I think I've loaded up my diamond Sharpmaker rods. How to clean?

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farmboy

Joined
Aug 31, 1999
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I've been trying to reprofile my ZT 350 edge using diamond rods in my Sharpmaker, but progress is exceedingly slow. I know SV30 is tough stuff, but man......

At any rate, I think the rods are loaded up.

How do I "unload" them?
 
Wet a dish towel. Apply some Bar Keeper's Friend or Comet. I prefer Bar Keeper's Friend. Scrub the stones rinsing occasionally until they look clean again. A toothbrush may also aid in loosening the metal particles.
 
You pulled the diamonds out of the Nickel plate where they were codeposited the Nickel. The problem with "diamond" stones as I see it, if you use pressure, the "stones" wear out. If you don't use pressure, it takes twice as long to sharpen a knife as it does with Silicon Carbide or Aluminum Oxide. I have retired all of my diamond "stones". Life is too short.
 
I've heard of the problems with these things if too much pressure is applied, but I've tried to go easy. As I look closely, though, I'm wondering if I may have worn them out anyway.
 
It would take some serious force to knock them out, and as for wearing them out in one sharpening, that's impossible unless you were sharpening other diamonds. If you are wondering if they are still there, move them around under strong light. You should see the diamonds twinkling. A better check is with a good loupe or magnifier. The SharpMaker diamond rods are very coarse, so the diamonds should be readily visible at 10X.
 
Sort of presumptive, in a blanket assumption that the diamond rods are ruined. A very simple check to see, is to make a few passes on them with a simpler steel, like 1095. If the grit is actually gone, it won't even scratch that steel. On the other hand, if it's still there, you'll see it removing steel (scratching the bevels) immediately. Could also test with a piece of glass (look for scratching). S30V is about as wear-resistant as they come, so it can sometimes appear the hones aren't working well with that steel (and loading of the abrasive will definitely make that worse). On the assumption they're not stripped of the diamond, I'd go with the BKF cleaning method described in Steel130's post earlier.

If you use light pressure, they'll work well and last a very, very long time. HEAVY pressure kills diamond hones, more so if the hones are used 'Sharpmaker-style', with pressure exerted only against the corners of the rods (focuses pressure). A larger diamond bench hone would be ideal for S30V and other similar wear-resistant steels, as the extra abrasive surface area really speeds things up. Some time ago, I used a medium grit Lansky diamond hone to do the same task (reprofile a ZT-0350 in S30V), and it is indeed very slow going. More recently, I attempted the same thing with a ZDP-189 blade, and put the small hone aside and finished on an 8" DMT Duo-Sharp C/F hone. Night vs. day difference in time spent. That's the downside to doing a big job with a small hone. As the going is much slower this way, the obvious temptation is to 'lean into it' a bit more, and that can do more harm than good.

I have ruined a diamond hone (once) with excessive pressure. But I still have half a dozen more, acquired since then, and I learned from my previous mistake. The newer ones are still doing just fine. Light pressure, and let the grit do the work.


David
 
My diamond hones are 4X10. 4 grits (black, blue, red, and green). If you use light pressure, they last a long time. They also take a long time to put an edge on a large stainless steel knife (8, 10, and 12" chef knives). S-30-V is the low man on the CPM totem wear resistance pole. S 60, 90, 110, and 125 are progressively harder to sharpen. S60 and 90 are no challenge for my SiC and Al2O3 stones. My S110 blades haven't required any attention yet.
I still say life is to short to monkey with diamond "stones".
 
I use the same scotchbrite dish scrubber and abrasive cleaner (comet) to clean all the rods that I have that fit the Sharpmaker. I do not scrub hard as the grit is only so deep. A quick wash, rinse and dry and you should be back into sharpening shape. Best wishes.
 
Well, I did the "scratch test" and it did indeed abrade the blade of 1095. I was hoping I didn't ruin them, but I guess I could have reduced the effectiveness of them somehow. I really have treated them with kid gloves, but nothing lasts forever, I guess. Not even diamonds. :rolleyes:

At any rate, I suppose I'll just keep plugging along on this ZT 0350, but now I'm wishing I wouldn't have even started this. I'm losing patience fast, but I'll try to stay at it.

Don't be surprised if you see a half sharpened ZT 0350 on the exchange soon. I've just about had enough of S30V.
 
Sharpening with the Sharpmaker is frustrating. It cannot handle anything but a touch-up that happens to be at the 15 or 20 degree settings. Any reprofiling jobs with it are for masochists. I have the diamond rods and still stand by what I said.

Please consider an Edge Pro Apex or a belt sander. Those can match angles and/or reprofile a knife to your specifications. The Wicked Edge can also, but at a higher price level.

IOW, keep the knife and ditch the sharpener. S30V steel is great- your sharpener is bad!

Good sharpening,
David
 
I use a toothbrush and comet to clean my sharpmaker rods. However, if you are going to be doing a lot of reprofiling I agree with David that you need a different system or a set of nice bench stones. Your head will explode trying to do much more than touch ups on a sharpmaker. Great system, but not for heavy metal removal. Another note, I have sharpened at least 100 knives with my diamond stones and they are still working as well as the day I bought them. Use light pressure and keep them clean and they will last a really long time.
 
I think we all had troubles with S30V at first, its not the steels fault that the sharpener is having difficulties though.

Sharpening a recurve blade is also not the easiest task and one that even I never look forward to doing.

Despite what some may say there is nothing wrong with diamonds, they work very well when used correctly and provide a cleaner edge than most other methods. I have also never had half the issues I've read about on this forum.

Diamond hones are a strange animal, they seem to work increasing better as the wear resistance and hardness goes to extreme levels. On the lower end of the spectrum you can sometimes get a "clogging" effect where it feels like they are doing very little. You must also factor in that you are using a very small abrasive rod so the work is going to take much longer.

S30V In my experience can also be a very inconsistent steel with a wide range of hardness even from the same maker which has huge effects on how it not only performs but also sharpens. It's one of the main reasons I stay away from knives with S30V though I've had and sharpened more of them than I care to admit.
 
I have found the easiest way to clean Sharpmaker stones is an ultrasonic cleaner. I fill an old Nestea jar with soapy water, vibrate 10 to 20 minutes and wipe off the leftovers with a wet piece of Scothbrite.
 
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