Sintered Ruby As A Replacement Material For The Sharpmaker Ceramic Triangles

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vorpalblade

Joined
Jan 13, 2014
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I have been sharpening my knives with a Sieger Long Life Knife Sharpener for a few weeks now. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00A45I2QU...TF8&colid=37EK6OSS8V0KD&coliid=I2HGTR7ALBO05P It is made of synthetic sintered ruby and is 20,000 Knoop hardness... Many times harder than any steel. Sintered means there is no filler material, just ruby. It is not ruby coated but solid ruby all the way through

Compared to the Sharpmaker's ceramic, the ruby sharpens faster. I get good results with the Spyderco Sharpmaker but always had a really hard time getting the ceramic triangles clean. Cleanup is a breeze with sintered ruby.... Just once-over with soap and water. You can wash it with your fingers, a sponge; anything... All the steel residue comes right off. I would be among the first to put down my money for a Sharpmaker with rods of sintered ruby.

IMO, the sintered ruby material represents a technological leap ahead of ceramic or diamond. But the Sieger sharpener is in the shape of a round rod. If it would be feasible to make the Sharpmaker triangles of ruby, it would be a major step forward.
 
I honestly have no experience with that so have little valid input, but that does look like it would be great for sharpening an S-curve blade like a Dodo or Lil Matriarch PE, or even a Hawkbill PE as well...
 
I think if you were to try it, you would be taken by surprise how quickly it sharpens and how easy it is to get completely clean afterwards.
 
Since diamond is significantly harder (Up to 3x as hard. The Knoop tester uses a diamond indenter.), what is the advantage of ruby (aluminum oxide or corundum) over diamond and can you quantify it?

Triangular files of sintered ruby are available. Not sure if they are the size you want.
 
Thomas Linton said:
Sorry. You post a link to a non-BF vendor, but the site has no answer to my question.

I understand you are excited. That's cool. Why should anyone else be?
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Wow, such an unecessary d*** reply :rolleyes: Just because he posted right after you does not mean that he was attempting to answer your "question" and is not obligated to. His post may have lacked discussing it but I think he meant well.

Congress tools and their stones used with the sharpmaker has been freely discussed on BF for years. Links have been shared before (esp in the sharpening forum) with no issues from the mods. It may be a grey area but these are not even marketed for the SM and if mods saw no problem with it in the past then neither should any of us.

As far as "advantages" or whatever, there are may ways to skin a cat. Diamonds have a purpose and so do other media... You can't sit here and tell me that end users/enthusiasts ONLY have diamonds in their collections of hones. That's because they achieve different finishes, give different feedback/feel, some attain a higher level of keenness...Some are cheaper, one is simply preferred over they other... Diamonds being the hardest doesn't mean other media do not have desireable properties themselves.
 
Stays Sharp said:
Wow, such an unecessary d*** reply :rolleyes: Just because he posted right after you does not mean that he was attempting to answer your "question" and is not obligated to. His post may have lacked discussing it but I think he meant well.

Congress tools and their stones used with the sharpmaker has been freely discussed on BF for years. Links have been shared before (esp in the sharpening forum) with no issues from the mods. It may be a grey area but these are not even marketed for the SM and if mods saw no problem with it in the past then neither should any of us.

As far as "advantages" or whatever, there are may ways to skin a cat. Diamonds have a purpose and so do other media... You can't sit here and tell me that end users/enthusiasts ONLY have diamonds in their collections of hones. That's because they achieve different finishes, give different feedback/feel, some attain a higher level of keenness...Some are cheaper, one is simply preferred over they other... Diamonds being the hardest doesn't mean other media do not have desireable properties themselves.
Click to expand...

I am not trying to "tell" anyone anything. I have a question. I am trying to learn more. I feel no need to apologize for trying to get information from someone who might know.

Of course, no one is obligated to supply any information.
 
Thomas Linton said:
Sorry. You post a link to a non-BF vendor, but the site has no answer to my question.

I understand you are excited. That's cool. Why should anyone else be?
Click to expand...


Thomas Linton said:
I am not trying to "tell" anyone anything. I have a question. I am trying to learn more. I feel no need to apologize for trying to get information from someone who might know.

