Little Pink Bricks for you and me!

So if I'm only buying one type of stone for my Sharpmarker should I get Ruby or another type? Need something for reprofiling.
 
The ruby ones would be the way to go, but it's up to you to decide whether you want the faster reprofiling (60-80 grit) or less giant scratches leading to the edge of your knife (the deeper the scratch, the more of a stress-riser it can be which can cause a blade to chip or break when used with a lot of force). So "ruby" is the easy answer (or any fairly coarse aluminum oxide triangle for that matter), but which "ruby" is the question only you can answer.
 
Just got a chance to use my ruby stone last night. Works pretty good it's 60 grit and did leave scratches on blade but it did cut down time of sharpening

armilite
 
Check the angle of the ruby stones compared to the sharpmaker stones. If the ruby stones fit loose then they would benefit from a rubberband to pull them together forming a less obtuse angle. (I don't have the ruby stones to check this myself.)
 
Great thread that I read with a lot of interest.

I think I am going to pick up some 1/2 x 6 triangle Ruby stones to fit the Sharpmaker base for reprofiling. It will be interesting to see how well they fit in the Sharpmaker.

It sounds like Ruby is the way to go for reprofiling, but I may try the Res-Cut or something else also. They are pretty cheap so it's worth a shot.
 
Bumped again. Thom, I'm wondering about the scratches left by the ruby stones. How much work are they to remove. I have been using DMT xx, and I just use the rest of my DMT's to polish the bevel, but I just got a Sharpmaker, and I want to try these stones, so I don't have to jimmy rig my Dmt stones to the Sharpmaker.

Are the scratches left by the Ruby stones so deep that you have to remove a lot of steet just to polish them out, making them more of a pain than they are worth?
 
Does anyone use the oil that is sold on the site? I dont want to, but if its really neccesary then I suppose I can deal with it.

Has anyone set up a crock stick type set with the round ones from course to fine?
 
Nosetotail said:
Are the scratches left by the Ruby stones so deep that you have to remove a lot of steet just to polish them out, making them more of a pain than they are worth?
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Going from an 80 grit Ruby to a 220 grit EDM-style stone on an EdgePro is no problem for the edge-bevel, but my carelessness left scratches just behind the bevel. Had I been more mindful like when I used to use the 120 grit SiC EdgePro stone, I would've cleaned the stone fragments off the knife with running water before they became a cosmetic problem.
 
That's what I wanted to hear. I can live with a few cosmetic scratches. I plan on a heavy grit followed by a lighter grit ruby to quickly nock the heavy scratches down, then a couple of the other stones in progressively lighter grit for polishing. I think I'll give the y2k semi hard aluminum oxide a shot. I find this description taken from the sight interesting: "SEMI-HARD ALUMINUM OXIDE-with special polishing additives to provide a fine, smooth finish"
 
AAARRRGGHH!!! I got my order today to find one set of triangle stones and three sets of square stones. I geuss I wasn't paying attention while I was ordering. No worries though, I think the square stones taped flat to a sharpmaker stone will actually work better than the loose fitting congress triangle stones. It will also give me a softer 90 degree edge to cut against rather than a 60 degree edge if I want to use the edges of the stones. I can rotate the stones like I normally would to catch a flat and two of the edges.

I'm wondering if I should worry about wear between the sharpmaker stone and the congress stone.
 
Nosetotail said:
AAARRRGGHH!!! ...I'm wondering if I should worry about wear between the sharpmaker stone and the congress stone.
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Slip a piece of aluminum foil between. That will avoid possible wear and transfer of grit.

Please let us know how the new stones perform.
 
I was rereading the thread and was reminded you had asked for a report. I'm not the best person to get a review from as I have only had the Sharpmaker for a few weaks, and I have been sharpening exclusively with diamonds up until I got the sharpmaker. I ordered 80 grit triangle ruby, 220 square ruby, 400 square res cut, and 600 square y2k for polishing.

I was initially depressed that I had accidentally ordered square stones to use with my Sharpmaker, but as soon as I tried my triangle stone in the slots, I decided to tape it flat to the rods. My initial attempt was a crome vanadium straight edge knife. I attempted to lower the bevel to 25 using the corners of the 80 grit stone after I rounded the corners slightly against each other. This is where my inexperience with stones came in. I ground the edge into the stone thinking this is how the stone cut. With the edge cutting into the stone, I only succeeded in creating a convexed edge(a bad thing?). When I was done at 25 degrees raising burrs, I had to go as high as 40 degrees to actually get a honed edge. I didn't have this problem using my dmt hones against the rods. I was completely frustrated at my complete lack of success. The lesson learned here for me at least is don't use the corners of these stones, unless you have enough of a flat on the corners to keep you from digging into the stone.

I have since used the flats of all my Congress stones with much more satisfying results.

Taping the stone to the sharpmaker rods gives me precise angle control, and allows me to use the square stones which are much more stone than the triangle. My triangle stone looks pretty pathetic after I ground the edges down, and I now wish I had ordered all squares. The other day, I got frustrated taping and then removing stone after stone sharpening a few of my straight edge knives, and I had an apephany. I taped all three square stones to one rod. One stone per side using electrical tape around the three stones. The stones were secure during my whole process, and it provided a three grit combo stone for the sharpmaker. After I tried this, I was very pleased that I had accidentally ordered square stones. There is much more stone to deal with, and they work great taped in threes to a sharpmaker stone.

I'll give another report when I get a new low grit square ruby, and put a little abuse on it.
 
Nosetotail said:
...and I had an apephany. I taped all three square stones to one rod. One stone per side using electrical tape around the three stones. The stones were secure during my whole process, and it provided a three grit combo stone for the sharpmaker. After I tried this, I was very pleased that I had accidentally ordered square stones. There is much more stone to deal with, and they work great taped in threes to a sharpmaker stone...
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Oh, the lengths we will go for an edge, for an angle. The mental image I have of your "epiphany" is not pretty. :D Please report back with you future results. Meanwhile, how do the Congress stones cut?
 
I have no idea how to post pics, but when I figure out how, I will be sure to share my epiphany with everyone. It remains true to the Spyderco formula, not much to look at, but effective.
 
A lot of people are using the 60 and 80 grit ruby stones and getting some scratches in the blades. I kind of like to keep most of mine cleaner looking. Would I still see this kind of scratching with a 120 grit or higher ruby? I think that would still cut fast enough to satisfy me.
 
CaptInsano said:
Would I still see this kind of scratching with a 120 grit or higher ruby? I think that would still cut fast enough to satisfy me.
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You'll see it a little bit, yes. Every edge you see is a bunch of scratches; the smaller the scratches, the better it looks. If go slow enough to feel yourself applying uniform pressure against the stones (and barely any pressure at that; a little goes a long, long way) and pay enough attention to avoid running the side of your knife down the edge of the stone (something we all do and not paying attention is why), it will minimize the appearance of scratches where they aren't wanted.

Another thing is that my scratches appeared with I used my 80 grit ruby in my EdgePro and didn't follow directions or other tidbits of common sense. If you're using replacement stones in a Sharpmaker and (more importantly) paying close attention from start until finish, it won't be nearly as bad. If you're using an EdgePro and paying attention to wash the buildup off the blade, it also won't be so bad, either.
 
WTH? Can someone give me an idea what the shipping costs were? The order page won't supply a total including shipping until the order is processed.:rolleyes:
 
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