GUIDE ROD DIAMETER

[William J Cushman Jr]

I have one of the very first Generation 2 Wicked Edge Sharpeners and recently bought the ProPack2 upgrade kit. Since many have reported guide rod play I thought I would report measurements on my guide rods. Neither of the rods on my units exhibit any significant play on any stones or strops.

The measurements were made using a extremely accurate Mitutoyo Digital Micrometer.

ProPac2 Guide Rods, 0.25030 inch and 0.25005 inch.

Very Old Generation 2 Guide Rods, 0.24905 inch and 0.24935 inch.

.

[Steven N. Bolin]

I have one of the very first Generation 2 Wicked Edge Sharpeners and recently bought the ProPack2 upgrade kit. Since many have reported guide rod play I thought I would report measurements on my guide rods. Neither of the rods on my units exhibit any significant play on any stones or strops.

The measurements were made using a extremely accurate Mitutoyo Digital Micrometer.

ProPac2 Guide Rods, 0.25030 inch and 0.25005 inch.

Very Old Generation 2 Guide Rods, 0.24905 inch and 0.24935 inch.

.

Bill,
Wow! Thanks for sharing those readings. I really hope you’ll continue to contribute. I know your voice is one to be heard and I’m very thankful I had the opportunity to chat with you on Monday.

~Steven

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Guys,
I had the pleasure of the speaking with this gentleman for nearly 40 minutes on the phone the other day after he sent me a PM asking that I call him. Let me tell you, this forum needs as many men like Bill as it can get. He’s 80 years old, a retired engineer, and still as sharp as a tack. And funny too! 🙂

[Pat]

Thanks for this information Bill.

May I ask what your thoughts are on the trade off between paddle play vs rod travel friction? I am sure Clay had to make a choice as to how much play was tolerable to allow for as little friction when sharpening as possible for paddle travel.

Thanks!

I have one of the very first Generation 2 Wicked Edge Sharpeners and recently bought the ProPack2 upgrade kit. Since many have reported guide rod play I thought I would report measurements on my guide rods. Neither of the rods on my units exhibit any significant play on any stones or strops.

The measurements were made using a extremely accurate Mitutoyo Digital Micrometer.

ProPac2 Guide Rods, 0.25030 inch and 0.25005 inch.

Very Old Generation 2 Guide Rods, 0.24905 inch and 0.24935 inch.

.

[William J Cushman Jr]

Thanks for this information Bill.

May I ask what your thoughts are on the trade off between paddle play vs rod travel friction? I am sure Clay had to make a choice as to how much play was tolerable to allow for as little friction when sharpening as possible for paddle travel.

Thanks!

If clearance of .005″ is allowed, the angular error would be ArcTan .005/5.5 = .05 Degree. It should be easy to control the rod diameter to +/- 0.001″. The plastic molding bore can probably be easily controlled to +/- .002″. If a minimum clearance of .001″ is allowed, these tolerances would allow a maximum clearance of .007″. If the rod is controlled to +/- .0005 and the plastic bore is controlled to .001″ the average angular error due to clearance would be about .03 degree. This can be achieved with good yield using carefully controlled manufacturing.

Friction remains low as long as there is clearance. With no clearance the friction climbs dramatically.

[Steven N. Bolin]

Thanks for this information Bill.

May I ask what your thoughts are on the trade off between paddle play vs rod travel friction? I am sure Clay had to make a choice as to how much play was tolerable to allow for as little friction when sharpening as possible for paddle travel.

Thanks!

If clearance of .005″ is allowed, the angular error would be ArcTan .005/5.5 = .05 Degree. It should be easy to control the rod diameter to +/- 0.001″. The plastic molding bore can probably be easily controlled to +/- .002″. If a minimum clearance of .001″ is allowed, these tolerances would allow a maximum clearance of .007″. If the rod is controlled to +/- .0005 and the plastic bore is controlled to .001″ the average angular error due to clearance would be about .03 degree. This can be achieved with good yield using carefully controlled manufacturing.

Friction remains low as long as there is clearance. With no clearance the friction climbs dramatically.

:side: … See what I mean?

[Gregg776]

I made my own rods out of some stainless I found in the shop. Diameter .0254″ +/- .00005. But I had to ream out the center of two sets of paddles because the factory hole wasn’t straight. The rest of my paddles are still smooth with very little wobble and no other modifications. Also i made the rods about 5″ longer than stock.
–Gregg

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