Thread: Bentonite Clay stropping dust

Bentonite is mined in south central Montana. It is slick and nasty when wet.
Years ago I was out on a dirt raod in Montana with a small front wheel drive car when a thunderstorm came up.
The mud stuck to the tires until the back wheels would no longer turn. After a few hours it dried up enough that after freeing the rear wheels the car was going again.

I don't have any bentonite handy, but I'd love to hear if other people have tried to use it dusted on a strop. I wonder about how abrasive stuff like that is and what kind of effect it'd have on an edge.

Originally Posted by SirStropalot

Hey TBS,

Yeah, that's Okla. clay, it's just red here and the stuff we used on the rig was a more grey color. I'd come home and my work clothes would be saturated with the stuff after tripping pipe. I sure got some of those wifely " I hate this stuff stares".

The only thing worse was oil-based completion mud. The smell and the "gets on everything" aspect made that gas well one to avoid.

I don't know. Acid pickles have a "unique aroma" as well. And that smell tends to linger for a while.

I have no experience with it but just based on it's properties I don't see it as a honing medium. It's clay and it's very very fine and soft to begin with. Add water and it swells which makes it even softer and way more diluted.

Originally Posted by pixelfixed

Mike, did you use on leather or linin??

Hey Bill, sorry only getting back to you now... I dusted one of my leather finishing strops - not sure what type of leather to be honest..

I've read that bentonite has mild abrasive properties - but researching it's mineral makeup, it appears to be mostly comprised of Silica - which has a mohs hardness rating of around 7. A hardened steel file meanwhile, has a mohs hardness rating of 6.5. So I guess this fine powder's particles are essentially a bit harder than an average razor, which would explain the mild abrasive quality I'm experiencing. It doesn't seem to really abrade steel like the usual pastes and sprays we use, but it certainly is 'enhancing' the final stropping effect - at least for me it is...

When wet this stuff really turns into a sort of slime - great for shaving soaps, not so great as a slurry as far as my tests are going.. But dry, lightly dusted on a strop is really doing the trick.


Guys, has anyone tried this out yet? This stuff is pretty cheap and it would be cool to hear someone else's take on how it works/doesn't work for them.

Cheers,
- Mike

Mine should get here today,got it off the bay for cheap,will report back ASAP,made an english bridle strop esp. to try this.

This may do something,Just dusted the strop and will give it a go tomorrow as I shaved today.
Mixed some with oil to make a slurry,it will put a polish on already polished metal.is without question abrasive.Would think on a sub-micron level.

Seems to be a flaky particle from my look at some micrographs of it. Was reading that the flakes can be a micron or smaller in diameter and as thin as a few nanometers.

Seems like it might be interesting to experiment with...

Edit: Found a cheap source and ordered some. Will probably give it a shot next week. If it doesn't work out, it seems there are plenty of pseudoscientific healing claims so I'll be able to get some entertainment out of it.

This did not work for me YMMV,Took a blade that was just on the verge of getting a little on the pully side,normally I would hit this blade with a few strokes on a 12K shapton pro followed by an Escher or Zulu,The bentonite stropping,25 on bridel,tottally destroyed the edge.