Norax ceramic engineered abrasive?

DCL Knives

DCL Knives

Joined
Jun 6, 2012
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I was looking through the belts at Tru Grit yesterday and ran across these ceramic norax belts and am wondering if anyone has used them. I haven't heard anything about them I tried searching for some info but couldn't find anything. I have been using trizacts for finishing and am wondering if these would be an improvement? Thanks in advance, Drew.
 
The Norax belts are not ceramics, they're engineered Aluminum Oxide. I've used them, but still prefer the finish and longevity of the Gators for blade bevels. I use the Norax belts for sharpening and profiling now.
 
Adam Buttry said:
The Norax belts are not ceramics, they're engineered Aluminum Oxide. I've used them, but still prefer the finish and longevity of the Gators for blade bevels. I use the Norax belts for sharpening and profiling now.
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That's what I thought too, but on Tru Grits sight they have it listed as:
2x72-150 X100 U936 Norax Ceramic Engineered Abrasive
Is it just a mistake, or are they really not ceramic?
 
I'm not sure what they're made out of, but I use them for finishing and sharpening. They wear very well, at least in the finer grits. I compare them to the regular trizact, not the gators. similar design and function. In fact, when worn a bit it can be hard to tell which is which.

I haven't done much with the coarser ones like the x100, I tend to just used the last few grades then a touch with a ceramic stick to knock off any burr. For finishing work I do the same, gators to x45 or x30 then the regular trizact or norax the rest of the way. I don't use trizact or norax to remove significant metal, just put a finish on. I generally toss them for damage or worn edges and such rather than having worn out the belt itself. They wear really well, better than the gators over all for me, and I like gators.
 
el0147,
Your reply raised my curiousity, so I checked Norton's website. I assumed that the Norax belts you were referring to were the U264 belts that Tracy carries on his site, which are engineered AO belts. I also assumed that those were the only "Norax" belts available. I guess I shouldn't have assumed as much. Apparently the U936 series is new. They're an engineered abrasive and sure enough are ceramic. Oddly enough, Tru-grit also carries U254 but not the U264s on Tracy's site. To top it all, Norton's site is very confusing on the differences between all of them. I guess if it starts with a U, it is considered a "Norax" belt. If you give the U936 (ceramics) a try, let us know what you think of them. I agree with Remyrw in that these belts (U264) do not "cut" well. They are best utilized for finishing/polishing in the finer grits.
 
Thanks for the replys Adam and Remyrw. I agree...very confusing. Well I guess I'll give them a try and I'll definitely let you know what I think of them. Thanks
 
Yes they are ceramic. I've used u936 600 grit ceramic - checkered surface, quite thick & stiff too. While the U254 are AlO.

I used ceramic belt for freehand sharpening, so not sure how it responses on the grinder.
 
$10 a belt, wow? Are they amazing? I have been unbelievably impressed with the gator belts.
 
I guess we'll see :) $10 a belt is a lot, but if they last as long as I imagine they would, it could be reasonable.

Thanks bluntcut for the info.
 
I was twitchy about the cost per belt on the old ones too, but it works out. They really do hold up well. They're not a belt you're going to be replacing every knife or two if you're using them the way I do. I don't remember wearing one out. I've accidentally broken some thin ones and damaged the edges on a few but that's it. As an abrasive they last a really long time. The ones I trashed had seen a lot of use at that point as well.
I think of them a lot like the scotchbrite and leather belts. Something that lasts long enough it's not worth keeping track of on a per knife basis.
 
I just make liner locking folders. I have a few weeks ago received the U936s in 100, 65,45,16, and 9 sizes. I have used these and only these to grind the blades I make out of hardened CPM154, hardened M390 and hardened Chad Nichols stainless Damascus. I believe they are doing the best ever for me. They grind an even pattern and allow for no or
almost no hand sanding ( 600 & 800) before going to a polished finish or etching. They are very stiff and I don`t think you would want to try them on most curved surfaces other than blades. Tru Grit has only one or two sizes of these. I purchased these from Canadian Knifemaker Supply. I do expect to continue using them. They sure are helping me to get the job done right. Frank
 
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I believe it's Norax belts that are used on the Work Sharp sharpeners. If that's true they seem to do a fantastic job.
 
Thanks for the replys.

The gators seem to wear very well, but I've yet to wear one out because I either gauge them, round the edges or break them putting on to my grinder.

Thanks Frank, that's awesome to hear! So it seems like they cut aggressively than the normal norax/gator belts but still last as long and leave as good as a finish, and are more durable, ya I'll definitely be trying some!

Thanks for the help!
 
Salt. When you talk belts it's very important to give the designation on the inside. Which Norax were you talking about? As well I believe you will find the makers here are very capable of giving the best reports on which ones will do what. Frank
 
Frank Niro said:
Salt. When you talk belts it's very important to give the designation on the inside. Which Norax were you talking about? As well I believe you will find the makers here are very capable of giving the best reports on which ones will do what. Frank
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I'll check em out tomorrow and report back.
 
I somehow managed to get one of these ceramic engineered belts early in 2010 from Trugrit. From my point of view, where a significant part of the cost of belts is the shipping costs, this belt was fantastic. Not much point in using it on my O-1 blades, but excellent on hardened stainless steel. As mentioned, very stiff, but very sharp, even and hard wearing. Not so prone to glazing as the AO Norax or even the Gators.
 
I talked to Tracy (USA Knifemakers) about these and bought a few 1x30s for my portable sharpening rig.
After thousands of sharpenings, the 16x and 5x are still going strong and look barely used. The 65 looks worn but still cuts great.
On my 2x72, the 16x is fanbloodytastic, but the 5x's coating seems a little fragile- for whatever reason it's flaking here and there, unlike the 5x 1x30, which might as well be Kevlar....perhaps it is.
On my 2x72, it's Gators in 100, 65, and 45- they just can't be beat and last and last.
 
Just a little update, as I promised.

I finally got around to trying them out yesterday, and I got to say, I was very impressed. I was using them on hardened 3v and the 100x grinded very aggressively, similar to a 120 blaze from what I could tell. The 65x was also very aggressive and left a nice satin finish after only a couple passes. The thing I really liked about them was how easily they got into the plunges to clean them up, unlike the trizacts gators I was using. The ceramic norax belts are white and feel very sharp, unlike the normal norax belts I have used.

I'd definitely recommend trying them out if you haven't already, my initial impressions of them are very good!
Drew
 
In my early days "ceramics" were metal oxides for the most part . Today ceramics covers a whole lot more so don't even worry about the name.
 
I'm using Norax and really liking them. I use a blaze to hog out, then Norax to progress to hand sanding. They seem to last forever if you don't get them wet, or use them on handle material.
 
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