PhilipPasteur wrote:


This is really what surprised me. I did some reading on the rating systems and wasn't sure what to expect out of the sandpaper, since it seems like going strictly by the numbers on the ratings the finer papers aren't much better than the 1000 grit diamond stones. In practice though there is a world of difference! It really helps to bridge the gap between 1000# diamond and the strops.

While my moderately worn in 1000 stone puts a nice matte finish on that has become my go-to daily use or duty edge, the 3000 paper gets much finer and starts to show some reflectivity. Having a dense progression like I posted doesn't take long to bring out a shine, though the real gleam is brought out with the strops. I should do another knife in this fashion and try to take macro images of each grit, if I can come up with a good way to take consistent pictures that show it decently...

After the strips wear in a bit they get very fine very quickly, and I suspect that even a fairly well used strip of sandpaper could stay useful for fine polishes much longer than you'd expect. I tend to use old worn sandpaper for a lot of fine polish work here in the shop, so I've taken to using sandpaper far beyond what most people consider tired and worn out

cbwx34 wrote:


This is the information that I was looking for, thank you.

As Phil stated I also noticed that the sand paper is roughly equivalent to the 1000 grit diamond stones. My experience with the sand paper is similar to some of the other members after the 1000 grit diamond the sand paper starts to bring out a nice polish. I enjoy trying all the different options just trying to make sense out of what I am experiencing

This is such a fun hobby!

Hey guys, I was at work when I replied before
Here is a link to a similar discussion:
www.wickededgeusa.com/index.php?option=c...0&Itemid=63#5566

Clay makes a very good point about the difference in not only the size of the abrasive , but the way it behaves as it breaks down...
drastically changing the results that you get.

I got my WEPs a good while back. I could not even find the 800/1000 grit paddles.... nor much else in the way of abrasives. I bought a bunch of wet/dry sandpaper (1000, 1500, 2000, 2500, 3000) and a whole assortment of the 3M PSA films. I had nothing other than the abrasive papers and the diamonds up to 600 grit. I would stick the sandpaper to the 600 grit plates with painters tape, work up to the 3000 grit (P), then to the 9/3/1 micron 3M PSA film. I had some WEPS 5/3.5 micron leather strops. I would finish with those. I promise that I got some awesome edges with that progression.

The only problem that I had was that the papers and films would wear real fast. I could only do 2 to 3 knives with them before I thought they had lost effectiveness.

Here is another link to some discussion of abrasive papers:
www.wickededgeusa.com/index.php?option=c...0&Itemid=63#3798

And some more:
www.wickededgeusa.com/index.php?option=c...5&Itemid=63#3245

More interesting reading:
www.wickededgeusa.com/index.php?option=c...0&Itemid=63#2378

BTW, the search function is great stuff... but I am happy to do the leg work when I have time!

Phil

www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.ph...ied-Grit-Chart/page3

One thing about the above..
Not sure if you folks have had a chance to look at the final edtion on page three of the above thread...
But, it has all of the grit sizes for the WEPS stones as well as the Chosera stones and Shaptons.. plus the sandpaper grits and EP stones. I downloaded it and keep a copy on my desktop on my main PC. It comes in real handy quite often.

Of course, the size of the grit is just one component of what determines your results when using any abrasive for sharpening... and undoubtedly not the most important component. You can easily see this just by checking out reviews for the different stones that are in the same grit size range.

Phil

Alot of very good advice. Thank you guys for all the info and for digging up so many links. Its amazing what can be done with some sandpaper. Ill have to look around town and see whats available. I dont want to go too fine, because I do like my edge a bit toothy, but I also like it clean and reflective. The most Ive done on an edge was on my Griptilian 550HG, I reprofiled the edge to 20* per side on my Lansky (which some people say is closer to 17*) started at 70 grit diamonds and ended with 2000 grit ceramic (Super Sapphire), then I went to the UF rods on my Sharpmaker, and ended stropping on Balsa with 1/.5 micron pastes, which got my edge to a nice polish (not a mirror polish) but kept the edge a nice and toothy-ish. That was my first hair whittling edge. I dont have good consistency with the Lansky though, thats another reason I want to upgrade.

Its good to know the leather wont completely convex my edge, Id like to try out a good leather strop now, maybe see what that Roo is all about.

Thanks again you guys, tons of great info since the last time I was online. Those micron charts are nice to have, but I know they arnt the only variable on the results of any knife. But its still good to have a chart like that to refer to.

[quote="TPeters" post=5926]cbwx34 wrote:


Yep!

I'm the same way, I got the paper just to try, but have been very surprised and pleased with the results. Like I mentioned, I tend to use sandpaper much longer after most people consider it worn out

I think I've done 4 knives with the current set of strips, and they're holding up well. I'll do another three or four this weekend and see what the longevity is though. I'll use 'em to death

ARES: After some practice you can experiment with micro-bevels using the 1000 grit or higher stones. Clay has mentioned that he often uses that technique to keep a nice mirror shine on his bevels to show off, but retain a tougher cutting edge with some tooth. Definitely something I'm going to start playing with myself in the near future, now that I have the ability to get a really nice shine. It'll only improve once I can budget more goodies!

This is what got me going with the abrasive papers...
It is long, and I don't now agree with some of it...
but it is still impressive:



Phil

I polished a Leek with 2500g sandpaper... I don't think a 1000g diamond stone would leave this...





(You hit on the secret... the more you use it, the finer it gets.)

CBW,
Of course you are correct on both counts. The 1000 grit plates will not polish like the sandpaper at 2500 grit (FEPA-P), and the more you use the sandpaper, the less grit there is to do the job...and what is still there has generally fractured and become equivalent to a much finer grit. The only problem here is that it takes forever to get results once the paper is worn. This is surely the secret to a finer polish, but also to spending much more time getting there.

One can do a very nice job with sandpapers... and even better if some of the 3M lapping paper is added at finer grit levels. But,if the option to get some of the ceramics or Choseras, or Shaptons is there, you can get an even better polish and edge with better consistency over time (and not having to mess with changing paper, storing it, and having to continually replace it). I am happy that I went through the process of learning to use the sandpapers to their best effect (I still have a large supply of sandpaper and 3M film), but I am really glad that I have now gotten the stone selection that I use today. It took me close to two years to get there, but it is worth it.

I still want to get a full set of the 4 grits in the WEPS ceramics to give them a try, but that will be a bit later.

Just saying, if the opportunity arrises for anyone to try some of the finer grit stones, you will be happy that you did. If you do lots of sharpening, they will also end up being cheaper to use in terms of time savings, convenience, and material costs.

Phil