Just Placed an order for the Congress Tool MoldMaster

Anyone have a recommendation for storage tubes similar to that of the spyderco tubes that comes with the diamond triangles?
 
I received my order yesterday and I must say that I was kind of disappointed in the crude manner these stones were manufactured. You want to talk about rough corners? No need for a microscope, Jewelers Loupe, magnify glass to visibly see the ragged edge of the stones. Just using ones naked eye you can see the jagged edges and that is putting it mildly. The flat sides all look useable so not a total disappointment but...
 
I received my order yesterday and I must say that I was kind of disappointed in the crude manner these stones were manufactured. You want to talk about rough corners? No need for a microscope, Jewelers Loupe, magnify glass to visibly see the ragged edge of the stones. Just using ones naked eye you can see the jagged edges and that is putting it mildly. The flat sides all look useable so not a total disappointment but...

That's pretty much been my experience with my previous and current order with regard to the triangles. Flats are okay, corners not so much. I can live with it.

The four rectangular 1x6's for the Edge Pro, however, were all pretty good.
 
I received my order yesterday and I must say that I was kind of disappointed in the crude manner these stones were manufactured. You want to talk about rough corners? No need for a microscope, Jewelers Loupe, magnify glass to visibly see the ragged edge of the stones. Just using ones naked eye you can see the jagged edges and that is putting it mildly. The flat sides all look useable so not a total disappointment but...
I asked them about it, and they said that it’s something normal that happens. The corners are not meant to be used, that’s what makes Spyderco’s stones so appealing, so it’s a little trade off that I was willing to make
 
With the Congress Tools stones I can see problem's trying to cut and make Triangle stones with really nice corners and I think part of the problem is because they are designed to breakdown a bit faster and I think maybe when they are cutting them the edge's just crumble do to the nature of the stones.
 
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The Ruby stones are Aluminum Oxide and the MoldMasters are Silicon Carbide,a lot of people will start out with a fast cutting stone like Silicon Carbide and then switch to an Aluminum Oxide stone for their last 1 to 3 grit's they may use to sharpen as many people feel that Aluminum Oxide's slower cutting refines the edge more when sharpening.

The only thing to keep in mind with the Ruby stones is they only go up to 320 grit witch isn't very high at all for finishing if that's what you want to use them for.

I have also heard of Congress' Ruby stones suggested here on the forums. what difference would the Ruby have from the Moldmasters. which is preferred?
 
I forgot to mention I have the Super Fine stones and they go up to 1200 ansi grit and when compared to the jis is still a bit lower then a 1200 jis stone,they seem to work pretty good on steels like S30v past that I have not used them as of yet,it's to bad they don't make the Super Fine up to a 4 or 6K jis grit rating.
 
On a side note, a few days ago I brought my Native s110v easily back to life going down to the 400gr MoldMaster (I felt no need to take it all the way down to the 240gr at this point), and progressing through to the Ceramic Spyderco (UF) Stone. Granted, my Native still had a good working edge but lost it's keenness and going from the 400gr through the (600, 1200 and the 8000 (UF)) Spyderco Stones did not take long for the Sharpmaker to work its magic.
 
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I just placed an order for a few triangle stones to try them out to supplement the spyderco ones. I ordered:
2 MM24012T6 STONE, MOLDMASTER-240 1/2TRIX6
2 RU32012T6 STONE, RUBY-320 1/2 TRI.X6 EA
2 MM60012T6 STONE, MOLDMASTER-600 1/2TRIX6

Thanks for all the info in this post.
 
I just placed an order for a few triangle stones to try them out to supplement the spyderco ones. I ordered:
2 MM24012T6 STONE, MOLDMASTER-240 1/2TRIX6
2 RU32012T6 STONE, RUBY-320 1/2 TRI.X6 EA
2 MM60012T6 STONE, MOLDMASTER-600 1/2TRIX6

Thanks for all the info in this post.

I have received my stones and have successfully re-profiled and sharpened several knives with them. A few observations based on my uses . . . the Ruby stone seems to be of a better, more durable material than the moldmasters. The 240 grit and 600 grit moldmaster work as intended and quickly remove a lot of metal, they produce a pile of dust on the sharpmaker as they are being quickly worn away during the sharpening process, however. The ruby stone does not seem to wear away as significantly with use. They are also a little bit shorter in length than the spyderco stones, but this has not effected their usefulness.

I have used the stones progressing through all the grits, then using the spyderco diamond rods up thru ultra fine and have turned several completely dull knives into hair topping sharp, within just a few minutes. The add on stones substantially increase the usefulness of the sharpmaker, in my experience and opinion.
 
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^^^That is not unexpected behavior as the Moldmasters are SiC and the others Aluminum Oxide. FWIW, Jim Ankerson recommends using Windex to lubricate (and keep clean) the Moldmasters.

Thanks for the report. :thumbsup:
 
I was told that the Ruby stones punch above their weight ie the finish they deliver is finer than what you would expect for a given grit.
 
None of the stones Congress Tools sells are intended to be used as sharpening stones according to the guy who cut's them at Congress,they are for other stuff like reworking a mold and other thing's and they are meant to break down faster then most people expect so that way you are always getting fresh sharp abrasive.

I have not tried the Ruby stones yet but I plan to sometime,they have another sic stone they carry I forget witch one it is and it breaks down so fast it wash boarded on me and gave me a ripple effect on the stones surface it just broke down to fast and the edge just dug up the stone.

I have received my stones and have successfully re-profiled and sharpened several knives with them successfully. A few of my observations based on my uses . . . the Ruby stone seems to be of a better, more durable material than the moldmasters. The 240 grit and 600 grit moldmaster work as intended and quickly remove a lot of metal, they produce a pile of dust on the sharpmaker as they are being quickly worn away during the sharpening process, however. The ruby stone does not seem to wear away as significantly with use. They are also a little bit shorter in length than the spyderco stones, but this has not effected their usefulness.

I have used the stones progressing through all the grits, then using the spyderco diamond rods up thru ultra fine and have turned several completely dull knives into hair topping sharp, within just a few minutes. The add on stones substantially increase the usefulness of the sharpmaker, in my experience and opinion.
 
^^^That is not unexpected behavior as the Moldmasters are SiC and the others Aluminum Oxide. FWIW, Jim Ankerson recommends using Windex to lubricate (and keep clean) the Moldmasters.

Thanks for the report. :thumbsup:

I will try some windex with them. Thanks.
 
I use the lower grit 1/2" x 6" SIC / moldmaster stones and they work great but not nearly as aggressive as the spyderco diamond stones. After that I go to med, fine and then UF stones. Lastly I finish with 1 micron poly diamond and man does that combo get knives sharp!

BTW, would like to add that I use a very small amount of 99.9% mineral oil on the (CT) stones.
 
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