New to stropping, what compound to start with??

bodydamage said:
We ned to be reading the MSDS on this stuff to determine whats in it (CrO, AlO, etc).. I read a vrey good article yesterday explaining that Chromium Oxide from one company could contain 40% while the same stuff from another company could contain up to 90% CrO. I think that green compound pretty much equals Chromium Oxide, the question is, how much and at waht micron size? I believe we are looking for 0.5 micron or 12,000 grit.

On a side note, I have a list that lists Chromium Oxide polishing compound and "green chrome rouge" as two different things. It rates the Chromium Oxide polishing compound at .5 micron and 12,000 grit and the "green chrome rouge" as 3 micron or 2000 grit. Can anyone clear this up?
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Yeah, it appears that buffing/polishing is an 'art' rather than a 'science'.
So, outside of the fiber optic and electronic industries which use diamond grits almost exclusively, there is no standardization of compound definitions. I haven't even been able to find out if the compound colors follow a general sequence of 'fineness'. I know that Harbor Freight Tools black compound is a lot more coarse than their green, and that their green probably contains some chrome oxide (from the way it polishes), but it could simply be dyed aluminum oxide.

I did find that the term "rouge" is traditionally restricted to red iron oxide compound ("rouge" being French for "red"). But apparently the general metal-finishing industry refers to "white rouge", etc without defining what differentiates it from 'red', other than color. There is a general correspondence between micron-particle-size and grit-number.
This chart says 0.5micron ( chrome oxide) is 60,000 grit, not 12,000:
http://www.goldsmithing.com/showthread.php?p=45
Also, 3 micron is listed here as 8000 grit.

The partcle size and hardness are what makes the abrasive cut or polish metal, etc. Chrome oxide is very hard so it cuts better than red iron oxide, which is softer. The larger and harder the particles, the more 'aggressive' the compound will be.

Apparently the green rouge you mention is simply larger particles of chrome oxide (or some blend of materials) than the straight .5u chrome oxide.

We need a "compound shootout", comparing the most widely used polishing materials on a single steel, say S30V, or on a hard and a softer steel, say S30V and 1095. Where's Cliff Stamp when you need him? :)
 
I also use the GATCO system. I have the professional kit. I added their extra fine and ultimate finishing hones. I would highly recommend purchasing those two if you do not have them already.

After the finishing hone I go to two leather strops. The first is loaded with white polishing compound and the second is loaded with red compound. I get the polishing compound from Sears. I very am pleased with the results I get.

YMMV
 
I would be more than happy to do a comparo shootout, but I dont know what the hell Im doing yet.. I just want to get something to start.. So when I grab a bar of green whatever and strop away with it, am I just looking for a polishing effect on the edge?? Its taking the toothyness away from the edge correct??

Im just going ot byt a tube of Mibro #5 from Lowes.. It says its for: "Compound #5 produces a high gloss finish and removes scratches. USES: Used for light polishing of brass, aluminum, plastic, iron and steel." Its not like im using it on a power wheel, so if its not the right stuff, it wont destroy the blade.. How long should it take to work??

Hard H2O, I might do that.. I found a place on line that sells them for like $8 a piece I think..
 
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bodydamage said:
I would be more than happy to do a comparo shootout, but I dont know what the hell Im doing yet.. I just want to get something to start.. So when I grab a bar of green whatever and strop away with it, am I just looking for a polishing effect on the edge?? Its taking the toothyness away from the edge correct??
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There are a few ways you can do it. Some strop to remove the burr. Some strop to polish.

I like to create as little burr as possible while sharpening. If any is there I like to remove it with my last few grits of stones and hones.

When you progress from coarse to finer stones you are in essence polishing and removing the larger and deeper scratches and refining and leaving smaller scratches.

The extra fine and ultimate finishing hones from GATCO seems to start the polishing process. When I go to the strops I start with the the white and polish a bit. Then I move to the red and I seem to achieve a pleasing shine and almost mirror like surface. I am sure if I spent more time or progressed to a finer compound I could polish it my edges a bit more.

Strops are nice for maintaining an edge as well as refining while you are sharpening.

Test the edge at each step and see what works for you. Some stop at a fairly low grit and call it good. Some polish to a shiny mirror.
 
The finest hone I have for my GATCO is the 300 grit Fine. I do it 10 times on each side, followed by 9, and so on until I am doing one stroke on each side. When I am done with that I don't have a perceivable burr, but I do have some scratches on the finished edge..
 
flashlife,

<<How to the Sears green and white compounds compare in grit size, cutting ability, etc to green chrome oxide?>>

I do not know because I only use the sears product.

Here is a link to sears buffing compounds

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00902896000P

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_00964150000P

Description from the sears web site
Emery Cake (black); for heavy cutting action for rust and scale removal from cast iron.
White Rouge; for stainless steel, cast brass, and aluminum, chrome, and nickel-plated metals and other hard ferrous metals.
Red Rouge; for bright luster on silver plate, gold, sterling, and other precious metals.
Tripoli (brown); for buffing aluminum, pewter, brass, copper, wood, bone, plastics, and painted surfaces.

Anyone else out there use these sears buffing bars?

Do they have chrome oxide in them? The box does not list what they are made out of.
 
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I do not know what is in them. I only know that they work for me. I think the white cuts faster. The red buffs to a nice mirror finish.
 
On my Emerson, I can see the grain in the steel on the cutting bevel. Would you strop it till the grain is gone?? I heated a bit of cardboard tonight in the toaster oven on super low heat and rubbed a good bit of some green compund I bought from Lowes on it. I worked my Emerson on it a bit and it seems to polish the edge up a bit.
 
OK, so heres the results of tonights stropping party..

1st - Original Leather PST
This thins wasn't even remotely sharp enough to cut 550 cord.. I was using it out in the shop and some weld spatter somehow found its way onto the bevel. It was AFU.. I threw it on the GATCO at 19deg and hit it with all four stone grits and it was pretty darn sharp. Then I hit it with my green compound loaded cardboard and holy hell..This thing is shaving sharp. Not hair scraping, but literally shaving. Yeah, I'm a newb and its a Leatherman.. I'm impressed

2nd - Emerson CQC-14 plain edge
Ive been using this pretty regular since I've started carrying it as my EDC. It was a challenge to sharpen for me, as it has a chisel ground edge. And to add onto that, as it rolls from the tip to the belly, the angle changes. So I matched the factory bevel as close as I could with the Gatco and went with 22deg on the belly and curve and 25deg from the curve on up to the tip. On the back side, I went with a light hand on the 11deg setting and it worked perfectly. Since the edge wasn't that bad, I just hit it with the fine stone for a while then followed up with the same cardboard. It brought the paper curling edge that it had when new.

I'm uber impressed with the green compound from Lowes.. I know a guy that a research chemist and I'm going to ask him if he can take some of this stuff to work and maybe measure the particle size under a microscope.
 
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