Thread: Green Veritas honing compound

For MDF I used to just spray a little WD40 on it and wipe off, then re-apply. Leather, I don't know, but I image the same will work there. I used to re-apply for every second tool.

FYI, MDF won't produce the best results. I experimented with various surfaces in an attempt to find the best one for diamond paste and I found that hardwoods produced by far the best finish. I have a feeling the Urea Formaldehyde glue in MDF is hard enough to scratch your tool steel.

Any solvent that dissolves wax will do the trick-WD-40 is as good as anything.

For what its worth I use shellac on MDF..give it a few coats (french polish). The shellac gives a softish layer which works well with abrasives and yields a better finish than bare MDF.

It doesn't matter that the paste is turning black, it just shows that the paste is working.
The black colour is caused by microscopic metal particles suspended in the paste.
The only time that you need to remove the paste, is if there is too much of a build up
which prevents a flat even surface on which to polish.
Hope this helps. (was a jeweller in past life. used many different polishes)

Thanks guys for your replies.

Kman and Greg, who would have thought that MDF wasn't the ideal surface to use but your observations are enlightening and help to explain why I sometimes get inconsistent results.

Spoinky, your information does help and always good to hear from someone who has your background and experience.