Spyderco Diamond rods

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L2bravo

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Jun 14, 2013
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I have these, and use them quite a bit. Does anybody know, what they compare to, in the DMT stones? I don't think they are as coarse, as the coarse stones. Anybody? I am about to buy some more DMT's, just looking for a reference. Thanks
 
The Spyderco diamond rods are pretty coarse. I don't know what they compare to off the top of my head, but if you want a DMT stone for reprofiling, I think the XC is great. I use it quite a bit for wear-resistant steels.
 
Mag, I've got a DMT C. I think the Spydies are rougher. I am thinking about an XC. Could you leave a knife with the XC, for a toothy edge? Or is it too rough?
 
Sal Glesser's description of Spyderco's diamond is in the quoted text below (bolded emphasis added by me):

( Quoted from this thread on the Spyderco Forum:
http://www.spyderco.com/forums/show...ompared-to-DMT-extra-fine&p=395490#post395490 )

"We've spent a great deal of time trying to determine grits for our stones. The manufacturer has also worked with us, to no avail. A guess seems to be best.

Most abrasives are measured by the grit size used in the matrix. Our ceramic doesn 't work that way. Grit size is constant.

We've tried to compare scratch patterns as Cliff mentioned and this is probably the closest, but nothing that we can say "This is blah blah". Then the Japanese water stones jump into the equation and suddenly there is whole new set of numbers.

So where we end up is:

Our diamonds are a 400 mesh (measureable). (600 on the Duckfoot)

Our gray stone is "medium". (Same material as fine but different carriers and heat treat).

Our fine stone is fine.

Our extra fine is a surface ground fine.



sal"
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Assuming 400 mesh for the SM diamond rods (excluding the Duckfoot), that puts them between DMT's 'Coarse' (325 mesh) and 'Fine' (600 mesh).


David
 
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L2bravo said:
Mag, I've got a DMT C. I think the Spydies are rougher. I am thinking about an XC. Could you leave a knife with the XC, for a toothy edge? Or is it too rough?
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If you want an aggressive toothy, "rip and tear" edge, the XC is perfect. Many folks like this kind of edge.

Just be aware that it will not make a clean, smooth cut like a more refined edge.
 
L2bravo said:
Mag, I've got a DMT C. I think the Spydies are rougher. I am thinking about an XC. Could you leave a knife with the XC, for a toothy edge? Or is it too rough?
Click to expand...


Ugh, you guys and the things you make me do. :D I busted out the 22X loupe to inspect the diamonds myself. The Spyderco diamond rod diamonds look a lot like the DMT C, frankly. When compared to the DMT XC and F, they are way finer than the DMT XC and way coarser than the DMT F. In fact, they are so similar to the DMT C surface that if you put a 22X pic of the DMT C and the Spyderco diamond rod surface side-by-side, I might not be able to tell the difference except that the DMT surface appears to be manufactured better (no weird bumps in the metal surface and diamond size more consistent).

Therefore, I conclude that the Spyderco diamond surface is the practical equivalent of the DMT C, which yes, would make it fine for a final--very coarse--and toothy edge. I'd strop it a bit, though, maybe with black compound.

I would not leave a DMT XC edge on any knife, regardless of POU. It's too coarse. It's an order of magnitude coarser than the DMT C, which is pretty coarse already. You'll get all the "tooth" you need for any job with DMT C.


EDIT: OP, I think your experience of perceiving the Spyderco diamond surface as "rougher" than the DMT C has to do with the somewhat less consistent diamond size and the rougher finish. When I looked at the Spyderco surface, it was pretty much the same as the DMT C, but there were definitely some errant diamonds in there that were noticeably larger and some that were noticeably smaller than the mean. Still a fine product, don't get me wrong, but I think that's why you were perceiving it as rougher. Also possibly because your Spyderco rods were less broken-in than your DMT C stone, that's also possible.
 
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Screw it! Im going to get a carbide scraper! That'll show you all! LMAO! Thanks for the help guys. I think I'm going to get a 8'' C.
 
