Thread: Compromised Norton?

Hey guys,

I've been digging thorugh my collection of stuff, sorting out whats going to stay and whats going to be put up for sale, as I just don't use it. I tripped over my Norton 4K/8K that I just do not use, and when I took it out of it's plastic box, I discovered some black spots on both sides of the hone. Likely, the stone was not as dry as it should have been, when I put it away and some spots of mildew formed.

I thought, OK, I'll just take the DMT 325 to it and that should skim off the spots. That worked fine on the 8K side, but the 4K, white colored and more porous side, still shows faint black spots. I didn't want to wear away the hone with the 325 just to remove the spots as I seriously doubt they affect the honing, but they are an eyesore.

If I were going to keep the hone, I would just mix up a batch of Clorox/water like Glen, Gssixgun, uses to store his bevel setting stones and just soak it for 1/2hr to make sure the spots don't "wake up" again. In fact, those spots would probably bleach out. As it is, this would take a long time to dry again, and I'd like to put it up for sale sooner, rather than later, and so I'd like to solicit some comments as to how you guys feel about this thing. I'd rather be up front, instead of trying to hide these facts, or possibly "get away with it".

Regards

Christian

The problem disclosed, would Not bother me in the least, some folks it might bother, so 50-50 is my guess, you should have no problem selling the stone in Honesty, best of luck to you.

I would not go 50/50 on a bleach-water solution,,, way too strong in my opinion. I would dish soap & tooth brush the hone,,, then let soak a few days in a water/bleach solution that is just a little higher content, than what is drinkable.

Approx. 8 drops of bleach per gallon,,, this is for bad water,,, this should kill/remove the spots if they are mold/bacteria,,, this is for a several day soak.

Part of the problem here is, you want a fast result, don't compromise the stone for this,,, the problem was not created overnight,,

Originally Posted by Hirlau

I would not go 50/50 on a bleach-water solution,,,

I think FAL was thinking a 50/50 chance of someone being bothered by the spots. Glen's 1 cap full of bleach per gallon water in his bevel setter bucket should be reasonable and do the job.

Is it safe to *store* the Norton Combo in water for days, I can't remember?

On the Clorox site, the mix for white garments is listed as 1/4cup bleach per gallon of water with a soak for 5 - 10 minutes and then wash and dry. Drying in the sun is recommended. Ultraviolet rays from the sun kills stuff too.

I'll just post it and make the disclaimer and see what happens.


Thanks,

Regards

Christian

You mix the solution however you want, they are your stones,,,, but a "cap size" is well,,, How big is this cap ??

As for the Clorox site,,, stones are not clothes,,,,I have done all my weekly washing since age 18,,, I Know Bleach

But it is all in your hands,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

I think I like John's approach of an extended soak.

You want to make sure the Clorox/water solution penetrates into the stone. This might take some time.

A mild solution should do the trick with little worry of damage.

If it's just tap water you wouldn't want to store it for very long because of bacteria and algae build up. The cap full of bleach will kill bacteria and prevent algae from growing, thus making it safe to store the stones in there for a couple of days. I think that's the point of why Glen and Gssixgun do it, they can leave their stones in a bucket and have them ready to roll without soaking them for 5-10 minutes before each use.

I had the same thing happen to my Norton stone on the 4k side. I got lucky and caught it before the mold penetrated too deep, it only took a little scuffing to get rid of the mold. Definitely didn't hurt it's ability to sharpen a razor. Now I let them set out for a minimum of 2 days before putting them back in their plastic containers. Lesson learned. I probably won't be buying any more water stones though. Seems like I always come back around to Arkansas stones for all my sharpening needs.

That said, a few black blotches wouldn't stop me from buying a stone. In fact I paid probably half what my Norton stones cost because I intentionally sought out blemished stones that were damaged in shipping. They had slight nicks on the edges. Some folks might be more than happy to take a gently used water stone whose only defect is a little discoloration if the discount is right.