My first week with the WEPS

[tcmeyer]

UofA guy:
I did a brief experiment today, using the front clamping screw instead of the micro-adjust when adjusting for the SWAT units. I haven’t yet run the same test with the old joint, but it seemed to work pretty good. I was impressed. Note, I have turned the degree bar around and have flattened the end of the clamping screw to reduce twisting forces during tightening. I think I recall you saying that you’d turned your bar around too. Nicht wahr?

The proof of the pudding will show up in your scratch patterns. Do they seem to show an angle change?

Josh: 10-32 is so close to M5x0.8 that I think they’re just about interchangeable. The metric is about 0.00635″ bigger in the diameter of the tap drill and the thread works out to be 31.75 TPI. It would explain why my screws seem loose. But why would WE mix English and Metric threads?

[JS]

Tom:
I couldn’t get the left one on the bar as the bar was too thick around the 30 degree mark or so. I had just tried to only set the angle with the right hand stone, set the VSTA, then change to a different stone.

No matter anyway, I just placed an order for the PP2 upgrade. Long story short, I appreciate good design that makes the job easier and more consistent. I was getting great results with the stock setup, but I like having the best. I really like the micro adjust of the upgraded arms. I’ll give the VSTAs another go when I get the new setup, but it won’t hurt my feelings at all to put the cube on between grits and micro adjust. Even with the old arms, it was only taking me seconds to put the cube on and move the arms accordingly. What was taking the most time with me is that I put tape on the sides of my cube so that the surface isn’t cross contaminating everything. I change the tape once I hit the ceramics, then I change again when I hit the leather, and a final time when I move on to the 1u/0.5u.

I hope with the new arms maybe I can use the base rod turned the “normal” way, then when it comes time for stropping, just move the arms up two slots. I’m also curious if anyone covers their VSTAs in any way to prevent cross contamination or if you even worry about it. I suppose the occasional wipe with alcohol would help.

Greatly looking forward to getting the new arms, and I really hope I get them before this weekend!

[Josh]

Nice Jordan! you won’t be disappointed!

did you get them longer or just regular length for now to see how you like those?

bob nash or WE? 😛

[JS]

Nice Jordan! you won’t be disappointed!

did you get them longer or just regular length for now to see how you like those?

bob nash or WE? 😛

Crap, I totally forgot! I got them from WE through Amazon. Longer rods would’ve been nice. I don’t know if these are threaded 1/4-20, but I’ve seen plenty of 1/4-20 threaded rod out there…usually in foot long lengths though.

[Josh]

no worries man! you can always “upgrade” them later if you think you will need them… but I think you will be more than pleased as they are!

[JS]

no worries man! you can always “upgrade” them later if you think you will need them… but I think you will be more than pleased as they are!

With the riser block, do you find the standard rods to be at their limit? It appears maybe the rods sit a little higher in the new joint/adjustment assembly than the old universals. I could be wrong though.

[tcmeyer]

I’m pretty sure you’re right on the reason for the longer rods. I had to make rods which were even longer, because my addition of bronze bushings tended to slip off the end (the bore is way over-sized).

BTW, the rod end ball joints have 1/4-28 threads, not 1/4-20. Assuming you have a die handle, you can buy a die for about $15 and a 3′ length of polished, tight-tolerance rod for only about $5, but I think WE would make you a set of whichever length you ask for.

[Josh]

no worries man! you can always “upgrade” them later if you think you will need them… but I think you will be more than pleased as they are!

With the riser block, do you find the standard rods to be at their limit? It appears maybe the rods sit a little higher in the new joint/adjustment assembly than the old universals. I could be wrong though.[/quote]

Yeah, the new joints do raise the rods up to where they need to be… but for consistency’s sake I did not want any part of my paddle to go off of the end of the rod while I was sharpening =) It’s just a little “extra” that I personally wanted after I got spoiled on the first gen w/ longer arms!

[Josh]

I’m pretty sure you’re right on the reason for the longer rods. I had to make rods which were even longer, because my addition of bronze bushings tended to slip off the end (the bore is way over-sized).

BTW, the rod end ball joints have 1/4-28 threads, not 1/4-20. Assuming you have a die handle, you can buy a die for about $15 and a 3′ length of polished, tight-tolerance rod for only about $5, but I think WE would make you a set of whichever length you ask for.

your a beast tom! If i EVER have to mod anything i need to make SURE i consult you first! I love engineers! 😉

[JS]

I’m pretty sure you’re right on the reason for the longer rods. I had to make rods which were even longer, because my addition of bronze bushings tended to slip off the end (the bore is way over-sized).

