Thread: CBN strops.... a thought

Originally Posted by onimaru55

Your thread. Derail it all you want... Won't help you learn anything about razors tho.

I'm really here to learn proven techniques on honing, and enjoy the camaraderie with people of similar interest. The question of whether glass is a viscous liquid that flows, or not, while interesting to me, is not really germane to learning honing techniques, and is apparently getting some posters upset with me. So, i don't think I'm "derailing" the topic, just trying to get back on topic.

Originally Posted by DoctorSaul

I'm really here to learn proven techniques on honing, and enjoy the camaraderie with people of similar interest. The question of whether glass is a viscous liquid that flows, or not, while interesting to me, is not really germane to learning honing techniques, and is apparently getting some posters upset with me. So, i don't think I'm "derailing" the topic, just trying to get back on topic.

IME it is not, but then again, I've had an awful lot of viscous liquid flow into glass, and then into me ...... and out ......... but to get back on topic ......... I like honing too.

Originally Posted by ScienceGuy

... This is the reason that 1000+ year old Roman glass artifacts still exist, some in their original fine detail. To get glasses to flow you need to go above the glass-transition temperature.

I can't resist responding.....

Heck, there are Roman glass artifacts that are over 2000 years old, and Greek glass objects in the same time realm, and pre-history glass formed from volcanos. The fact that old glass exists does not prove that glass does not flow, albeit slowly. Careful measurement would no doubt show the effect of gravity on the flow of the glass.

What glass transition temperature? Glass is an amorphous solid/liquid throughout a reasonable temperature range, there are no polymorphs, there are no crystalline structures, hence, there is no glass transition temperature until you get up to really high temperatures or really low temperatures (but that is a whole different story). If one plotted temperature vs viscosity of glass one would see, at temperatures where the glass is obviously molten and flows, that the relationship between temperature and viscosity is linear, hence can be extrapolated back down to room/ambient temperatures. There is a calculable viscosity of glass at room temperature, and that viscosity, be it very high, correlates well with the flow shift seen in old glass due to gravity. Interestingly, because of the amorphous nature of glass, it also does not have a detectable yield point, so glass flow just due to the force of gravity can occur without having to exceed any other flow force.

I have to say, I'm enjoying all this glass stuff. Not the barbs, but the technical parts of the discussion. I may have to read the MIT paper. I wonder if the MIT guy would enjoy wet shaving.

I have no experience with CBN. I thought I might be interested in trying it but I'm learning nothing about it in this thread. I'm not "upset" about the constant derailment of the topic, just bored with it.

CBN does interest me.feel free to post pictures of edges/stropping surfaces etc.I enjoy knowledge for its own sake so please be generous with your findings/ musings.cheers -CAM-

How about melding the two? Has anyone tried fiberglass cloth as a stropping medium, albeit an itchy one?

CBN is some cool stuff, been playing with it for a few years.

It come in some seriously small nano grit sizes, down to .10um, (160k grit) equivalents and does cut quickly, without the harsh edge that Diamonds can produce.

What impresses a lot of folks is its ability to completely remove the stria from a bevel that can be seen at 400 X, when used in progression, on a properly honed bevel and edge, without damaging the edge and in fact making the edge a bit smoother and Very Straight.

Actually there is not much difference in removing all the stria as opposed to a minimal stropping progression, in terms of comfort.

Like most paste, substrate does dictate results. It is best used misted wet with distilled water, as the partial size is smaller than minerals contained in some water, which eliminates most conventional substrates.

For best results it should be used in progression on a properly stropped razor to the smallest grit size. Size jumps are very large but still work well, for example from.25um, (60k) to .125um, (120K).

.50,/.25um and smaller can be used daily, and will eventually will remove all visible stria and can maintain a razor for a long, long time… indefinitely.

Strop contamination is an issue as partial size is smaller than dust.

As with all paste, stropping technique dictates results, it is not magic, it is just another, finer paste and tool.

Originally Posted by Euclid440

CBN is some cool stuff, been playing with it for a few years.

It come in some seriously small nano grit sizes, down to .10um, (160k grit) equivalents and does cut quickly, without the harsh edge that Diamonds can produce.

What impresses a lot of folks is its ability to completely remove the stria from a bevel that can be seen at 400 X, when used in progression, on a properly honed bevel and edge, without damaging the edge and in fact making the edge a bit smoother and Very Straight.

Actually there is not much difference in removing all the stria as opposed to a minimal stropping progression, in terms of comfort.

Like most paste, substrate does dictate results. It is best used misted wet with distilled water, as the partial size is smaller than minerals contained in some water, which eliminates most conventional substrates.

For best results it should be used in progression on a properly stropped razor to the smallest grit size. Size jumps are very large but still work well, for example from.25um, (60k) to .125um, (120K).

.50,/.25um and smaller can be used daily, and will eventually will remove all visible stria and can maintain a razor for a long, long time… indefinitely.

Strop contamination is an issue as partial size is smaller than dust.

As with all paste, stropping technique dictates results, it is not magic, it is just another, finer paste and tool.

Your knowledge on this subject is quite amazing. I am learning so much from you and so fast. I deeply appreciate your tutoring on these fine aspects of honing.

Originally Posted by Splashone

How about melding the two? Has anyone tried fiberglass cloth as a stropping medium, albeit an itchy one?

I would think that since the glass fibers are quite brittle, the act of stropping would break off fine pieces of glass fiber which, as you suspect, would not feel too good on the skin if left on the razor. As I understand it the advantage of a glass plate is that it is an unyielding flat surface that would be difficult to deform during the stropping process, hence eliminating the negative effects on the razor edge (roll over) that can occur with flexible strops or strop substrates that can be deformed with pressure.

Besides glass plate, I wonder if anyone has tried using a flat metal plate with an abrasive like CBN as a razor strop.