How Do I Get Clean Paper Cuts?

[000Robert]

Marc H wrote:

I strop at the end of sharpening as my last step with the W.E. while it’s still clamped. Afterwards, I use a hand strop as a quick and simple edge touch up between when I actually clamp it back up again for a true W.E. touch-up.

Hi Marc. My new EdgeOnUp- PT50A has taught me that you are right, and I was wrong about stropping. I’ve probably made 60 or 70 cuts with it so far, so I have the test media tensioning and centering of the ATF down pretty good.

I decided to check the apex on my new Buck 120 General since I felt like playing with the PT50A some more. It was pretty good except near the tip area so I reprofiled it to the same 20dps it was already pretty much at. I only used the 100 grit at the tip to about an inch back in the curve. The rest profiled easy with 200 grit.

To make a long story short, I took the apex to 3000 grit and it tested at 326. I thought that it should test lower than that because I could tell that the edge was sharp. And it sliced my 2″ HD Polypropylene strap easy. I figured that since the PT50A is basically a push cut test, I would strop the edges and then check it again. The edge dropped to 256! So I stropped it again and it dropped to 226! I could hardly believe that stropping the blade made that much difference! But the proof was right there in my face.

Then I sliced another piece of the Poly strap, and it tested at 234. The stropping definitely improved the apex of the blade more than I thought that it would. Though it did cut the Poly strap easier at 600 grit than 3000. On the next blade I’ll strop it at 600 grit and see how much better that it push cuts. Thanks for all the great teaching that you do!

 

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Brewbear, Marc H

[Marc H]

I read a thread from one of the knife sharpening forums today.  The  poster wrote that he saw a marked improvement to sharpness tests scores done with the Edge-On-Up PT50A when he went from stropping with very light applied pressure instead to stropping with more applied stropping pressure.

Marc
(MarcH's Rack-Its)

2 users thanked author for this post.

Brewbear, 000Robert

[000Robert]

Marc H wrote:

I read a thread from one of the knife sharpening forums today. The poster wrote that he saw a marked improvement to sharpness tests scores done with the Edge-On-Up PT50A when he went from stropping with very light applied pressure instead to stropping with more applied stropping pressure.

I’ve always use light pressure when stropping a knife. I use a bit more pressure when I strop my Craftool Pro Swivel Knife.

[Author]

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