Thread: Start to Finish With Oil Stones?

Interesting question
I have started some blades on my India Oil Stone but felt like it was always losing rough particulate while i was honing.
I have no other experience with any others.
Mike

Your choice of hones is a very personal matter with many variations. I personally would dedicate a set to straights.

That flattening stone is made for water stones.

+1 with 32t on the flattening stone. After using it before and going to a DMT D8C, I'm going to try my best not to go back to it. It tends to gouge my stones. Plus it probably would not withstand your arks. Your best bet is getting as flat as you can find 325 grit diamond plate. It tends to work great with a wide range of stone materials, however I have not tried it with an ark before so someone else will have to say how well it works on them.

to flatten an Arkansas stone get a cheap ceramic tile from Lowes, home depot and purchase sic paper grits from 60 to 600 this plus water will flatten your arks in a reliable manner and to a very good job or it.

I do know of one fellow that uses all Arky stones with oil for honing razors. He has posted a few times on this forum.
They can be slow, but, if the razor has a good bevel, why not??
~Richard

Originally Posted by Blistersteel

to flatten an Arkansas stone get a cheap ceramic tile from Lowes, home depot and purchase sic paper grits from 60 to 600 this plus water will flatten your arks in a reliable manner and to a very good job or it.

This^, plus many people swear by loose Silicon Carbide grit. The good thing is that once hard Arkansas stones are flat they don't change easily

When using a low grit to flatten a stone, the stone's grit is unchanged? Seems a bit worrisome to take a 320 grit rock to a 4000 grit rock...

Originally Posted by Sirnanigans

When using a low grit to flatten a stone, the stone's grit is unchanged? Seems a bit worrisome to take a 320 grit rock to a 4000 grit rock...

you can buy wet and dry grit in any grit you like.I never go above 5k grit on my arks.I have lapped and polished every Ark I have from washitas , softs , hard, surgical black and true translucent with wet and dry.on the surgical black and translucents I dress the face with a 8x2 inch piece of D2 hardened to 62 Rockwell .this gives a very nice glass like surface treatment and allows my sb's and trans to perform at a very pleasurable level edge wise , shave wise.-CAM-

Originally Posted by Sirnanigans

When using a low grit to flatten a stone, the stone's grit is unchanged? Seems a bit worrisome to take a 320 grit rock to a 4000 grit rock...

The course grit works faster. Then you go to finer grits to flatten the marks from the courser ones. Not much different than metal or wood.

Originally Posted by 32t

The course grit works faster. Then you go to finer grits to flatten the marks from the courser ones. Not much different than metal or wood.

That's what I figured, was just confused by the mention of a single 320 stone. I would likely go with a sandpaper method because I only have a few knives and chisels that I take enough care of that I seldom sharpen them. The stone wouldn't need flattening enough to warrant an expensive series of diamond stones.