Diamond Knife Handling
Follow these hints and extend the lifetime of your diamond knife!
Yes, diamond is generally considered the hardest substance known,
the edge of a diamond knife is quite delicate. The edge should only be
used to cut in the proper direction in the ultramicrotome. Any solid
object which touches the knife may result in microchips which show as
lines or tears in the sections (and in the micrographs). SPI Supplies
does offer appropriate tools for cleaning this delicate edge without damage.
SPI #09901-AB "Pith" or SPI #09902-AB
Diamond Knife Cleaning Sticks are recommended.
What SPI Supplies does recommend is that nothing solid should
ever touch the delicate edge except samples being sectioned. We
know that some of our competitors recommend various soft "sticks" for
cleaning the edge, such as SPI #09901-AB "Pith" or SPI #09902-AB Diamond
Knife Cleaning Sticks. However, SPI Supplies does not believe that such
sticks are good for anyone's diamond knife and we offer them reluctantly
only because people ask for them. And we believe there are far better
procedures available for the proper care and cleaning of the edge of a
diamond knife.
So the next question then is, just what is the recommended cleaning
procedure ? And the answer is that the diamond knife edge should be
a) kept "wet" at all times and the edge not be allowed to dry out and
b) the edge is "cleaned" with a spray of distilled water, such as from a
squeeze bottle, followed by a c) blow drying such as with an
SPI Two-In-One OK Easy Duster
If sections or other particles of debris have dried on the diamond edge, use
the SPI Diamond Knife Cleaner
with a few drops of mild liquid detergent to remove them. Rinse with
distilled water and use the SPI
Two-In-One OK Easy Duster.
Now with regard to the wiping of the actual edge with a wood stick or any
other solid object, we want to point out that there is major disagreement
between different diamond knife manufacturers. However, unlike others, it
is the recommendation of SPI Supplies that nothing solid ever touch the
actual edge for whatever reason except for the cutting of a sample. We are
quite confident in our belief that touching the edge with even the best of
"sticks", be they SPI #09901-AB "Pith" or
SPI #09902-AB Diamond Knife
Cleaning Sticks is just not good for the long term "health" of the edge.
You should also be very careful about the use of powerful ultrasonic
cleaners, some of them have too much power for an instrument as fragile as a
diamond knife. You should use the SPI Diamond Knife
Cleaner.
Do not use acids, ammonia, or strong chemicals, they will of course not
affect the diamond itself but it can have a tendency to either attack or
corrode the metal boat, its finish, or the joining system whereby the
diamond is attached to the metal shank.
One of the worst enemies of long life to a diamond knife is "chatter". Very
few things will damage the edge more quickly than the phenomenon known as
"chatter". When chatter occurs, stop sectioning immediately and check to
make sure the knife is tightly fastened into the holder on the
ultramicrotome and also by varying the clearance angle. Another way to
reduce "chatter" is to reduce the cutting speed.
Each SPI Diamond knife is shipped in an individual, sealed container which
should only be opened once in the laboratory, and when a new knife is on
the way, your receiving department should be alerted that the sealed
container should not be opened for inspection.
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Tuesday February 09, 2010
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