Alcohol destroys diamond grit?

S

Slash4306

Joined
Jul 1, 2025
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Today I used my Shapal 162N to sharpen a knife which I had marked the edges with a Sharpie marker.

When satisfied, I cleaned the knife and "stone" with alcohol to remove the marker lines.

I now have a dual grit diamond stone which is missing most of it's grit, both sides..

There is no warning on any printed material from Sharpal as to the use of alcohol on their stones.

Has any one else had this problem?

Thanks for your response.
 
arent the diamond pieces electroplated on? seems weird rubbing alcohol would break down the electroplating. maybe contact the maker and see what gives....did ya get a bad one or is this something we should all know not to do routine.....
 
I use alcohol wipes to clean my diamond stones all the time, that shouldn't happen.
 
Something's very wrong with that diamond plate.

Alcohol shouldn't faze either the nickel or the diamond, or the bond between them if it's clean. Seems like there was something faulty about the bond between the nickel and the diamond, like some sort of contamination (oil, grease, etc.). If that were the case, I could see alcohol or other solvents breaking down whatever contaminant was between the two. Maybe that's why the diamond came out.
 
We need way more info. Did you wipe diamonds off the stone?? Pictures? Alcohol won't do anything to diamond crystals or nickel, no idea about what they use to bond the diamonds with, as it is always more than nickel. Still, isopropyl alcohol is a pretty safe solvent, assuming that is what you used.

How sure are you that it is the alcohol that caused the diamonds to shed? Was there any color to the alcohol as you wiped or drained it off?
 
Alcohol won't affect nickel plating or diamonds. The diamonds are affixed to the steel backing by nickel plating-electroplating or electroless nickel.
 
If you've had it less than 3 years, you probably have a valid warranty claim. Might as well ask Sharpal. Would love to hear any explanation they might have.
 
Browsed a few Amazon reviews of this hone this morning. Largely positive, but there are some complaints of the diamond coming off relatively quickly with light use. So, it doesn't seem too unrealistic to assume Sharpal might be having occasional issues with their plating or bonding process. Might not be related to the alcohol at all.

On the upside though, it also looks like their customer service is reviewed fairly positively, with buyers receiving replacements upon contacting them. That might be the logical next step.
 
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I have a Sharpal and I love it.I know Outdoors55 says not to use water as any micropores in the nickel plating can introduce moisture beneath the plating and start rust and peeling.I just brush mine off and if there are any persistent swarf I will rub it off with a high polymer eraser.They can be found in the school supplies dept.
 
I use a spray bottle of isopropyl alcohol on my diamond plates all the time. Maybe you were pressing too hard?
 
Obsessed with Edges said:
Browsed a few Amazon reviews of this hone this morning. Largely positive, but there are some complaints of the diamond coming off relatively quickly with light use. So, it doesn't seem too unrealistic to assume Sharpal might be having occasional issues with their plating or bonding process. Might not be related to the alcohol at all.

On the upside though, it also looks like their customer service is reviewed fairly positively, with buyers receiving replacements upon contacting them. That might be the logical next step.
Click to expand...

Makes me wonder if some seller shipped a bunch of fake ones to Amazon to sell and they got mixed in with the authentic units since Amazon mixes all of the same items together from all sellers.
 
Ha-ha
after sintering graphite capsules containing diamond powder are dissolved in aqua regia and chromic anhydride for enrichment
:)
quality metal and electroplated bonds can not be affected by alcohol

ha-ha again
 
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