Which brands of diamond spray/paste are "good"?

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fields_mj

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Nov 29, 2015
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I'd like to start stropping my knives and I'd like to do so with diamond spray or paste. My understanding is that there's a lot of cheap brands on Amazon that aren't worth a darn. Either they don't have hardly any diamond abrasive in them, or the size if the abrasive partials varies way too much. Is there a list of mfgs that are generally considered to produce a good product? I'm not trying to maintain 100 knives. Just a couple of edc blades, and a few fillet knives that I use for fishing and processing wild game. I'm guessing that the smallest unit of quality spray or paste would last me a lifetime.

Thanks,
Mark
 
Variations in the size of abrasive particles, up to a point, aren't that big a deal if you just want to use your knives, not mirror-polish them.

I've used TechDiamondTools paste I've gotten from Amazon, and I have no complaints.
 
It's an issue to me if only because I'm really not getting what is being advertised. It may work well, but if I'm not actually getting what's advertised, I'm not interested. If I had a lot more experience with these solutions, it would be a different story. I don't have the experience, so if I have problems I won't know if the problem is me, the product, or some other variable.
 
Most of the guided systems on the market offer diamond sprays/paste you can buy.
Also, go look in the knife makers sub forum to see if they offer what they use.
 
I'd like to add to this is there a preference on the strop for the paste or spray? Smooth or rough leather? Wood?

I'd like to move on from whatever the black bar is that I've been using for so long now that I've forgotten what it is.
 
Maximumbob54 said:
I'd like to add to this is there a preference on the strop for the paste or spray? Smooth or rough leather? Wood?

I'd like to move on from whatever the black bar is that I've been using for so long now that I've forgotten what it is.
Click to expand...
No preference as I haven't used either yet. Hard leather hand sanded with 120 grit. Leather was purchased many years ago (20+) from a knife supply house (don't recall which one now) and glued to a flat 3-1/2" x 3/4" piece of kiln dried oak. Been sitting in my knife box since shortly before my wedding in 2005. I was tinkering around trying to make a few knives for fun back then. Got busy with work and starting a family, and never got back to the hobby. Now I'm just looking for something to polish the edge off a couple of better knives that I bought last year. Basically polish the burr off of a freshly stoned edge, and touch it up after skinning a deer.
 
Used up my 1, 3 and 6 micron DMT Diapaste set, so i bought a "do-it-all" 4 micron emulsion from Jende. Can't say anything yet, my strops are still loaded with DMT, which works, but its kinda expensive.
 
Depending on the steel, you may not need diamond at all. I bet for your boning knives Chrome Oxide will be fine.
That said, I've had good results with CKTG, DMT, & I think Wicked Edge?

The real variations are how much diamond is in any volume of the paste and how well they sift the diamond for particle size. OTOH some people like Japanese Natural stones because there are several particle sizes mixed together. Like UncleBoots said, it's not a huge deal unless you are polishing.
 
When hand stropping I like StroppyStuff probably the best. It's high quality but I also like the consistency and the way it does on. The color coding is great as well, you can easily tell your strops apart. The Jende stuff is pretty good as well. For doping my felt belts for machine sharpening Cliff Curry's stuff is very good, but usually I use ENZO stuff from Amazon. The 4 micron diamond or CBN work great on felt. Probably there are many other good ones but those are what I have settled on and I don't have the time or desire to test a bunch more.🤤😂
 
I use Tech Diamond Tools 6,3,1 Mu. For most stropping I use Tormek's PA-70 aluminum oxide paste. Much more aggressive that diamonds.
I started out using DMT's paste but after testing results on a Bess, I found TDT's cut much faster than the DMT paste I had been using.
To Rob's post, it's very difficult to measure your stropping effectiveness unless you can measure your results. That's where a Bess tester can really help... IMHO
 
I've been watching this thread for recommendations as well.

Even though I've commented many times here that I've settled into a habit of minimizing or omitting use of any compound for my stropping, I've still been curious and intrigued about revisiting the possibilities with quality compounds, the sprays in particular.

I appreciate all of the input here so far. :thumbsup:
 
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Obsessed with Edges said:
I've been watching this thread for recommendations as well.

Even though I've commented many times here that I've settled into a habit of minimizing or omitting use of any compound for my stropping, I've still been curious and intrigued about revisiting the possibilities with quality compounds, the sprays in particular.

I appreciate all of the input here so far. :thumbsup:
Click to expand...
Myself too.....Don, Northwest Knife Guy, hasn't been around in A while......I used his stuff and still have a full bottle of o.5 micron left..👍 .Eventually I'm gonna need more..🤔So I follow along as well.......
 
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