sierraleather Report post Posted September 30, 2011 Any thoughts on the steel blade versus the ceramic? Any way to re-polish a ceramic blade. Thanks. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dirtclod Report post Posted September 30, 2011 Steel is lots better you can sharpen it. Ceramic is a joke IMO. I bough one several years ago and wasn't worth having when it was brand new and i never had any luck trying to get it sharp either. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bruce johnson Report post Posted September 30, 2011 I think overall steel is the best choice. I have some good ones from Chuck Smith and Barry King. Henley makesa good one as well. I have got a few ceramic blades in some Tandy knives that were so-so to really draggy. I recently bought some tools and with them was a Chuck Smith knife with a ceramic blade. I was not expecting much out of the blade because my experience was about like dirtclod's. It is a heck of a good blade. I am not sure that Chuck made a ceramic blade so this might be one somebody stuck in it. Whatever the case either this was a good blade to start with or somebody worked it over to be good. Sorry I left one off my list of steel blades. I have one from Leather Wranglers that is the longest lasting of the steel blades I have. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wildrose Report post Posted September 30, 2011 Totally adore my ceramic blades (no joke either). It's all I use unless I'm teaching a class - then I use the same basic swivel knife as my students do. Strop and go, no sharpening needed. Carving is my favorite part of any project, so if they weren't working for me, I'd not be using them. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MADMAX22 Report post Posted October 1, 2011 Thats a tough one. A good steel blade will work wonderfully if you keep it sharp and sharpen it properly. A good ceramic blade will work wonderfully if you keep it sharp and sharpen it properly. Ceramic blades are not as difficult to get sharp as most think but they are a little tougher to work up then say a steel blade. Ive got a few tandy steel blades (junk IMHO) a few random old blades from a few different places that I have no idea where and they do pretty good Just got a barry king knife and blade, knife is great, blade is so so. Gotta work on it. Ive also got a tandy ceramic blade that I usually use. I did have to sharpen and polish all the lines and roughness out of it, but now it glides thru the leather. Its the easiest blade I have to use right now. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HellfireJack Report post Posted October 1, 2011 Any advice on how to sharpen/polish the ceramic blades? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MADMAX22 Report post Posted October 1, 2011 It has been a long time but if I remember correctly I used my fine stone on it. Got most of the large lines and defects out of it. Then I took it to my polishing wheel with some of the rouge on it. Gave it a nice polish. Now I just take it to the polishing wheel every once in a while. I think if they were higher quality they wouldnt have this issue but ahh well. I have scene several ceramic bladed folding knives and there edges were polished smooth and they were very sharp. They were all black ceramic though, dont know if that makes much of a difference. I dont have a picture of before but I could try to take a pic of how it looks now to show the smoothness if you want. Im sure most of them new look the same so you could compare if you want. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rawhide Report post Posted October 1, 2011 It's been a while since I've done one, but you have to put in some work to get them right. If you look at them closely, with a maginfying glass, you'll see small serrations from when it was made. You'll have to polish all of these out. I would start by stropping it on about 600-800 grit sandpaper, then move to 1200, then move to 2000. The first and second level of stropping will take a while, but be sure you do both sides evenly (count your strokes). Marlon Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BIGGUNDOCTOR Report post Posted October 1, 2011 Most ceramics are shaped with a diamond wheel, or lap. Diamond sharpening blocks are widely available now at reasonable prices, and MSC industrial has specials on diamond laps for $6 from time to time. At work our tool grinders use diamond wheels up to 1200 grit which will put a beautiful edge on the carbide drills they make. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MADMAX22 Report post Posted October 1, 2011 I tried taking a pic but I dont have the proper lense for that kind of detail. Marlon summed it up though. The diamond laps are quicker and easier but it can be done without those just takes alot longer. Once it is done though it is good to go with occasional stropping on the wheel. Just dont drop the darn things. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HellfireJack Report post Posted October 2, 2011 Thanks! I have a ceramic that doesn't work well. Now I know why. I don't even need a magnifying glass to see the serration. A couple hours of wet sanding should fix the problem. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hidepounder Report post Posted October 2, 2011 (edited) Sierraleather, I prefer steel over ceramic blades for a variety of reasons. First of all, ceramics are very fragile. It's way too easy to chip the edge or break the entire blade. To sharpen a ceramic blade properly requires some expensive equipment. It can be done by hand but not easily. To sharpen one to it's potential requires a power hone with multiple plates. Steel blades are easy to sharpen and nearly impossible to ruin. Finally, the last reason I prefer steel is because I can get it in a number of different configurations, few of which are available in ceramic. There is absolutely no question that a sharp ceramic blade is a real pleasure to use. It stays sharp for a long time and cuts like butter. However an equally sharp, quality steel blade cuts just as well. If I happen to drop it or ding it, it is easily repaired and I'm back in business. That means a lot to me. And IMHO, the biggest problem that people have with steel blades is learning to sharpen them. I agree with Bruce's list of blade makers but need to add Bob Beard's name. I love my Henley blades and I think Chuck Smith's new cobalt blade cuts like a dream and so does my Leather Wrangler blade. I haven't used Barry's blades but many of my friends won't use anything else. But the blades I use the most are Bob Beard's. There are two reasons for my prejudice. The first is each blade is made to order. He'll make them however you'd like them. The other reason is that they are made out of O1 tool steel. They are tough and hold an edge for a long time. I have literally chiped both my tooling rock and my concrete floor from dropping them and I was able to re-sharpen them quickly and get right back to work. Anyway, for my money I still prefer steel...... Bobby Edited October 2, 2011 by hidepounder Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
