Thanks Tom and Clay! I finally understand the issue :cheer: .
I have read the entire thread at Knife Forums. I had read bit and pieces of it before, but never the entire thread! It should be mandatory for every WEPS user 😉 . If I had done so, I wouldn’t have asked this question in the first place. And now I understand the issue, I see it appear everywhere, including on my own knives, even at much lower grit levels (my highest grit level stone is the ceramic 1600). The consequences are just not so bad at lower grit levels.
Any tips on how to conquer this other than spend enough time with higher level grit stones to remove the scratches from lower level stones and using the crosshatch method to make such scratches easier to spot?
Clay, if the stropping compound digs in too deeply, why not use a less abrasive compound of the same micron size, e.g., chromium oxide instead of diamonds? Or (but maybe this is a very stupid question) strop without any abrasive compound at all?
Great questions Mark. I’ve fiddled about with lots of different compounds on the strops and finally settled on diamonds for efficiency. As long as you keep the pressure light, they don’t dig in too much. I’ve had some nice results with Chromium Oxide and Boron Nitride, but they are very messy to use and don’t work as quickly as the diamonds. Stropping with plain leather works well. Leather has the unique ability to burnish the metal surface while honing the edge. Adding a micro-abrasive accelerates the process of of bevel and edge finishing, giving you a 3-in-1 punch.
