Ribstabsheart
@ribstabsheart
20 days agoForum Replies Created
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Thanks again! Just got approved for the FB group, so I will look through there as well. I’m guessing that the single-sided scrubbing might give you less of a polished edge, but can definitely help with overall sharpness (and help you even out those uneven spots). Going to set up my Paramilitary 2 today and see what new things I can learn!
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Finally had time to go through the videos, thank you so much for taking the time to explain things for me!
– You mentioned scrubbing in the first video, I like to do this in the beginning with the low grits to set the apex. Do you do that for grits higher than 50/80/100? This time around, I used a sharpie for each stone all the way up to 2200 to make sure i was making good contact all along the edge with each stone. You mentioned the slight variation previously, and it helped me see where to focus with each passing stone.
– Very good point about the alternating strokes and “cancelling them out”! I’m going to try and keep it in the same direction and see how that turns out next time.
– Thank you for sharing your experiences with the setback angle. I definitely apply a decent amount of pressure and roll over the edge more often than not when stropping, so I should work on applying good pressure and building that muscle memory/dexterity. The 2° setback is definitely a safety mechanism for newbies like me — I should try lifting up or letting off the pressure when I get towards the bottom of the strop.
– Yeah, I kinda went wild with the strops!
I have the 5/3.5 pastes, and the rest are emulsions. I usually just finish with the basic 5/3.5, but for my nicer pocket knives I try to experiment with the fancier stuff. While I feel like I’m getting a good feel for the stones, stropping is going to be the next big thing I’m going to have to work on.At the end of the day, I finally felt comfortable with my WE to sharpen my fanciest knife, and I feel like I’m learning and did a good job overall. So, I’m taking it as a win and will strive to do even better next time!
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The challenges of trying to achieve that perfect mirror polish and the point of diminishing returns led me more towards the pursuit of a good sharp working edges and maybe not ones that are so mirror perfect.
This was what I really needed to hear after all the time I put in today, haha! I’m very happy with how sharp the knife is, and that I took the time to make sure the tip/choil end of the knife were finished before moving onto the next stone. I tend to get antsy and just assume it will work itself out later on down the line, but I notice less of a “bite” on those areas if I dont take the time to make sure it all looks pretty even under the microscope. I’m going to just use and enjoy the edge I have for now, and once its dull, try and see if I can do better next time. I’m sure a lot of those scratches are leftovers from lower grits.
I need to do some more experimentation with the stropping angle and see how it affects things. A shiny bevel is nice for pictures, but it isnt very useful if it dulls the cutting edge — I’m sure theres a sweet spot like everything else.
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Thank you very much, Marc! Over the years you’re taught me to be very mindful of my strokes, but as with all things, I’m just hoping to take it to the next level.
I was still very happy with how the edge turned out, but wasn’t sure what grit to go back to/if I need to adjust the stropping angle if I want to “buff” it better.
Going to watch the videos once I get home tonight!
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Thank you! I sent them an email, and you are completely correct. They are revamping everything and the low angle adapter is back in stock now. Now to decide if I want to upgrade to the new vise sometime — it looks awesome, and solves the issue with the blade play, but it’s always annoying to have to figure out all of my blade positions once again. I feel like I’m bad at the angle cube.
Well, my birthday came and went, and I ended up with the 2/1 emulsions and cow strops, as well as a bonus kangaroo strops! What can I say, she’s a keeper!
Now I’m left with the crippling decision of what to do with what. I was thinking of ordering the 4u and 0.5u sprays, and then using the cow for 4/2, and the kangaroo for 1/0.5 after our discussion about using the softer leathers for lower grit compounds.
I assume you cant really clean the strops and change grits after you load them up, so I haven’t used them yet. If something else might be better, please let me know! Whatever I do, I’m going to take my time and spend a lot of time with my microscope in hopes of getting better results over time!
Thank you so much!
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I can definitely tell the difference when I work slowly and alternate strokes (while I apply light pressure). At first, I was just kind of quickly doing it with long strokes, which is a very dangerous game to play when it comes to leather!
.If I wanted to try out the emulsions, should I get anothet set of leather strops first? Not sure what micron would pair best with the current 5/3.5 pastes I’ve tried so far. My girlfriend is hoping to get me a birthday present, so I wanted to send her a little WE shopping list
