How to use chromium oxide paste

[TorbenDenmark]

Hi sharpeners  ,

I have run into some problems, so I hope you can help me. 

I bought a new leather wheel with the purpose of dedicating it to chromium oxide. I then ordered some chromium oxide paste, which I can no longer find online, but it is shown in the 1st attached picture.

When I received and opened the can of paste it was to my surprise very hard. Not like paste at all but more like a block of honing compound. See 2nd attached picture.

As I had no way of getting it out of the can, I applied a little of the oil that came with the leather wheel and with the help of a toothbrush I was able to dissolve (dilute?) some of the 'paste' and apply it to the wheel.

I have done this several times prior to using the wheel and now I am unsure if it was the right thing to do. The wheel now looks like this (3rd attached picture) and if you look closely you can see that the 'paste' sort of rolls off. During use it can get a lot worse than shown on the picture and even though I regularly stop and wipe it away, I believe it is not supposed to be like this.

So... What am I doing wrong? and what must I do now to get a well working chromium oxide wheel and how should I do it in the future?

Thanks in advance 
Torben 

[van]

Hello,
  I have read that many to clean the chrome oxide on the leather wheel use the refined blessings for Zippo type lighters. To make chromium oxide creamy, you can dilute it with liquid vaseline.
Surely other forum members will give you more precise information.
Don't worry, everything is resolved 

[wootz]

Hi Torben,

Using the Tormek oil the way you did is absolutely OK.
But the thick layer of chromium oxide may round the edge. The rightly applied should look like a leather "painted green", not like a layer on the leather.
You simply need to scrape off the excess of the chromium oxide paste by passing the spine of a knife across the rotating wheel, press the blade near perpendicular to the wheel.
After that, as you start doing your knives, you will see that the edge on the first couple of knives may not come out as sharp as it will on the following knives - the thinner the chromium oxide, the better the result. So do not reapply it too often, only once in 4-6 months.

[Ken S]

Strictly out of curiosity, what are the advantages of using chromium oxide instead of PA-70?

Ken

[wootz]

Chromium Oxide is no way an alternative to the Tormek honing paste, no. Chromium oxide on a 2nd leather wheel is used for edge refining AFTER the edge has been deburred on the 1st wheel with the Tormek honing paste PA-70.
This extra step of honing is for high-end knives. We finish on chromium oxide to clean up the deburred areas on the edge from any weak metal left after the burr breakout to get an "ideal" apex that will stay keen for longer.

[TorbenDenmark]

Thank you all for your response. I am relieved that you didn't write that I should buy a new wheel .

To make chromium oxide creamy, you can dilute it with liquid vaseline.

I think that the Tormek oil does not dilute the chromium oxide very well. If liquid vaseline does it better I would prefer to use that. Would that be okay?

After that, as you start doing your knives, you will see that the edge on the first couple of knives may not come out as sharp as it will on the following knives - the thinner the chromium oxide, the better the result. So do not reapply it too often, only once in 4-6 months.

Ahaaa... So the problem is that I have applied too much. I read that the amount of paste I bought should last a life time so I wondered why I had already used half of it . That also explains why I have not gotten the results that I hoped for. I will scrape off the excess paste and then see if the results get better after I have honed some more knives.

Strictly out of curiosity, what are the advantages of using chromium oxide instead of PA-70?

Ken I plan to use my chromium oxide wheel after using the PA-70 leather wheel or the SJ wheel.

Torben

[Ken S]

Good information, Wootz. Thanks for posting it.

Torben, you have now learned  not to use too much honng compound, a good step forward in your Tormek education. Good progress!

Incidentally, for any of you wanting to use an extra leather honing wheel, changing wheels is much more convenient with the locking knob instead of the nut provided with the T4. Like most parts, it is interchangeable between the T4 and T8. Here is a link:

https://advanced-machinery.myshopify.com/products/50-locking-knob-for-honing-wheel

Ken