Thread: Need help identifying these stones

Well, I was actually pointed in this direction from a wood carving forum! I got a set of wood carving tools from my grandpa that came with these sharpening stones. They could easily be 40 years old or more. I'm assuming they're slip stones but I have no idea if they're just different coarseness or what? The one that's reddish/brownish may just be super dirty because the old case had this foam material that was completely dry rotted when I opened it.

Here's the album. Tools - Album on Imgur

***Edited***
Cleaned up the stones and took some pictures, along with additional ones of the 2nd stone to try and clarify what it is.
Here's all of them together, same order as original picture http://i.imgur.com/AqiWkBn.jpg
1st one, obviously gets more translucent the thinner it gets, pretty cool looking http://i.imgur.com/2XTdkBY.jpg
2nd one, cleaned off the grime and doesn't seem translucent, looks more like a "stone" if that makes sense http://i.imgur.com/LtLhaA7.jpg
3rd one, a smidge translucent, tried putting my finger behind it to show http://i.imgur.com/NpxrMu5.jpg
4th one http://i.imgur.com/5df5wrf.jpg
5th one, more like the 3rd as far as how translucent it is http://i.imgur.com/zMSCO26.jpg
One side of the 2nd one that's not translucent at all http://i.imgur.com/ciUYnfb.jpg
Other side http://i.imgur.com/nnyZhUF.jpg

The 3 milky translucent ones look to be translucent Arkansas.

The brown one may just be oil stained translucent Arkansas. I don't believe I have ever seen a translucent Washita. It needs a good soak in some detergent to get the oil out and you should be able to make a better assessment of it.

The banded one, no idea.




Translucent Arkansas is a hard stone, Used for putting a final edge on tools and razors. For razors we let the surface of the rocks polish to a gloss finish, This increases the polish on the final razor edge, but significantly reduces the cutting power of the rock. For tools you want the stones dressed to a matt finish. You can do this by rubbing them down with some fine wet and dry (400 grit), or a diamond plate. The matt finish will increase the cutting power but they will still give a smooth edge on chisels and knives.

I concur with Iceni, the three on the right look like translucent Arkansas stones. For a quick and easy test, hold a light to them and see if it travels through the stone - if so, that's what they are (hence the name translucent). Clean up that brownish one, it looks to be the same type. I would test the other 2 as well. I've got a banded one that on first glance I would've swore was a Washita (very coarse Ark). It turned out to be translucent. I've never seen an Arkansas stone banded like that one, but I suppose stranger things have happened.

I think that may be the neatest thing about Arkansas stones to be honest. They come in a variety of colors. White, pinks, greys, blacks, yellows. Some are banded, mottled, splotched, or one homogenous color - and the coloring doesn't effect the quality of the stone. Beautiful, and able to put a finish on an edge that's tough to beat.

Thank you both very much for the information and you were both right! I put quite a bit of elbow grease into cleaning these suckers and they're as clean as they're ever going to get. All of them had some level of translucent(ness?) except the brown/red one. Even though the second one isn't 100% clean, it's not even remotely translucent. I took pictures of them all for you guys to get a closer look and then took some additional ones of the brown/red one as well.

Thanks again for all of the help!

I have a larger version of your red and brown one I think it's a washita and it's a very interesting stone. Mine is basically a very fast medium grit Stone.

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Put it on a white sheet of paper and leave it for a week and see if it leaks oil

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The brown one is a Washita, the others as said translucent, the banded one seems also and Arkansas...

I am on with Doorsch