Oil Stone Quality question

[Bob Noles]

Thanks for the replies. This stone is NOT a Norton, and I probably should have went that route to get a clear one. I will let you know what the retailer has to say as soon as I hear back from them which will probably be Monday. At this point the stone seems to work very well, it's just that I am not pleased with the discolorization, but that is probably just me being picky and if I am told this is normal by them, then I shall live with it in peace.

[Darnell Hagen]

I always understood the grading to mean the uniformness of the particle size. Some stones aren't consistent, and a big particle will show as a scratch in your surface.

[David Weaver]

If it cuts well, but you feel cosmetically that it should be a second, then I would request the price difference from the seller.

I have a lot of natural stones, none are oilstones, though. I would say that only one of them is uniform, and the ones that aren't I like better. One of them is even noticeably different on one side of a fault line, and it's my favorite one.

[Bob Noles]

I received a kind and speedy reply from the supplier and I am posting it here so it may help someone else at some point in time.

"Thank you for your inquiry. The stone is a natural product and our particular lead has color in it but this should not affect the sharpening. If you feel it does, we would be happy to refund your money. Let us know if it sharpens as you expected- it should. Thanks for the order."

With this reply and advice from many in the know, I have decided to keep this stone and look at the color as a positive attribute and be happy with it.

Thanks for all the input and help y'all.