Found a new stropping compound

C

cap'njake

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Aug 15, 2016
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Found a new stropping compound that is a new favorite. Recently I got a twice as sharp ookami gold plus package to sharpen beauty scissors ( and every other scissors pretty much) and it came with some kind of white honing compound that works great on polishing up the convex edge of beauty scissors. Anyways I was using my belt grinder to sharpen up an old double bit axe and was going to finish on a leather belt. I happened to have a new fresh belt that hadn't been tainted yet with my usual green dialux or the white stuff that comes with the leather belts. So I decided what the heck and put that ookami compound on the belt. HOLY COW does this stuff work. It is really aggressive and really fine. It isn't very expensive at $16.55 for a one pound container. I decided to put some on a regular leather strop ( again it was a fresh strop) that is backed by a piece of maple. It applies really easily and I stropped my endura 4 on it for a few minutes. Again it appears to be really aggressive but appears to be a finish as fine as the green dialux I am used to using. Has anyone else tried this stuff? If not I would strongly encourage you to used it. I need to find out what the abrasive is that is in it. As cheap as it is I doubt it is diamond but I have never seen anything other than diamond or CBN be as agressive as this stuff is.
 
cap'njake said:
I just found out it is aluminum oxide compound
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For a white, fine compound working that fast to a polish, that sounds right. The white rouge I've been using fits a similar description of it's effectiveness; though, it's a stick/crayon-type compound and doesn't apply as easily on some surfaces. Sounds like you found some good stuff.


David
 
Congrats on finding good stuff!

I have been using Autosol which I read somewhere also Al Ox. If you have and can compare to this, feedback is much welcome!
 
If you ever really want to figure out what is in a particular polish, find the MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheet) where they have to pretty much reveal their secret ingredients. That's where I discovered that Wenol metal polish (which I can buy at a local kitchen supply store) and Simichrome metal polish (which I have to mail-order) are pretty much the exact same thing - Aluminum Oxide, mineral spirits, ammonia and kerosene, with a little iron oxide for that pink pigment.
 
MSDS' are only required to note ingredients that may pose a health or safety issue ('MSDS' = Material Safety Data Sheet). They don't have to list proprietary ingredients unless it may be a hazard (health, fire, environmental, etc). Generally, AlOx-based polishes & compounds won't be obligated to list the aluminum oxide itself, because it's not really a hazard (the binders & suspensions may be, however). Sometimes they do list such ingredients, but I've had mixed luck getting much useful info on abrasive types, from MSDS data, for that reason. Flitz, for example, doesn't list the abrasive in their MSDS, but only the petroleum (hydrocarbon) and ammonia products used in the suspension.

Some mfr's will provide such info, if asked nicely. ;)


David
 
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I've tested most of the common metal polishes, and they all appeared to be standard aluminum oxide with no obvious difference in size distribution.
The carrier is important for polishing soft metals, or where there is a chemical effect, but I don't see much impact on blade stropping.
 
In my experience with building my own compound, I noticed big differences in how some carriers/binders work with certain strop materials. Some really hold onto a given surface and other afford more mobility - it can make a real difference in how well they bite on the steel.
 
HeavyHanded said:
In my experience with building my own compound, I noticed big differences in how some carriers/binders work with certain strop materials. Some really hold onto a given surface and other afford more mobility - it can make a real difference in how well they bite on the steel.
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That's certainly true for carriers that "plug" the depressions in the surface (pores in wood or the space between the weave of a fabric). If the goal is to achieve a fine edge, we want the large/oversized particles to fall into those holes and not contribute. On the other hand, if the goal is to break away a burr then we DO want those large particles to contribute.
 
HeavyHanded said:
In my experience with building my own compound, I noticed big differences in how some carriers/binders work with certain strop materials. Some really hold onto a given surface and other afford more mobility - it can make a real difference in how well they bite on the steel.
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What do you use when you make your compound. I was looking at some aluminum oxide powder of the sub micron variety and was wondering what people use. I was thinking about maybe using paraffin wax or mixing it into some Vasaline? What do you use?
 
cap'njake said:
What do you use when you make your compound. I was looking at some aluminum oxide powder of the sub micron variety and was wondering what people use. I was thinking about maybe using paraffin wax or mixing it into some Vasaline? What do you use?
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It can take some real tinkering to get anything better than the commercial stuff.

I use a blend of beezwax, paraffin, and a small amount of pine rosin. My stuff clings better to paper then commercial stuff, which use stearine almost universally. It can be found among the candle making supplies.
 
I've been using the Tormek 3 micron stuff for quite a while, and for real-world performance that won't take the tooth off your edges, this stuff works great. Of course it won't give you anything in the way of cosmetic finish/polish. Just recently I decided to check out CBN, so I got a small container for the Gritomatic 1 micron CBN compound, it was $15. Pretty pleased with that compared to the Tormek and put it on my basswood block, now trying it as a general purpose compound for finishing and stropping.
 
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