Of course, no one is obligated to supply any information.
Click to expand...


Sorry. Your reply on Bladeforums does not relate to anyone's question.

I understand you're increasing your post count. That's cool. Why should anyone else read what you have to say?














Ha, sorry, had to do it. :p It's late at night and I just read this thread and saw you shoot down the other guy like a quiz show...
 
Thomas Linton said:
Since diamond is significantly harder (Up to 3x as hard. The Knoop tester uses a diamond indenter.), what is the advantage of ruby (aluminum oxide or corundum) over diamond and can you quantify it?

Triangular files of sintered ruby are available. Not sure if they are the size you want.
Click to expand...

Diamond is harder than ruby. However, ruby is so much harder than the hardest steel that for practical purposes, it abrades steel just as easily as diamond. Diamond grit is imbedded on and near the surface of a metal plate. It gradually gets worn away with time. Some of the grit is always coming off and gets in the way of the oncoming edge. If light pressure is used as it should be, wear is limited more or less. Water helps also.

Corundum stones are made of powder given shape and solidity with adhesive. During sharpening it too gets gradually worn away.

The sintering process renders the ruby solid and pure, through and through; Almost none comes off during sharpening so almost nothing gets in the way of the edge. This means the rod works quicker during sharpening. And should last much longer in the long run.

When I purchased the Sieger sharpener I was hopeful but sceptical. Once I used and cleaned the rod a few times, its advantages became apparent. Where did you see these triangular sintered ruby files? I've seen a "midget" ruby file set but that would hardly fit the purpose.
 
1. I am going to move this to the Maintenance forum.

2. Please address the topic without attacking each other. If you are so offended by someone else's comments you need to respond, do so by clicking on the Report Post icon and telling the moderators, NOT the people reading the thread.

(Report Post with the triangle icon in the lower left of the post.)
 
I have been using sintered ruby stones for 25 years.
The ultra fine ruby cuts nearly as bright as a diamond-a BIG diamond!
 
vorpalblade said:
Where can they be had Bill?
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Thank you for your informative response.

A Google search reveals dealers. One company says they have been selling products made from this material for 25 years, IIRC, so there had to be benefits.

(Thank you, Speed.)
 
Thomas Linton said:
Sorry. You post a link to a non-BF vendor, but the site has no answer to my question.

I understand you are excited. That's cool. Why should anyone else be?
Click to expand...

Speaking of links there is one in the op too.

Sorry if showing the op options that would work for the sharp maker that are not ceramic has in some way upset you. He was specifically talking about the sharp maker.

As to the questions of hardness and cutting ability of the stones I have no idea.

Carry on and good day.
 
SpeedHoles said:
Did you find some to work with the Sharpmaker?
If so, which "grit" are you going with?
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It would be great if Degussit made stone that fit the Sharpmaker but they don't. I'm going to try a fine stone, 4"X1"X3/8", finished on both sides; To keep in my pocket. If the corners are too sharp, I might have to make a pouch for it.... Or round it off with a diamond coated plate. I'm going with fine grit the first time, because of the speed with which these stones work. These Degussit stones made in Germany, are pricey. I've seen cheap sintered ruby stones on Amazon but the reviews indicate they're poorly made.
 
vorpalblade said:
It would be great if Degussit made stone that fit the Sharpmaker but they don't. I'm going to try a fine stone, 4"X1"X3/8", finished on both sides; To keep in my pocket. If the corners are too sharp, I might have to make a pouch for it.... Or round it off with a diamond coated plate. I'm going with fine grit the first time, because of the speed with which these stones work. These Degussit stones made in Germany, are pricey. I've seen cheap sintered ruby stones on Amazon but the reviews indicate they're poorly made.
Click to expand...


Yeah I've done a brief search and it seems those Congress Ruby triangles are a gamble whether they will fit into the Sharpmaker or not... and some have come with saw marks still on them...

I see there is a ruby triangle on ebay right now described as fitting the Sharpmaker, but it is from China and only $11 lower cost than diamond.... I might just drop the money and get myself some diamond rods and see how long they last instead of experimenting.
 
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