Microtome Sharpener

This was recently auctioned as a microtome sharpener. Frosted glass with honing compounds. Interesting.

Would it work for razors? Anyone ever try something like this?


Attachment 294019

It's a microtome finishing plate.
Usually had 4 powders with them: Tripoli, chromium oxide, ferric oxide, and carbon black that you mixed with glycerin to make a paste on the glass.
So it was used to touch up a microtome much the way you would touch up a razor with a pasted strop.
If it is the original glass, it is precision ground to be flat and the most expensive part of the kit.
Yes it will work for straight razors, knives, wood chisels, wood gouges, and plane irons.

The biggest problem with them is that it makes a mess cleaning the powders off between grits.

Thanks Chris. I didn’t buy it. But sure was impressed with it.

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Originally Posted by MrHouston

This was recently auctioned as a microtome sharpener. Frosted glass with honing compounds. Interesting.

Would it work for razors? Anyone ever try something like this?

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I'd bet a bunch of us tried it with a Spyderco UF stone & diamond powders. It's close to glass hard :)
Worked ok for me on a super hard Iwasaki western.

Actually have never tried this device. However, I use bubble plate glass plates as finishing devices. Set the bevel with 1K and move to a 6K to smooth the edge. Then go with the first plate glass that has a slight rough surface. I use honing oil with cigar ash as a medium. Maybe 20 passes and then switch to the smooth bubble glass plate with just honing oil with about 20 passes of light pressure.

Believe or not I get the smoothest and best edges from this glass. Looking at them under a 30X loupe after finishing I was amazed at the edge that I saw. Strop as usual and it was really comfortable and close. Only two passes (WTG & ATG) necessary. No need for all those expensive finishers that everyone raves about here.

I want it. Just cuz.

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Originally Posted by Johntoad57

Actually have never tried this device. However, I use bubble plate glass plates as finishing devices. Set the bevel with 1K and move to a 6K to smooth the edge. Then go with the first plate glass that has a slight rough surface. I use honing oil with cigar ash as a medium. Maybe 20 passes and then switch to the smooth bubble glass plate with just honing oil with about 20 passes of light pressure.

Believe or not I get the smoothest and best edges from this glass. Looking at them under a 30X loupe after finishing I was amazed at the edge that I saw. Strop as usual and it was really comfortable and close. Only two passes (WTG & ATG) necessary. No need for all those expensive finishers that everyone raves about here.

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Yeah but those finishers don't smell like an ashtray :p

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Originally Posted by onimaru55

Yeah but those finishers don't smell like an ashtray :p

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What can I say? The shaves that I get from this process is worth the smell and smoking them cigars is even better!

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Originally Posted by Johntoad57

What can I say? The shaves that I get from this process is worth the smell and smoking them cigars is even better!

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Har ! I love the smell of Birch tar oil on leather & timber.

Wow, that is so cool! I think I need one.....Uhh want one.......

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Originally Posted by Johntoad57

Actually have never tried this device. However, I use bubble plate glass plates as finishing devices. Set the bevel with 1K and move to a 6K to smooth the edge. Then go with the first plate glass that has a slight rough surface. I use honing oil with cigar ash as a medium. Maybe 20 passes and then switch to the smooth bubble glass plate with just honing oil with about 20 passes of light pressure.

Believe or not I get the smoothest and best edges from this glass. Looking at them under a 30X loupe after finishing I was amazed at the edge that I saw. Strop as usual and it was really comfortable and close. Only two passes (WTG & ATG) necessary. No need for all those expensive finishers that everyone raves about here.

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Is the glass/abrasive work done with a spine leading stroke?

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Originally Posted by bluesman7

Is the glass/abrasive work done with a spine leading stroke?

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Actually no. You would hone with the edge going forward on the glass. I always use one layer of tape on the spine (just my preference) and very light pressure using X strokes.

When I first learned about this, I thought it was a lot of bullshit. So I took my worst blade (GD208) and tried it. I don't know why or how this works but was truly amazed at what it did on that Gold Dollar. I shaved with it an I'll be damned. It turned this blade into a very smooth and close shave. So I tried it on one in my rotation (Robeson 2525) that needed a touch up and it was a dream.

All as I know is that whatever I'm doing, it works for me. I did this with all of my razors now and have great shaves every single time. For me, and I emphasize the term for me, it works great.

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Originally Posted by bluesman7

Is the glass/abrasive work done with a spine leading stroke?

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You can go either way depending on what you are sharpening and the edge that you want.
For a razor, I'd do spine leading to draw out the edge just like on a pasted strop.
If you do edge leading (like on a hone) you will get a sharp and bit of a serrated edge. Great if it is a scalpel or knife, not so great
for a razor or microtome.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Johntoad57

Actually no. You would hone with the edge going forward on the glass. I always use one layer of tape on the spine (just my preference) and very light pressure using X strokes.

When I first learned about this, I thought it was a lot of bullshit. So I took my worst blade (GD208) and tried it. I don't know why or how this works but was truly amazed at what it did on that Gold Dollar. I shaved with it an I'll be damned. It turned this blade into a very smooth and close shave. So I tried it on one in my rotation (Robeson 2525) that needed a touch up and it was a dream.

All as I know is that whatever I'm doing, it works for me. I did this with all of my razors now and have great shaves every single time. For me, and I emphasize the term for me, it works great.

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Originally Posted by criswilson10

You can go either way depending on what you are sharpening and the edge that you want.
For a razor, I'd do spine leading to draw out the edge just like on a pasted strop.
If you do edge leading (like on a hone) you will get a sharp and bit of a serrated edge. Great if it is a scalpel or knife, not so great
for a razor or microtome.

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Thanks guys.

One of my favorite barber hones is frosted glass. It's used much the same way, though the instructions recommended 'graphite or slate' as a medium. I used mine with Welsh Slate rubbing stones, and I have to say it worked beautifully.

I treated it the same as you would any other slurry hone. Build up a slurry to desired thickness, edge leading strokes, and thin the slurry out in phases. I found it interesting that the edge provided seemed to mimic the last slate used. It doesn't do much that can't be done with any other hone, but it's a neat little curiosity.

Go to Lowe’s, get a 3X12x 1/4in glass tile, (3-$4). Lap with a 3-400 diamond plate, it laps quickly and easily, and you have a flat frosted glass surface. You can go to a higher grit easily by lapping with a higher grit stone like a 1 or 4k, I use a 1k diamond plate, but any stone will work once you get it flat.

I lap glass plates because they are not flat and use them for lapping film, It also has the benefit of making the film stick better to the glass.

You can use a nagura, or any fine stone to make slurry. The problem with using random abrasives is you do not know the grit size, you also don’t know the grit of the silica in the glass. Any abrasive will polish steel even plain paper, the trick is repeatability.

Using paste on different substrate, will produce varying results, depending on the substrate. I strop on pasted paper all the time. Find a system that works for you and perfect it.

Rock on.