive and carrier which evaporates and leaves almost only abrasive on the surface of your strop. Plus it has better price/quality/quantity ratio because you getting 2,5 times more abrasive for extra 5-10 dollars. And it will work flawlessly with any strop. Just my 2 cents.

 

[M-S-T]

Would you be able to recommend any pastes you consider top end? Norton and DMT have obviously been fantastic, but are there any other names you could provide? I am always interested in a new stropping compound (or waterstone, but that's beside the point)

I have tried almost every compound on the market and to be honest, WE and DMT did not impress me at all. They are not waxy and works ok, but the price/quality/quantity ratio is bad. They are expensive and you get only a few grams. I don't like pastes in general. But it's just me. If we are talking about oil-based pastes. The best one to this day that I have found was made in Ukraine by a small private company that makes all kind of diamond tools. It is oil based but has a soft creamy consistency. It will dry out on the leather after application and it contains 1,25 ct of diamonds per 5g of paste which equals to 10ct per 40g. One syringe costs 2-3 dollars on his site. I think he is also on eBay. That paste was designed for jewelry polishing and has a different formula and feel. If someone interested pm me I could find directions how to find him.

 

[wade7575]

I think I know the company your talking about they are also Poltava Ukraine I know most people don't know Poltava is a town and they are a small company that makes high concentration stuff that has 10 carats per 40 grams.

I have tried the emulsions and personally they did not work as fast as the Poltava stuff on MDF for me just didn't care for it,I try finding some hardwood I know where I can oak bass wood and maple for free in the size's I would want to may strop's from it and I may do that if the MDF falls apart with the Poltava paste's.

There's a guy selling diamond powders very cheap on ebay and you get a lot for the little you pay they are between 6 to 8 bucks a bag and he has a lot of grit's and goes as high as 200,000 look for an add with a picture that say's techdiamondtools.com I'd post a link but the last time Beansandcarrots did that his thread was deleted.

I have tried almost every compound on the market and to be honest, WE and DMT did not impress me at all. They are not waxy and works ok, but the price/quality/quantity ratio is bad. They are expensive and you get only a few grams. I don't like pastes in general. But it's just me. If we are talking about oil-based pastes. The best one to this day that I have found was made in Ukraine by a small private company that makes all kind of diamond tools. It is oil based but has a soft creamy consistency. It will dry out on the leather after application and it contains 1,25 ct of diamonds per 5g of paste which equals to 10ct per 40g. One syringe costs 2-3 dollars on his site. I think he is also on eBay. That paste was designed for jewelry polishing and has a different formula and feel. If someone interested pm me I could find directions how to find him.

 

[M-S-T]

I think I know the company your talking about they are also Poltava Ukraine I know most people don't know Poltava is a town and they are a small company that makes high concentration stuff that has 10 carats per 40 grams.

I have tried the emulsions and personally they did not work as fast as the Poltava stuff on MDF for me just didn't care for it,I try finding some hardwood I know where I can oak bass wood and maple for free in the size's I would want to may strop's from it and I may do that if the MDF falls apart with the Poltava paste's.

There's a guy selling diamond powders very cheap on ebay and you get a lot for the little you pay they are between 6 to 8 bucks a bag and he has a lot of grit's and goes as high as 200,000 look for an add with a picture that say's techdiamondtools.com I'd post a link but the last time Beansandcarrots did that his thread was deleted.

I would not recommend mixing your own diamond suspensions/emulsions. I have experimented with them in the past and while it kind of works with low grit powder the higher you go the more agglomeration of particles you get. Manufacturers use special technology to disperse the particles in the carrier.

 

[wade7575]

I was kind of thinking with the paste's it would be pretty tough to mix the particle's in it if it is oil based paste,the particle's are so fine I would think you be mixing for a very long time before you would ever get it mixed up properly if that would even be possible.