BTW, the rod end ball joints have 1/4-28 threads, not 1/4-20. Assuming you have a die handle, you can buy a die for about $15 and a 3′ length of polished, tight-tolerance rod for only about $5, but I think WE would make you a set of whichever length you ask for.

No worries there…I own a great tap and die set.

[JS]

Got the upgraded arms in today. Thumbscrews are taken out completely and the micro adjust screws will not budge at all. Pretty disappointed here. Had to take it off the angle bar because of all the torque I was putting on it but even holding the arm assembly in my hand, I can’t turn it like it was red loctited in there. Unless I’m completely missing something here besides turn left or right.

Edit: already spoke with Kyle and getting a new set sent out Monday.

[Josh]

Awesome… can’t wait to hear your experiences!

Got the upgraded arms in today. Thumbscrews are taken out completely and the micro adjust screws will not budge at all. Pretty disappointed here. Had to take it off the angle bar because of all the torque I was putting on it but even holding the arm assembly in my hand, I can’t turn it like it was red loctited in there. Unless I’m completely missing something here besides turn left or right.

Edit: already spoke with Kyle and getting a new set sent out Monday.

[JS]

Got the replacement upgraded arms in a few days ago, and they work much better. After awhile of flipping the angle bar around and slightly moving it between grits, you start to get a feel for how much movement moves the arms X number of degrees. I’m really liking the micro adjustment feature and am trying it with the angle bar in the normal position with detents facing towards me. The brackets seem to “lock” positively at each degree mark making it easy to quickly get to your “rough” starting position before micro adjusting. I also appreciate that socket cap screws with enlarged thumb grip heads are being used for positive tightening.

I’ve quickly learned how much of a turn yields how many tenths of a degree of movement so it’s pretty quick measuring and readjusting between grits. The new arms give a feeling of more precision when sharpening. Everything feels tighter and I think they’re worth it. They’ve helped me to get some of my best polishes yet. The diamonds have gotten really smooth; the 1000 grit stones feel like glass on the edge now and leave a hazy, shiny finish. I agree with Josh that it helps to not go lower than the 400 grit stones unless you just have to. My best polishes thus far have been from 400 forward with the new arms.

It’s really hard to beat this system, I must say.

A question regarding stropping…I’ve been using rubbing alcohol to spritz the strops for awhile now. On the 5 and 3.5 micron paste strops, they slide smoothly over the edge. The roo strops with 1 and 0.5 micron CBN spray slide smoothly for the first ten strokes or so then they start getting really sticky on the edge. I think I remember reading a post about the roo strops having more stiction? If so, then I’d say that’s definitely true. My question is do you respray your roo strops often with alcohol? It seems like I have to put a lot of pressure on the strops to get them to travel the edge. I strop at one degree below but wonder if this additional pressure is too much for the edge as I’ve usually always stropped with really light pressure. Most of the edges are hair whittling, but I’ll admit some are more difficult than others.

[Josh]

Looking good man!!

I have never used rubbing alcohol other than trying it out once or twice… But I found that it evaporated so fast it didn’t do any good.

I just recently had a problem with my 3.5 strops sticking so badly that it was leaving residue all over my mirror bevel and was making it hard to strop! I solved the problem by “cleaning” the strop with some amsoil motor oil which cleaned off the gunk and lubricated it. Then I put a tad more of fresh abrasive on it and it worked great!

So oil may be a consideration to take…

[JS]

Hmm cleaning with Amsoil? I would’ve never thought of it. Well I cleaned my strops about 10 knives ago or so with denatured alcohol and a toothbrush. Got them pretty clean. The first time I put paste on the strops I did it dry and rubbed the two strops together which yielded a decent amount of excess coming off on the edge for the first few knives. In the piece of paper that came with my strops, it said that wetting the strops with alcohol before applying the paste could help it get in the leather better (if I remember correctly) so I tried that this last time. It made the paste thinner and spread on the strop much easier. What I noticed was that the strop turned black much quicker, only after a couple knives. The strops before I cleaned weren’t even as black as they were after 5 knives or so after this last cleaning and reapplication.

I only get the sticking with the roo strops which are sprayed and not pasted. They will stick so bad that they, even with no paste, will leave residue on the bevel. I wish Clay or someone had some microscopic pics of edges with stropping with alcohol and no alcohol.

[Author]

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