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  #21  
Old 05-23-2013, 08:50 AM
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Don Boose Don Boose is offline
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As Uyraell has indicated in his fascinating and most-welcome disquisition on cutlery, there is a large element of personal preference in the selection of blades and handles. Nonetheless, we learn more with each of these discussions, and discover new information about tools and about our community.

Don
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  #22  
Old 05-24-2013, 11:55 AM
John Wagenseil John Wagenseil is offline
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I checked back in and had a lot of reading to catch up on!!!
I may have done XActo a disservice as my box of xacto blades is years old and probably from the worst years of their chinese supplier's quality control. I will have to give the newer Z blades and the heavier #2 style a try.
The number 11 blades I had been using were artist's or professional quality, I have been very pleased with them.
I need a very sharp blade as I have been trying to use up my paper supplies. I have a few pads of watercolor paper. It is a thick heavy paper, but softer than the card stock I was used to. In some ways it is like the paper that the old Maly Modelarz kits came on, though it accepts ink jet printing well and has texture that looks good with some of the Canon architectural models A very sharp blade is required, or the paper tends to tear or pill up rather than be sliced.

I have an Olfa 45mm roller cutter. It is terrifyingly sharp. I treat it with a lot of respect, it is good for long straight cuts. One of the writers here mentioned he could not find Olfa cutting blades. Click on the "view all" button, hidden at the bottom of the Blades page on their US web site to go to their full listing. The UK web page is probably similar. Their #11 blades are expensive, but their Art Knife blade looks like a good deal.

When I sharpen blades I found soapy water or shaving cream makes a good lubricant on a diamond plate or a water stone. Cooking oil seems to work OK on oil stones and sesame oil or olive oil smells better than petroleum oil. Final touch up with a hone steel gives a very sharp edge, and frequent touch up on a steel keeps the edge smooth and cutting well. A lot of you may already have a hone steel in your kitchen knife drawer.
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  #23  
Old 05-24-2013, 12:00 PM
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Don Boose Don Boose is offline
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A nice little well-crafted essay, John. A pleasure to read.

But don't you find that vegetable oils eventually get gummy on the stone, as machine oils do not?

Don
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  #24  
Old 05-24-2013, 02:53 PM
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Originally Posted by Sakrison View Post
Best deal I found on Z-series is at Widget Supply -- 100 blades for about 32 bucks, including shipping
Thanks for the Widget site. I just bought a few Z blades from them. It's getting difficult if not impossible in my small town to find any X-Acto supplies. Thanks again.

Garland
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  #25  
Old 05-24-2013, 03:54 PM
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hmm i know this might sound off but my no name #11 kept quite well the tips breaks off only when i bend it too hard or if it falls head first but considering that i bought this from a medical supplies store might make a difference i've been cutting with the same blade for over 1 month through different kinds of material now and the tip didn't break off don't know if it's just my luck or just good quality the brand is called (xinda)

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Old 05-30-2013, 06:39 PM
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I managed to get a pack (5) X-acto Z blades, handle arrived today and I must say that they are far superior to the Swan-Morton Scalpel I was using, thanks for the tip.
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  #27  
Old 05-30-2013, 07:45 PM
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I received my Z blades from Widget a few days ago, and have been using one. So far, I find it's an excellent blade, much sturdier than the standard #11 blades I had been using. I haven't had to sharpen it yet, so I don't know how that'll turn out.

Garland
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  #28  
Old 05-30-2013, 11:16 PM
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Sakrison Sakrison is offline
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Originally Posted by ghshinn View Post
I received my Z blades from Widget a few days ago, and have been using one. So far, I find it's an excellent blade, much sturdier than the standard #11 blades I had been using. I haven't had to sharpen it yet, so I don't know how that'll turn out.

Garland
Mine also arrived a few days ago from Widget. They are excellent blades and they sharpen nicely with my inexpensive little dressing tool. They are well worth the extra cost.
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  #29  
Old 05-30-2013, 11:48 PM
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I purchased five sets of five Z blades, and found them only a little more expensive than the regular blades. Of course, there was the shipping cost, but I agree that they are worth the price, even so.

BTW, Sakrison, since you are only 20 miles from there, why is Oshkosh the center of the aviation universe?

Garland
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  #30  
Old 05-31-2013, 12:14 AM
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Jim Nunn Jim Nunn is offline
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I switched over to #11 scalpel blades a few years ago, purchased 100 blades with a handle on Ebay for around $12. The typical Scalpel handle is not very comfortable to use but I have found that the blade will fit into an older Xacto handle. I just checked and I still have over 50 unopened.

What do I Like about them

1) They keep an edge very well and are easy to sharpen as the steel is flexible but has a higher hardness then a typical hobby blade.

2) They flex as they are thinner then a hobby blade and therefore do not break off the tips very often.

3) Cost

4) Long lasting, with a little honing on a black Arkansas stone they can last for months.



At a little over $10 you cannot go wrong



http://www.ebay.com/itm/100-Scalpel-Blades-11-1-Scalpel-handle-3-/181050087907?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2a276d 19e3





Jim Nunn
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