how to clean/refresh glazed oilstone

[Mike Kees]

I have a Norton combination oilstone that I have had for about 25 years it is kind of glazed over on the surface, how does one clean -refresh the surface of a stone like this ? Thanks for any help,Mike.

[William Fretwell]

That is not an easy fix, especially if some of the metal embedded in the stone is 'stainless'. A small cheap diamond plate may well remedy the situation but may not last long.
I have inexpensive crocus pads which have carborundum particles in them. They look like a bit like kitchen pads but are larger and brown. You could scrub with one of those and expect some improvement.

It's the glaze from some tool steels that are largely stainless that causes a problem. Regular steel just wipes off with oil. Water stones are better for some tool steels as the surface is lost in use and glazing is not a problem.

[Jim Kimbrough]

I know it sounds a bit off the wall, but I have used a standard concrete block to deglaze and flatten an old oil stone. I don't remember where I read/heard it, but it seems to work to at least get you in the ballpark. From there you can fine tune it with the diamond stone. My theory was, the oilstone didn't work as it was and the block was only a couple of bucks, so what did I have to lose.

[Jeff Ranck]

I guess it depends on the source of the glaze. If the source is old oil that has basically filled the pores of the stone so that it won't cut anymore, then the solution should include cleaning out the old oil. Others I've discussed this with have used TSP to break down the old oil. I used a dishwasher with a stainless inside, no rinse agent, and a little extra dishwashing soap. I first flattened the stone with a combination of the concrete sidewalk and finer diamond stones. After flattening, the old oil was still a problem. I turned to the dishwasher. Worked very well to restore the cutting action of my great grandpa's oil stone.

[Tony Zaffuto]

Dishwasher works very well, but generally SWMBO is never pleased, particularly when you use it for other items besides oilstones! But it does work nicely.

Try over cleaner. Give the stones a real good soaking, then scrub with a wirebrush, using water as hot as you can stand. You may need to repeat several times, but it works. Flatten on a concrete block.

[Mike Kees]

So a dishwasher is my answer eh. Can not wait to tell my wife this one, but the guys on SMC all said...Thanks for all the suggestions ,I will try out the concrete block and wait for the next time my wife is in town and then give the dishwasher a workout. Bet there is a lot of women who would love to shoot the guy who first figured out this idea and then posted it.:)

[Stewie Simpson]

Best hope the dishwasher doesn't leech out the manufacturers oil fill.

[Kees Heiden]

Stewie does have a point. An artificial oilstone is very porous and without the factory oil fill it leaks oil everywhere and even worse, the oil you put on top immediately soaks into the stone and can't do its job. I've had a cheap oilstone without a suitable oil fill and it was dreadfull.

Now, India oilstones are very cheap, so if your cleaning method doesn't work out satisfactorily, then you are not out a huge amount of money. But I would begin with less drastic methods that don't involve ruining your wifes dishwasher :eek:

[Tony Zaffuto]

Impregnation, (the oil filling) can be renewed two ways: first is through usung your handy dandy vacuum impregnator sealed vessel, to first draw all air out of the porous stone (using a vacuum), then flooding the vessel withoil to refill that porosity (i have such a beast in my manufacturing plant). The other method is to heat oil over a hot plate, with the stone in it. Just be careful to stay safely below the flashbpoint of the oil.

Try oven cleaner before the dish washer, though.

[Rob Young]

I know it sounds a bit off the wall, but I have used a standard concrete block to deglaze and flatten an old oil stone. I don't remember where I read/heard it, but it seems to work to at least get you in the ballpark. From there you can fine tune it with the diamond stone. My theory was, the oilstone didn't work as it was and the block was only a couple of bucks, so what did I have to lose.

Did similar but used the driveway. Just worked it in figure-8's and a cup of soapy water to splash on things.

[bridger berdel]

to remove oil from a clogged stone:
wrap in a rag. place in a new freezer grade ziplock baggie. saturate with paint thinner. zip up and let it soak overnight. remove from rag/baggie and scrub with detergent and stiff brush. repeat as necessary.

to remove imbedded metal.
best: abrade the surface flat.
next best: soak overnight in vinegar, then scrub.

[Stewie Simpson]

The OP has a glazed Norton Combination Oil Stone. There is no reason to risk destroying the manufacturers oil fill. The stone needs abrading. A bag of loose sic powder, a flat piece of float glass, a squirt bottle with water, a pencil to scribe the top surface of your stone, and remember to roll up your sleeves.

http://i1009.photobucket.com/albums/af219/swagman001/silicon%20carbide%20flattening/_DSC0163_zps8azt6ihy.jpg (http://s1009.photobucket.com/user/swagman001/media/silicon%20carbide%20flattening/_DSC0163_zps8azt6ihy.jpg.html)

http://i1009.photobucket.com/albums/af219/swagman001/silicon%20carbide%20flattening/_DSC0167_zpsta8qgzjw.jpg (http://s1009.photobucket.com/user/swagman001/media/silicon%20carbide%20flattening/_DSC0167_zpsta8qgzjw.jpg.html)

[Joe Rogers]

The manufacturers oil fill is not a holy grail...Clean the stone with solvent or the dishwasher. Flatten with abrasives at hand. Saturate with mineral oil (which does not polymerize and clog the surface). Sharpen your tools. Rinse, repeat as necessary.
Joe

[Jeff Ranck]

I wouldn't try it on a dishwasher that didn't have a stainless tub. But it worked for me. Like I said, a lot of folks also use TSP to break down the old oil and scrub the stone with a stiff brush (nylon).

