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Knipper

Compounds For Stropping And Buffing

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Thank you Knipper, a solution at last.

I have been using grinding paste on my strop for some time. A few years ago I bought jewelers rouge but because it failed, I assumed I had purchased the wrong sort. Just last week I received some from the Tandy agent in Cape Town and so far I am very disappointed. Now I know why. I find I get the best results by first honing the blade and then a final honing on a small Arkansas stone. I have a strop with grinding paste which gives fair results, but I find the oiled Arkansas stone gives me the edge I am looking for. I will look into the availability of the compounds that you mention.

Thank you for clearing that problem.

Malcolm

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Update! Since first writing this, I have found an even more aggressive compound that works even better. Its available from Brownell's (the gunsmith supply people), and is called their "555 Black" polishing compound. Not only does this really help re-establish an edge, but it also leaves a nice mirror finish on the blade. Its more aggressive than the green compounds by far, but I've found that after using this, I don't have to do anything further. This rubs in well on a leather strop, particularly if the strop is latigo. On harder, drier leather, an oil of some sort (neatsfoot works) applied before you rub it in will help keep the compound from flaking off. The finer the finish on the leather, the more it tends to do that, so roughing up the surface of the leather will help. One doesn't have to completely cover the leather with layers of compound. Every inch doesn't have to be coated. This stuff also works very well on a buffing wheel too. If you use only one compound, this would be my recommendation!

Terry

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So anybody use Flitz?

Jeremy

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Terry, if you are out there, I have a couple of questions for you. I am fixing to order some "555" from Brownells. What side of the leather are you applying, and given its color, how do you know when to recharge your strop? I know with the stuff I am currently using turns totally black ,it is time for more. Thanks for the help, Terry

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I use a leather covered wood block----flesh side up---that has had some automotive valve grinding paste worked into it. You mix coarse and fine paste about 50/50 and work it into the leather with some light mineral oil.

Every now and then add a few drops more oil, and even less often work some more paste in as well.

After buffing the blade, clean and polish off using the flesh side of suitably sized piece of leather (flat on bench!) kept for the purpose.

A half teasppon of each scrounged from a car repair shop will last you for most of your saddlery lifetime.

Cheap and cheerful and works as well as fancy compounds in a smart tin!

Edited by Birdman

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So I hope I am not off topic, but can you tell me the benefits of "rouge" and strop vs stones?

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Gotta use them both, or at least I do. The stop is basically just a much finer abrasive, polishing the edge and removing the burr. I have a surgical hard Arkansas stone which leaves a really nice finish, super fine, but I'll strop it with Flitz 5-6 strokes per side and its nearly a mirror finish and seems to glide through the leather easier. You really don't even need stones, wet/dry sandpaper will do the job too, followed by the Flitz. Just my method, YMMV

Jeremy

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Jeremy,

I've heard of using valve grinding compound for a strop, and may try some day. What you say about a strop vs a stone is right on except when you get a big ding in your blade. I dropped my round knife in the rocks the other day and I would have worn out a whole bunch of paper getting it back to where it is supposed to be. I am using a 8000 grit diamond stone for final sharpening.

Terry

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1000 grit, 6000 grit, then finish on 12000 grit all Japanese water stones leftover from my straight razor making days.

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1000 grit, 6000 grit, then finish on 12000 grit all Japanese water stones leftover from my straight razor making days.

Would this work with rc60 steel? Once the blade goes dull for a leather knife would you touch it up with the finest stone you have or green compound and from time to time use a 12k stone.

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1k,6kand 12k then white compound for swivel knife blades same for head knife blades except green compound finish....

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Flitz is the way to go, it has very fine particles in it for polishing metal, plastic and other surfaces, I at one time had a one pound can but never thought I would use it again. I have been able to find it in small think catchup and mustard packs, type packaging, I took some and rubbed it in to a leather and use it for stropping and it works great.

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On 8/3/2011 at 2:34 AM, Ladykahu said:

Are there different base types (oil vs water) to the buffing compounds? or could it just have been his block was to old and had dried to much to rub off?

 

What I do for any strip is to take a bar of green compound and scrape off flakes into a cup.

Then I grind them as fine as possible. Add a bit of mineral oil til I have a slurry paste.

Then I run this into the leather.

It's worked well for the last decade.

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I'll add a little tip for those using leather as their stropping base.

Rub the compound bar of your choice onto the leather, (usually backed by wood) and then heat the strop up with a hair dryer.

Watch the wax/oil/abrasive melt into the leather, then apply more by rubbing the bar on. Heat again. This will build up a base layer of "charge".

Please notice I'm saying hair dryer not heat gun, it does not have to be burning hot (that will distort your flat strop surface).

 

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I agree with most of the original post: colour can be a useful guide but that some manufacturers deviate from it by colouring their compounds and obviously their recipes vary.

However, I believe the colour is often (not always) indicative of the abrasive used, or at least one of them.  For example:

- emery/carborundum/silicon carbide in black/grey coarse compounds for steel (coarse)

- chromium oxide in green compound (fine)

- aluminium oxide in white compound (finer/finest)

I've heard the base or medium which holds the abrasive variously referred to as: wax, fat, tallow, soap.  I expect all of those things - and more - have been used at different times. One forum member, a Scottish saddler, has a youtube video where he demonstrates the use of his extremely long strop, which is covered in beef tallow & carborundum.