You won't regret it. Fine stone. Good enough as a "one stone to rule them all" solution for a toothy edge:

Available in HD
[youtube]UmDzdv3LD0Q[/youtube]
 
I have a DMT C along with the fine and extra fine. The coarse is perfect for my kitchen knives as it leaves enough tooth for great slicing of most things in the kitchen. The extra fine works ok, but lacks enough tooth for easy cutting, but will not give a good smooth polished edge by itself without major stropping, or further work. This of course is just my experience with them. I regret not getting the extra course for re-profiling work. I bought these to compare with my results from my paper wheels, and so far, for over all sharpening, all things considered, the wheels win hands down for general use. YMMV

Blessings,

Omar
 
Welp, nobody ever said I was smart. I live in Houston, and could not find anywhere that had the DMT Diasharps. I saw a JDavis video, and he was talking about finding them at the local woodworking shop. Bingo. I called one, and went over there. They had a decent selection of them. Instead of buying the 8x3 coarse, I bought the 6x2, coarse, and fine also.

I came home and started tearing it up. I sharpened my Spyderco Salt 1, and my plain edge Endura. I put them on the coarse, at around 30 degrees. I then followed up with a 40 micro on the brown rods on the SM. Both of these knives are scary sharp. I think I like this newer regiment I am doing. Also, the coarse is a bit stouter than my diamond SM rods, or so it seems.
 
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Hey Josh, I've been following some of your threads and others recently and I've been playing with finishing some of my knives on the rougher brown sm stones. I think my pm2 actually gets a sharper edge with a rougher finish. I almost feel like it loses a degree of sharpness when I try to refine the edge too much, so I'm leaving it more toothy. It doesn't pushcut newspaper quite as well as a polished edge, but it sure cuts through the mackerel! I've heard some folks saying that these rougher toothier edges stay sharp longer...not sure, we'll see. I'd like to hear how your edges come out finishing with the diamond rods on the sm!
 
Lance, first off, I am sure that you have been able to tell, that I am a fan of micro bevels, for all the obvious reasons. As far as the diamond rods go, I highly recommend them! They cut really well, and will leave the edge that you are looking for. I am able (with ease), to get a shaving, push cutting edge with them. I always use them at 30 degrees. Follow that with a 40 on the browns, and a light bare leather strop, and you are in business. For using a knife hard like I do, and like you do as well, I don't think that edge can be beat. I feel like what I did today, is the same thing, but just a notch stouter. Hell, I may even try an x-coarse stone soon. I'll make my own serrated.....LMAO. If you go to this, you won't go back. I hope this helps some.
 
Surfingringo said:
Ok, so you are not using the diamonds for the micro bevel?
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No Sir. The browns are still pretty rough, as you well know. I find, that once the micro makes it through something, WHAP, that rough edge flies through whatever "it" is. This is a good way to keep your rough edge rough, without having to mess with it very often.
 
L2bravo said:
I came home and started tearing it up.
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Good call! Best thing to do with a new diamond stone is start breaking it in. The XC and C don't take terribly long to break in. The XF takes a while, and I've heard people say the XXF takes forever to really get the rated 3 micron performance out of it.
 
/\ /\ /\ /\ And when I couldn't get my desired results, I used my newest purchase from Home Depot..........The SCRAPER!! LMAO!!!

Mag, I'm sorry if I wasn't clearer in my explanation. I was saying the the DMT, seems to be a bit stouter. I've used my SM rods a lot, and they are for sure broken in. They have worked well for me, and I will keep using them for certain stuff. Heck, they cut pretty dang good. With what I've got, I don't see a need for anything else in the near future. Well, maybe. I might still go get the 8'' Coarse, and maybe a 6'' X Coarse. And.........lol.

How long do these type of stones last? I realize that if you grind the crap out of them, you will shorten their life. But, if used properly? Anybody?
 
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L2bravo said:
(...) How long do these type of stones last? I realize that if you grind the crap out of them, you will shorten their life. But, if used properly? Anybody?
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If used properly, years or even decades. Diamond hones are at their best when 'letting the grit do the work', and that means using a grit that does the job at light pressure (edges produced will be better as well). If one feels the need to really lean into the hone, odds are a coarser grit is needed. Using them with a wetted surface (water, water + dish soap, or even mineral oil) also helps to keep them from loading up, which in turn makes them work a lot more efficiently (quicker). That will also make them last longer. Cleaning them after each session is a good idea, for the same reasons. Use water + liquid dish detergent, or Comet/Ajax with water, for that.

Larger bench hones have an advantage in major grinding jobs. Abrasive surface area really speeds things up, and distributes the wear & tear more gently. Smaller diamond hones can wear out faster, because there's that much less diamond doing the work.


David
 
David, thanks for the info. I forgot to say, that I was using Windex. It seems to keep all the swarf floating out.
 
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