PAPER WHEEL USAGE, AND SAFETY TIPS.
DONT TAKE CHANCES WITH A BUFFER. DONT ATTEMPT TO MAKE ANYTHING TO MOUNT ON A BUFFER THAT COULD TURN INTO A POTENTIAL PROJECTILE IF IT COMES APART. THE PAPER WHEELS WONT COME APART OR SEPERATE UNDER NORMAL USE AND WHEN USED PROPERLY AND SAFELY THEY WILL NOT CATCH A BLADE.
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HERE IS SOME REALLY GOOD INFORMATION ON WHAT I CALL A NOVELTY EDGE OR AN EDGE TAKEN DOWN TO A 1/2 MICRON
LIKE THE PERSON WHO WROTE THIS SAYS, A HAIR WHITTLING EDGE SERVES NO PURPOSE IN THE REAL WORLD.
JUST LIKE CHROME WONT MAKE A HARLEY GO ANY FASTER, AN EDGE LIKE THIS WONT CUT ANY LONGER.
All it takes is a little bit of common sense and decent hand eye coordination. The wheels produce the same edge as if you use a stone. You might think because its a wheel that the edge will be concave but its such a small surface area touching an already narrow surface its hard to tell even with a magnafying lense.
For over 31 years I have used the wheels to sharpen knives and when used properly you can get the sharpest edge (depending on the steel and its ability to take a good edge) your knife is capable of taking. here are 2 vids of a knife i made cutting a moustache hair.
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1E9-1uzL5o3KQ7BXnZxnk3zajxNcuklWz hair cut and falling video. it happens fast off to the left
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1fmI2IFqjxl66jJawHhPUA8OjaDA9WFbx hair slow cut video
Dont expect a cheap pakistani stainless steel piece of junk you bought for $2. to slice newspaper like a good tool steel blade, its not going to happen.
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BUFFERS CAN BE DANGEROUS. THE INOFRMATION BELOW NOT ONLY APPLIES TO THE PAPER WHEELS BUT FOR CLOTH BUFFING WHEELS ALSO. DONT TAKE CHANCES WITH YOUR EYES OR HANDS.
i have been using the paper wheels for a little over 17 years now and i havent found anything yet to work any better. these wheels are made from a special paper that is hard. you mount the wheels to a buffer or grinder. they can also be mounted to a 1/2 hp 1725 rpm motor.
HERE IS A LINK TO MY PAPER WHEEL THREAD ON BLADEFORUMS
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/578787-paper-sharpening-wheels-when-your-time-is-important-to-you?p=9186306#post9186306
Paper wheel 101, tips for beginners
THEY ARE NOT CARDBOARD WHICH WOULD BE DANGEROUS DUE TO THE HOLES THAT CAN CATCH THE TIP OF A KNIFE.
TO PROLONG THE GRIT ON YOUR WHEELS, FOLLOW THESE INSTRUCTIONS. some guys said the grit wont last long.
One reason the grit is not lasting may be that they're not using the wax correctly, or not at all. Just enough to have steaks of wax on the wheel. The wax has two purposes: Help control heat & help the grit stay on longer.
use a light that can be put in a position to allow you to see where the blade makes contact with the wheel and allow you to see the burr form. keep your mind on what you are doing.
make sure you wont have any distractions. lock the kids, (wife) and or animals out of the shop if you need to. and just as if you are in a car, dont get behind the wheel when you are drinking and dont think you can do it when you have been.
i started practicing on an old hacksaw blade just sharpening a straight section first. later i went around the end to simulate the belly of a blade.
make sure to have the edge facing the direction of rotation and not against the direction of rotation or you will cut into the wheel. there is a label on each wheel to remind you of this.
YOU ARE IN CONTROL OF THE ANGLE THAT IS PUT ON THE BLADE SO BE CAREFUL HOW YOU HOLD THE KNIFE
first learn what position to hold the blade at for the desired angle and practice drawing the knife along the wheel at this angle. do this with the motor off and use light pressure. some tape on the wheel will protect the blade from scratches when practicing.
to find the angle, take a knife with the desired angle and lay it on the wheel flat. then slowly move the spine away from the wheel until you see the very edge make contact with the wheel.
it takes practice so dont expect a pretty edge starting off. if you dont get the hang of it right away just keep practicing and it will come to you eventually.
a knife thats not very dull will not take very long to work up a burr or take much pressure to sharpen. removing the burr is the same way but some steels do require a little more pressure to remove the burr. once you finish with the paper buffing wheel, you are done. there is no need to strop since the paper wheel is a strop.
sometimes if you have been at it for a while and are getting frustrated, just walk away for a while and give it a rest. come back to it later and try again. dont try cheap pakistan steel knives and if you do, dont expect a miracle. i wont even let that steel touch my wheels since its so soft. its not worth the wear on the wheels.
a slightly dull knife can be brought back to razor sharpness with just a few passes on the paper buffing wheel. this only applies if the edge is only slightly dull and no flat spots are on the edge.
when sharpening narrow blades i find it helpful sometimes to widen a blade by attaching some stiff paper with tape. this will help you to keep the blade at the desired angle you want.
HERE IS THE PROPER WAY TO DO SERRATED BLADES.
when sharpening serrations DO NOT GRIND ON THE (FLAT) BACK SIDE OF THE SERRATIONS!!!. they are ground this way for a reason and should never be done this way. you can buff the serrations back to sharp but if they are beyond buffing then you need to get some diamond files and reshape the serrations from the ground side. a burr should form on the back or flat side of the blade. this burr can then be removed with the slotted buffing wheel safely and you will have a properly sharpened serrated blade that will cut like factory or better.
when you grind the back side of a serrated blade, you change the angle from chisel to a v which will over time make the serrated section wider and cutting performance will be diminished not to mention shortening the life of the blade. do this enough times and the serrations will be worthless for cutting. i would not do this to an expensive serrated kitchen knife or trust anyone to sharpen a knife that did.