Re: 1200/1600 ceramic stones or strops?

[wickededge]

I’m looking at the WE Pro package. I definitely want the 800/1000 grit diamond stones. But then we can compare the 1200/1600 ceramic stones against the leather strops with 5 micron and 3.5 micron diamond paste. The 1200 stone is 5 micron and the 1600 stone is 2.85 micron. So this strikes me as duplicative.

But then I’m sure that they act slightly differently. I have read SEVERAL “strop or stone?” threads on other forums and I have my own experience with strop and stone. But I’m not sure how well this relates to the Wicked Edge system because the WE has the sharpening angle really LOCKED in and people who are free handing or using less precise systems do NOT have their sharpening angle locked in.

So if we assume that we are using the WE, what are the advantages and disadvantages of using the ceramic stones or the leather strops? I gather that the leather strops are better for smoothing out the multiple bevels when you want to convex a blade. It seems logical that the stones would act like a steel and be a good way of straightening a turned edge. Would that make them better than a strop for light maintenance? Is there anything else that I’m missing?

Where do the balsa strops fit in?

Doug

Hi Doug,

That’s a great set of questions and a good analysis. As you pointed out, the leather and the stones have very different action. If you look at the chart and photos on this page: Grit Chart and Photos and click on the thumbnails, you can see how differently the two act. I have yet to add images for the 3.5 strops and the finer grits along with the balsa strops, but you can see a big difference between the finishes of the 5 micron strops and the 1600# ceramics. I believe (and am working with Sandia National Labs to test) that the leather causes some plastic deformation of the metal, drawing the peaks of the scratches into the valleys.

To further confuse things, the 800# and 1000# diamonds function in a very different manner than the ceramic stones. The diamonds are much harder and have a harder substrate than the ceramics so that even though the diamonds leave deeper and less consistent scratches than the ceramics, they burnish at the same time polish and the appearance of the bevels after the diamonds have been used is much brighter. I tend to use the ceramics to refine the edge and help remove the deeper scratches from the diamonds when I’m being really picky about a knife. It’s possible to exchange the 1200/1600 ceramics for the 800/1000 diamonds in the Pro-Pack and the jump from the 600# stock diamonds stones to the 1200# ceramic stones is very reasonable. To sum up – the 800/1000 grit diamonds are faster and leave a brighter finish due to their hardness. Their hardness also means that they leave deeper scratches. The ceramics leave a slightly clouded finish but give a more refined edge and shallower scratches. The ceramics require a little more maintenance than the diamonds in the form of periodic cleaning.

The balsa is a neat option as well. They don’t have quite the same action as the leather in terms of the finish they provide, but they are excellent as a one step, high grit maintenance tool. Most times, the leather is sufficient for honing the edge and refining it after use. Occasionally, the edge can get rolled to the point that the leather is not able to push the edge up straight again and a stone is required which can mean dropping backward in grit and making the touch-up a two step process. In those circumstances, the balsa is firm enough to stand the edge back while still working at a very high grit and making the maintenance a one step process.

Then there are the Choseras and soon to come Shaptons….. 🙂

-Clay