Stones

[ken hatch]

As I work with natural stones both Arkansas and JNats some stones begin to become almost mythical.

I have a Pike Lilly White and a Norton Hard Arkansas that are my work horses, they are reasonably fast, with great "feel" but either could be replaced with another stone with little loss and I have a number of very nice JNats for finishing stones that are close to interchangeable. Being natural stones they have their quirks, and different feel of steel on stone but for the most part it makes no never mind which one I use. But there is one that is special, a Takashima "Ooban" is the name that was given by the seller. It is a relatively soft stone and easily makes a slurry. After being set up with the Arkansas stones it takes just a few passes on the Takashima for the cutter's edge to have a beautiful smokey appearance and when viewing the edge with a 10X loupe it has a matte surface with almost no visible scratches. Of course the real test is how does the cutter cut and last. It passes that test as well.

The stone:

takashimaOobanL3.jpg

I guess the real reason for this post, other than a chance to phrase a wonderful stone, is to ask if others have a special stone. One that may be irreplaceable and is the one you reach for when you want the best edge you can get.

ken

[Graham Haydon]

Ken, that's a lovely stone! I've mucked about with different stones. Water, diamond etc but I always come back to oil. My special is a Charnley I picked up from our local flea market for a few pounds.
Although Charnleys don't get much love, mine puts a fine edge on my tools. I also love the history. It is set into a mahogany base with a couple of cut off nails just proud on the underside to stop it dancing around the bench.
The lid is missing and there are a few chips on the edges of the stone that I softened with some abrasive. I'll try and grab a couple of photos tomorrow.

[ken hatch]

Ken, that's a lovely stone! I've mucked about with different stones. Water, diamond etc but I always come back to oil. My special is a Charnley I picked up from our local flea market for a few pounds.
Although Charnleys don't get much love, mine puts a fine edge on my tools. I also love the history. It is set into a mahogany base with a couple of cut off nails just proud on the underside to stop it dancing around the bench.
The lid is missing and there are a few chips on the edges of the stone that I softened with some abrasive. I'll try and grab a couple of photos tomorrow.

Graham,

I would love to see them. I think a good natural stone leaves a better cutting edge than any synthetic stone I've used. Of course I could be full of it but so what. I will agree with folks that most high grit synthetic stones will leave an mirror polish that will blind you but to get light to reflect it needs a flat surface. Synthetic stones give you that with deep regular sharp sided scratches, hence the beautiful shine.

As always YMMV,

ken

[Rafael Herrera]

Ken,

I really like my Rosy Red Washita stones. I'm not in search for the ultimate sharpness, just a good cutting edge for my tool steel chisels and plane irons.

I'm also trying a Welsh slate and a hard Novaculite stone from Canada. I still prefer the Washitas. I'm also biding my time to get a Charnley Forest stone one of these days.

I've a question for those of you that have been using Arkansas stones for a while. How do you describe the amount of wear you have put on them?

Rafael

[Warren Mickley]

My black Arkansas stone has lost less than .001 inches in 44 years. My Washita stone has lost about 3/8 inch and my soft Arkansas has lost less than 1/32. I have done a few hundred thousand sharpenings on them. Before getting the Arkansas stones I used India and Carborundum stones.

[ken hatch]

Ken,

I really like my Rosy Red Washita stones. I'm not in search for the ultimate sharpness, just a good cutting edge for my tool steel chisels and plane irons.

I'm also trying a Welsh sandstone and a hard Novaculite stone from Canada. I still prefer the Washitas. I'm also biding my time to get a Charnley Forest stone one of these days.

I've a question for those of you that have been using Arkansas stones for a while. How do you describe the amount of wear you have put on them?

Rafael

Rafael,

What Warren said. I will refresh the Washita and Hard Arkansas stone occasionally, the Surgical never. If you use the whole stone even the softer stones lose very little.

ken