Factory edge: what grit?

H

HMHoek

Joined
Jun 11, 2003
Messages
14
My Kershaw Vapor and Camillus EDC 154CM came in the mail Friday finally, after waiting a month an a half. Bladematrix lost my order and had to be slapped around a little to get it right. They gave me free shipping though for my trouble.

Anyway...

I've been practicing my sharpening and have gotten pretty good. I can get a shaving edge with a soft Arkansas stone freehand now pretty consistently. I also have a Lansky set that does a good job.

I decided to compare the Kershaw to an Aitor fixed blade that I got off eBay as a blade to practice on. The Aitor was reprofiled with the Lansky and finished on the 2000 grit ceramic stone, then polished on a buffing wheel with red rouge compound. It shaves effortlessly. Not bad for a $7 knife.

Anyway, I put both under a microscope to compare the edges. The Aitor looks almost mirror polished at 100x, but at 430x I can clearly see the marks left by the hone. At 100x, the Kershaw is perfectly smooth , and at 430x it still looks almost mirror finished. I think it's significantly smoother than even a new x-acto blade I looked at a long time ago. It's smoother than any of the electron micrographs in Lee's "The Complete Guide to Sharpening" even.

To get this finish should I go to a fine waterstone before buffing again? I have a 1000/6000 waterstone that I haven't really used yet, and my dad has one that might be even finer. After that, is there a buffing compound that might be a better choice than the rouge?
(FYI, I always buff away from the edge)

I'm just playing with different sharpening methods here. I have a few cheap test blades (the Aitor, some Master folders, a Pakistani piece of junk I got by mistake) and I try different methods on them.

Also- I got the Harbor Freight 3 pack of 2x6" diamond stones for $12. They're pretty coarse; I doubt DMT has anything to worry about but they're good for reprofiling. Regardless, $12 for 3 diamond stones is unbeatable.

I used to be able to get a good image with a video camera from my microscope. If I can get a decent picture with my digital camera I'll post some images of these edges.
 
The polishing tapes on my Edge Pro give a very polished edge at 3000 grit, so I imagine your waterstone should give similar results. I know that waterstone grits aren't directly comparable to traditional grits, but 6000 is still pretty fine. I'd be very interested in seeing pics from your microscope once you get the chance.
 
CrO is about the finest buffing compound at 0.5 micron, there is also a similar diamond paste. Using very fine hones before buffing won't really improve the finish as it will be set mainly by the end grit. However using a very fine stone before the buffer (6000-8000 grit is 1-3 microns), will speed up the buffing time.

-Cliff
 
My digicam's macro mode works great with the microscope, so tonight I will post pictures of the following at 100x and 430x:

- Kershaw Vapor factory edge
- Camillus EDC 154CM factory edge
- crap Pakistani edge, steeled
- Aitor edge, Lansky LS2000 + buffing wheel w/rouge
 
Nice pictures. In the last shot of the Aitor, there is a huge notch missing along the edge, was that just an isolated incident? A similar, but reduced problem can be seen with the Vapor.

-Cliff
 
The Aitor has a few imperfections, it's true. It was used (or abused) hard before I bought it. I noticed that notch when I took the picture and verified that it is visible to the naked eye and I can feel it when I run the edge of my fingernail over the edge. I'm more interested in the best pats of the edge rather than the worst. It's more than usable as it stands.

As for the Vapor, you have to realize that the depth of field is almost nil and the only part of that image that is in focus is the area slightly below and to the left of the center. What can I say? Whe factory left it that way ;)
 
For the finest dry polishing compound, try jewelry supply houses. They have aluminum oxide powder the is as fine as 0.3µm. It is generally sold as "Sapphire powder".

For a super fine stone that will NEVER show any wear, try a translucent Arkansas stone. They are expensive, but worth it if you are into a super smooth edge. I have been using one since 1982 that is still absolutely flat. It is way finer than the surgical black Arkansas stone.

I don't like the water stones because they wear away so fast.
 
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