The Aluminum Oxide stone; Aluminum Oxide, Aluminum Oxide, Alu Oxide stone, Oxide or Oxide stone and sharpening stone are some terms used to refer to a sharpening stone. Unlike hard natural sharpening stones, this material is man-made.
These stones are made for sanding and polishing steel, something called "Sand & Gravel” mentions. Oxide stones are just as effective as diamonds, but are much less aggressive than diamond files, which are the subject of much hype. In addition, the purchase price is also much more pleasant because the material is easier to produce.
Aluminum Oxide is very suitable for deburring your Ski & Snowboard edges. In fact, it is the only “go to” tool when you use your base edge wants to put it right. Due to the less aggressive effect, you have much less chance of scuffing your Ski or Snowboard base. And that is important; because a ski base that is not flat has irregular drainage, which has a very negative effect on your performance.
Method
Just like filing your Ski or Snowboard, the operation is quite "simple", you start with a rough Aluminum Oxide stone. When filing you will hear a grinding noise on the uneven parts, once that grinding noise is gone, you are done. Then continue working with a medium and fine Oxide stone until the edge is razor sharp.
Unlike a normal file, you do not have to take the sharpening direction into account, although we advise you to regularly rotate your stone. This way you can prevent one side from wearing unevenly.
For your Base Edge you can sand this Oxide stone by hand against your Ski or Snowboard base. If you want to sharpen overhanging, you will of course use a Base Edge Tool. For your Side Edge you of course also use the necessary tool to grind the correct angle.
Do you not have such tools yet and would you like advice from Wax & Board? Then buy a fixed, non-adjustable tool (File Guide) as the “multi-degree” tools wear out quickly and therefore produce incorrect angles. In addition, you should also keep in mind that these Oxide stones are quite thick, so they usually do not fit in those adjustable sharpening tools. Therefore, choose a File Guide with a fixed angle and a loose clamp.
Grit
Aluminum Oxide stone is made in 3 different grits, namely rough (coarse), medium & fine. As just described, you always start with rough Oxide stones and work your way up to fine.
You can already suspect that there will be some deviation between these categories for each manufacturer, so we would like to give you the following guidance:
- Rough (Coarse) is 150 to 200 Grit
- Medium is 250 to 400 Grit
- 400 to 800 grit is fine
To file properly, we recommend purchasing a kit with three different grits to achieve optimal results.
If you have experience with sharpening knives, you may already know that this alone will not produce a razor-sharp edge. To do this, you must finish the sharpening work with Whetstones, or natural hard sharpening stones. Think of Ceramics, Arkansas or Translucent.
That is not absolutely necessary, but if you want to race, this finish can make an important difference.
Wear
Because Aluminum Oxide stone is not a hard natural rock, it will naturally wear out. How quickly this will happen obviously depends on the condition of your ski or snowboard. But there is a way to minimize this, namely by moistening these Oxide stones first.
There is specific “Honey” oil on the market that will reduce wear and tear, but also, for example, the silting of the rock. When sharpening, small particles are released that creep into your Aluminum Oxide stone, after which the effect decreases.
If you cannot find this immediately, you can also consider WD-40, and if that is not within reach, thoroughly wet them with clean water every few minutes. You can do this, for example, by immersing the Aluminum Oxide stone in water until all air bubbles have disappeared.
WD-40 and water work slightly less well than the specific “Honey” oil, but it is certainly better than filing dry.
