Thread: Sawing my nortons in half the long way

Originally Posted by bill3152

I would like to saw my nortons in half the long way. Diamond tile saw? Does anybody sell them already sawn in half? I was going to go to a granite shop and ask them to do it. Anybody? Thanks.

For what purpose do you wish to do this?

An abrasive masonry blade for a circular saw is another option. If you clamped it down and took it slow, it would be a cheap way to do it. A hand grinder with the proper wheel would also work.

I tend to agree that it is pointless and a waist of a good stone. In the long run, you may regret cutting it.

Originally Posted by Havachat45

I cut a 6 x 2 PHIG into slurry stones with a hacksaw with a 24 TPI blade with no issues (except the blade going blunt...hehehe)

At least you've got the gear to sharpen them again.

I've got an old factory made narrow 4k/8k which I use all the time, I like it for the fact that it's roughly the same size as my Coticule and Escher. It feels weird to hone on the 3" ones now! They both work the same though (1 1/2" or 3")

A wet cut tile saw with a smooth non sectional diamond blade would probably give the straightest, smoothest most chip free cut, but if you hire the saw the diamond wear cost will be high.
A small grinder with the same type of blade would work, but again the blade will cost.
A thin masonry blade in a grinder would also work, the thinner the better I think about 1 mm is the thinnest, just remember that they are fragile when thin so your cut needs to be straight, do not use this blade to chamfer the edge. Seriously don't. Use anything else or a grinding blade.
Grinding with cutting blades can cause them to explode- this is very bad for you and anyone nearby. And WEAR SAFETY GLASSES or better yet SAFETY GOGGLES, and A GOOD DUST MASK

I used to hire power tools and sell abrasives, never been asked how to cut a hone before so am giving advice based on what i know but for peace of mind a good resource would be the Norton/ saint gobain website, they should have a chart showing what blade will cut what. I doubt hones are on the list but you should be able to approximate.

I hone and sell some unmentionable straights that are all short at the toe on one side only. I do rolling x on the short side and regular laps on the other. I saw a video of Alex Jacques using the narrow nortons and it looked very easy and straight forward. I been using the one side 45 degree heel forward stroke, just though maybe it would be a little faster. @ Jimmy Had, I was thinkin a tile cutter as there is a granite shop near by. He cut me some 3/4 inch thick scraps into 7x1 1/2 for film as I use it to finish with. It worked out great. It seems the nays have it here.
I have a couple dmts that are 6x2, you can really roll a crooked spine or any other blade anomaly. Short toe etc. I know extended misuse can give you a frown. Thanks fo the input guys.

Originally Posted by gssixgun

Yep been there done that, I have a set..

AaronX and I got together and split a set (Pun intended), cut them with a few Bandsaw blades, biggest waste of time and effort I ever made the mistake of falling for

The idea that you can hone "Off" blades easier with narrow hones is a myth

Take a normal 3 inch Norton and draw a line down the center, adjust your honing to stay on one side of that line and it is the exact same as a 1.5" hone..

I think I used my thin Norton set twice before I realized what a waste of time and effort it was, they still sit somewhere in the closet..

Pm me if you would be interested in selling them. Just dust em off before you ship em! LOL. I dont like dirty stones! Actually, Im gonna try to sell em at the pawn shop. gssixguns hones! It should bring a tidy profit, dont you think! LOL.

When Alex cut that stone he posted a thread about it. IIRC he went to a machine shop and the guy cut it for him on a bandsaw dry. Alex (Philadelph) said he darn near wore the blade out.

ChrisL did the same with a 16k ShaptonGlass. As soon as the blade hit the glass it shattered but the glue held it together and he was able to use the two narrower hones. IIRC he said if he had it to do over again he would have left well enough alone and not cut the thing.

As Glen said, you can hone a warped spine, or whatever the anomalies, on a 3" hone. I've got some narrow naturals and have honed such razors on them. While it can be done on the wide hone, if you have the skills, it seems easier on the narrower hone. Not that it is, just seems like it is.

I use normal Hack saw frame but put in SIC blade. I use this for fragile hones but have already done few CFs, LIs, Belgians and experimental no names. Blade doesn't cost much just remember to have either running water over it or wash it often to get slurry out.

Here is an old post I made with a photo of cutting a pink cotcule with a carbide hacksaw blade. I started with a regular metal blade but gave that up pretty quick. Even with the carbide it was slow going.

http://straightrazorpalace.com/advan...tml#post442975