[Mike Kees]

Stewie can you enlighten me, what is sic powder? I have a piece of granite. It is a scrap from a counter top would that work as a flat reference surface?

[Stewie Simpson]

Mike; pm sent.

[Rob Young]

Silicon Carbide -- SiC

Various grits available as loose powder. All kinds of grinding applications. Cheap and cheerful method, if a bit messy.

[bridger berdel]

Stewie can you enlighten me, what is sic powder? I have a piece of granite. It is a scrap from a counter top would that work as a flat reference surface?

he's talking about lapping the stone with silicon carbide powder. this works great, though it will be very slow on a carborundum stone. it will also abrade the lapping surface, so your granite slab won't be flat anymore when you're done. however, a cheap piece of glass laid on top of the granite will present a sacrificial surface.

[Stewie Simpson]

As always; there is plenty of advice offered within the realms of an open forum. How best to go about flattening and deglazing a Norton Hard Silicon Carbide (Carborundum) Stone, being no exception. I did send Mike Kees a 1/2 page pm on the information he requested, covering all that I could think of to assist him with the issues he faced with his Norton Stone. That information included a copy of the thread I posted back in 7/7/2016 on the very subject, how much was needed during each flattening process, even down to how best to clean up the loose sic slurry when your finished working with it.

Since forwarding that pm, there has been some additional comments forwarded by members, that I felt needed some further clarification. Moving on.


The Norton Carborundum Stone I use in the workshop was last flattened on the 7/7/2016. That's 7 months ago. Its the 1st stone I use after a new edge has been hollow ground and needs to be worked on a fast cutting stone to change the primary bevel from hollow to flat. Its a double sided 2 grit stone of fine and medium cut. The medium cut being the only surface I work with. This stone also represents the only man made stone I use within my sharpening regime, the rest being naturals.

To check how much out of flat the Norton Stone surface was after 7 months of high use, I tested its surface this morning on 180 grit wet and dry, adhered to an 11" x 4 1/2" x 1/2" laminated glass. That's what I would personally regard as a tight enough tolerance to be checking the flatness of any sharpening stone surface. As you will see from the photo, the amount of wear over that period of time is hardly a concern. Why so little out of flat you may ask. Because I make sure I use the whole surface of the stone when working the bevels and flats on my plane irons and chisels.

http://i1009.photobucket.com/albums/af219/swagman001/norton%20carborundum%20stone/_DSC0034_zps3h6dkyjb.jpg (http://s1009.photobucket.com/user/swagman001/media/norton%20carborundum%20stone/_DSC0034_zps3h6dkyjb.jpg.html)

For the sake of the exercise, I am moving onto a larger 50" x 12" x 1/2" laminated glass. 1 primary surface of the glass is dedicated to loose sic work, the other for flat sanding work. The side dedicated for loose sic work has had a hell of a work out since I purchased it 7 months ago. Its worked both primary flats on at least 12 different type of stones. imo it has lost little of its original flat surface over that time period. Why. Because I make sure I work the whole surface of the glass to minimise the chance of any uneven wear patterns. The sic powder being used on this occasion is 150 grit. Within 3 minutes of working the surface of the Norton Stone in a figure 8 pattern, changing the direction at equal time intervals, the pencil highlights have disappeared, suggesting the stone surface is within a tight range of flatness.

http://i1009.photobucket.com/albums/af219/swagman001/norton%20carborundum%20stone/_DSC0036_zps3bzk4zub.jpg (http://s1009.photobucket.com/user/swagman001/media/norton%20carborundum%20stone/_DSC0036_zps3bzk4zub.jpg.html)

How tight a tolerance. Well its back to testing its surface on the 180 grit adhered float glass. Giving the tighter tolerance of testing, that surface in my opinion is good enough to stop at.

http://i1009.photobucket.com/albums/af219/swagman001/norton%20carborundum%20stone/_DSC0037_zps79dmpz4j.jpg (http://s1009.photobucket.com/user/swagman001/media/norton%20carborundum%20stone/_DSC0037_zps79dmpz4j.jpg.html)

To finish up, Norton Stone is then washed down in a bucket of clean water to remove any traces of loose sediment, coated with some honing oil, and then packed away ready for its next use.

http://i1009.photobucket.com/albums/af219/swagman001/norton%20carborundum%20stone/_DSC0038_zpswyjpk39c.jpg (http://s1009.photobucket.com/user/swagman001/media/norton%20carborundum%20stone/_DSC0038_zpswyjpk39c.jpg.html)

So what of the mess created by the loose sic slurry. My advise, wait until the slurry starts to harden up, then use a paint scraper to scrape the slurry remains into a neat little pile and dump it in the bin. Then wipe the glass surface down with a damp rag, and its ready to be used next time its needed.

http://i1009.photobucket.com/albums/af219/swagman001/norton%20carborundum%20stone/_DSC0039_zpsqtbgrmkx.jpg (http://s1009.photobucket.com/user/swagman001/media/norton%20carborundum%20stone/_DSC0039_zpsqtbgrmkx.jpg.html)

Stewie;

[Mike Kees]

Thanks for the help Stewie. I will give it a go once I round up apiece of glass and SiC powder.

[Stewie Simpson]

Your most welcome Mike; if you require any additional info just forward me a pm.

regards Stewie;