Refinishing a Thinned knife (OZ)

[shauk]

Hey KKFer's

Can anyone share their sandpaper progression to refinish a knife to a satin finish? I am based in Australia and have a hard time figuring out what sandpaper to use and where to buy 'automotive' sand paper.

Local supercheap auto store's sand paper feels a a little too rough and I am afraid it will leave deep scratches on my knifes (VG10, Blue1, White 1 Stainless clad & Iron clad).

 

[chefcomesback]

Artisan supplies , get 10 sheets of rhynowet 180-240-400-800-1200-( if you really want to make it shiny 1500 grit ) . They last or longer than average Bunnings sand paper and cut faster

 

[Steampunk]

Mirka Waterproof (Alright), and Starcke Matador (Better) are available in most places around the world... Not sure what you think of as a satin finish, or what level you're starting from...

Generally with hand-sanding, match the scratches of the grit you're trying to erase from grinding, and then work your way up (Not skipping steps) up to your desired level.

Frankly, for corrosion resistance, I try to sand as high as I can. Past 2000-ish, I like using foam-backed 3M Trizact or Mirka Abralon media up to about 3000-5000 minimum.... Working up to about 800-grit isn't bad for a 'Satin Look' finish, but it's definitely not enough to get corrosion resistance down to OEM-level with the metals you've mentioned.

For a sort of 'knifemaker's satin' finish, you can switch to 3M Scotchbrite or Norton Bear-Tex material at or past the 240-320 grit level. Especially if you work up to the finer grits, and add some metal polish like Autosol to the media. Not great, but simpler than going to a high-grit sandpaper finish.

Hope this helps.

 

[enchappo]

I would just add that since Artisan Supplies doesn’t always have all grits in stock, Mirka is hard to buy except in bulk, and even a couple of mixed packs of Starcke become expensive once you add shipping, that I’ve had perfectly good results with the Norton wet and dry that SCA sells

 

[shauk]

Artisan supplies , get 10 sheets of rhynowet 180-240-400-800-1200-( if you really want to make it shiny 1500 grit ) . They last or longer than average Bunnings sand paper and cut faster

Thank you kind Sir this is exactly what I am after!

I would just add that since Artisan Supplies doesn’t always have all grits in stock, Mirka is hard to buy except in bulk, and even a couple of mixed packs of Starcke become expensive once you add shipping, that I’ve had perfectly good results with the Norton wet and dry that SCA sells

I'll pop down this weekend and check them out.

 

[M1k3]

3m Pro (it's purple colored paper) is pretty good also. If available for you that is.

 

[enchappo]

3m Pro (it's purple colored paper) is pretty good also. If available for you that is.

For some reason it seems nearly impossible to find purple 3M sheets locally here in Aus. Unless I’m just a numpty and can’t find them…

 

[tostadas]

3m pro, rhynowet, and matador are all pretty good quality

 

[bsfsu]

For some reason it seems nearly impossible to find purple 3M sheets locally here in Aus. Unless I’m just a numpty and can’t find them…

The "branded consumables" that other members talk about in grander places of the world, the better cutting abilities, performance time, etc. They come in a myriad of colours and shapes and names.

Hard to find in Australasia.

At least your in Australia and not the slightly more "limited range" New Zealand.

 

[mike59]

For a sort of 'knifemaker's satin' finish, you can switch to 3M Scotchbrite or Norton Bear-Tex material at or past the 240-320 grit level. Especially if you work up to the finer grits, and add some metal polish like Autosol to the media. Not great, but simpler than going to a high-grit sandpaper finish.

Hope this helps.

This ^^^^ I was about to do some sanding on a blade to get to a satin finish and heard about the scothbrite belts. Hours of sanding replace with minutes on a belt sander for an awesome satin finish! The knife I played with was a $5 flea market beater chef's knife I bought just for playing/learning how to sharpen, and do minor repairs on. The the blade was a mirror polish for a couple inches at the end where I'd been playing/testing sandpaper finishes and then the reset was a mostly satin finish with scratches. I used the medium coarse scotchbrite belt to get rid of scratches, then medium, and then stopped at fine. I also used it on a Ontario RAT that was also a $5 restoration for fun project knife and that also came out great. I'd highly recommend it!

ETA: If you decide to investigate the ScotchBrite route you can do it by hand with pads vs. belts. They are also made by other vendors and usually are called "surface conditioning" belts or pads.

To your original question about sandpaper progression - You'll need to start at the lowest grit that it takes to remove or replace existing scratches. I played with 3M Pro and started at 150 for my case, then 220, 400, and then 3M Wet or Dry 600, then 800 grit, and then dropped back to 600 grit for a satin like finish that I was looking for. I also used a small block sander vs. doing it just by hand. The only reason that I used 2 different kinds of sandpaper was availability - 3M Pro in the local building supplies store and the 3M Wet or Dry from the auto parts store. Finally, I also played with 1000, 1500, and 2000 grit for a mirror finish. You might be able to go from 1000 straight to 2000 but that's not what I did since I was specifically testing and trying to evaluate the different grit finishes at the time.

Hope this helps.

 

[chefcomesback]

Did I miss that he is asking for sand paper recommendations that are available rather than belts for a grinder ?

 

[enchappo]

Did I miss that he is asking for sand paper recommendations that are available rather than belts for a grinder ?

Nah, you’re right there