I often go straight from worn 600 grit wet & dry paper (wear probably makes it closer to 1000/1200 grit) to white compound and that works fine.  Although I find myself using green alone or green first more these days, probably just because it seems to be more popular, esp. on USA forums.  To be honest, I don't notice any difference between white & green compound (or white Autosol metal polish) in practice, either can get you close to a mirror finish.  My working assumption is that (coarsest to the left, finest to the right):

       240 grit  wet bench grinder > 600 grit wet & dry > black/grey compound > green compound >= white compound >= Autosol metal polish

Not sure exactly where compounds fit into the waterstone grit spectrum but ...

My turn to be controversial: The big revelation for me is that I rarely bother using my 8000 grit waterstone now, because I can instead go straight to a strop with compound from 6000/5000/4000/3000/2000 and probably even 1000 grit -- you don't really need those very expensive, superfine 8000+ waterstones - they are just a very  expensive, messy and time-consuming way of polishing the metal. In fact the edge produced on my 1000 waterstones is quite usable even without further stropping/honing. I aim to the get the edge sharp on the first stone I use (which varies considerably), after that any further work is just refining that already sharp edge, with the aim making it last longer by cleaning up the jagged edge.

Edited by Tannin

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I just sharpen on my noname double sided/grit stones then to my strop with a dark grey powder mixed with oil. I dont recall the powders grit because I got it from a knife maker I think and it came in a ziplock bag. Its not as course as the general valve lapping compound but it removes metal faster then white rouge. 

I actually have two stropping blocks but dont use the white rouge one anymore, the one with the grey powder/oil mix gets a shinny finish much faster and last. You can buy lapping compounds in various grits which will last ya a life time for stropping. Just take a teaspoon and mix with oil then brush onto the flesh side of your strop. Once the oil dries out the compound can slowly come off but it will stay enough to sharpen your blades or whatever else you sharpen on it. 

 

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Has anyone here heard of, or tried a polishing product called Flitz??

I use it to clean and protect the blades on my large hunting knives and small axe, collections.

I apply mine using a jewelers rouge cloth.  Really does a great job of cleaning and restoring an old blade. 

If using on an antique aged blade, where rust has been gathering, I will clean with Emery cloth first, them apply and polish with Flitz.

 

Chas

Edited by ChasCS

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I used to use Flitz a lot. I have used in tumbling media, on polishing wheels, and applied by cloth.  My purely unscientific experience is that the new "green/eco" formula in the squeeze bottle is not as effective a rust and tarnish preventative as the old paste in a tube. Used to be 6 months easy, now it is 6 weeks at times. I am trying a few other products right now, and am a few months away from being able to say anything. 

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Getting in on the tail end of this, I generally derust then cold blue. If stainless or not to be blued, I use Johnsons paste wax. 

Art

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On January 14, 2014 at 10:23 AM, J Hayes said:

So anybody use Flitz?

Jeremy

Yes. I love to clean and polish my razor shaving sharp hunting knives and axe blades with it. 

But only thought about using it with my leather tools today.

Then I saw your old post, only after, I had already hit the Submit Reply.

It's not an easy product to find here in Edmonton Alberta. Similarly of electronic contract cleaner...

Chas

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38 minutes ago, bruce johnson said:

I used to use Flitz a lot. I have used in tumbling media, on polishing wheels, and applied by cloth.  My purely unscientific experience is that the new "green/eco" formula in the squeeze bottle is not as effective a rust and tarnish preventative as the old paste in a tube. Used to be 6 months easy, now it is 6 weeks at times. I am trying a few other products right now, and am a few months away from being able to say anything. 

That's good to hear from you Bruce. I trust your knowledge, experience and appreciate your enthusiasm...

I only use the paste in squeeze tube, formula. On my second tube now.

This stuff lasts for years... Depending on your uses. It really is an effective metal protector.

I have also cleaned my silver and gold with it. Worked a wonder.

 

Chas

 

 

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Flitz works wonders in several different arenas, I owned a mobile repair service many years back and we would us Flitz to clean the plastic head lamp lens.  I would think it might be  a little to gritty for leather .

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

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22 hours ago, OLDNSLOW said:

Flitz works wonders in several different arenas, I owned a mobile repair service many years back and we would us Flitz to clean the plastic head lamp lens.  I would think it might be  a little to gritty for leather .

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

In this instance it's Flitz being suggested as a final polish for swivel knives. And round head blades as well, I suppose.

 

 

Chas

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I use this first when sharpening my round knife or any other knife, then go to green for my final sharpening before going to a strop  and it works great for me.

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I would imagine, some products are much easier to access, depending on the location or region you reside.

I used to, be able to buy Flitz, at a local store near by, called Bedrock Lapidary. Now I only find it at a Lapidary shop in the West end of my home town of Edmonton Alberta. Surprising that such a useful product is sold in so few places.

It can be purchased online in larger containers if one were to want a lot more of it than the tube size, I purchase.

http://www.flitz.com

Chas

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