Thread: First Washita and Questions

So I was looking at Keith Johnson's Shoubodanis (again) on his Tomo Nagura Etsy page, and ran across this gorgeously-marbled NOS Garrett Wade Washita for what seemed a fair price. As I already own and love both a trans and a surgical black ark for finishing, I've been thinking about going back and seeing how much mid-range work I can do on a good Washita. This one is no Pike No.1 or anything like that, but both it and its near-pristine nicely-figured cedar box were so beautiful I couldn't pass it up. Here are a few pics:





So now what? You Washita gurus (Outback Mike, Steel et al), please tell me how to handle this stone. I know it's a natural and I just have to figure it out for myself, but I have a few general questions before I dive in head-first:
1. It is pretty flat according to my steel ruler, but still feels a bit bumpy and rough. I was thinking about lapping it through the grits, and maybe finishing 1 side on a DMT 325, and one side different-maybe a little finer, but I'm not trying to burnish it up like a finisher, as I know it's not that.
2. I'm assuming I should chamfer the edges and corners, as they feel pretty rough.
3. About where in the progression should I expect to start with this? Bevel set, or refine a bevel set on a Chosera 1k? I understand these stones can cover an amazing range depending on how they are handled, honing fluid and pressure, etc.
4. Speaking of fluids, will my usual WD-40 do okay and keep the swarf from settling in too much? Other recommendations?

Thanks in advance for any tips! A-Aron

That's a pretty Rock Aaron.
My Washita is a Lilly White. So I'm not sure it would act the same. I will hold off on trying to help as I know others are so much more experienced. I know with my Lilly White I can go from a 1k bevel set to the L.W. and then to a 12k. They can be amazing stones. Good luck with learning yours.

Cool looking stone. Wd40 should be fine; and since you want to do mid range work burnish that side and use the dressed side for bevel work. You should be able to go to your finisher after. (I'm assuming a true hard Ark of some sort)

I like mine after the bevel set of the Chosera. The stria from just water, looks to be around 2 or 3 K. Mines fairly burnished from all the blades that have passed on it, being I don't slurry it, just clean the swarf occasionally.

Lap it, see if it smooths out. DMT was the only thing that seemed to do much to it. Wore out a bunch of 220 W&D getting it close to flat, then finished it off with the DMT.

there's different Washitas. Yours looks more like a Ark. in comparison to mine, which is a butterscotch color, and semi translucent. Lots of quartz in mine.


[B]

You'll have to experiment, find its limitations, Aaron.
Whatever lube u choose will work at different degree's

I'm as curious as u, so get to it.!

Here's my other Washita, not as fine as the first one, reserved for knives, or bevel setting.

Arks will eat a DMT or any plate. 60 grit loose Silicone Carbide and a steel cookie sheet will get you flat. Once flat you can run up the grits quickly.

You can buy an assortment of grits from Got Grit.com for about $15, ¼ oz of each (60 -500 grit). You will use more 60 grit than others. Start with a teaspoon and bit of water, add another teaspoon when you feel it stop cutting.

Cookie sheet on the floor, your body weight over the stone. If you stay with the 60 grit and grid the stone with a sharpie it goes fairly quickly 15-20 minutes.

Take it to 500 grit and test it. Run a couple knives or plane blades on it first, before a razor to smooth it out a bit.

As said, you can finish one side at 600 and the other finer on Wet & Dry, for a “Progression”

An old cheap file works great for beveling the edges. Don’t use your diamond plate, unless you want to buy a new one.

Good news, you only have to do this once. Nice looking stone. I use Smiths or Ballistol on fine Arks, Windex on courser stones depending on the finish I am going after. I like the courser stones for tools and knives. For razors I do a synthetic progresson to 8k then an Ark.

Thanks for all the lapping and finishing tips, guys-I'm gonna flatten and dress the stone today and start working with it. I've always got a few blades lined up in the queue that need work. I'll let you know how it works out.

Originally Posted by Euclid440

Arks will eat a DMT or any plate. 60 grit loose Silicone Carbide and a steel cookie sheet will get you flat. Once flat you can run up the grits quickly.

You can buy an assortment of grits from Got Grit.com for about $15, ¼ oz of each (60 -500 grit). You will use more 60 grit than others. Start with a teaspoon and bit of water, add another teaspoon when you feel it stop cutting.

Cookie sheet on the floor, your body weight over the stone. If you stay with the 60 grit and grid the stone with a sharpie it goes fairly quickly 15-20 minutes.

Take it to 500 grit and test it. Run a couple knives or plane blades on it first, before a razor to smooth it out a bit.

As said, you can finish one side at 600 and the other finer on Wet & Dry, for a “Progression”

An old cheap file works great for beveling the edges. Don’t use your diamond plate, unless you want to buy a new one.

Good news, you only have to do this once. Nice looking stone. I use Smiths or Ballistol on fine Arks, Windex on courser stones depending on the finish I am going after. I like the courser stones for tools and knives. For razors I do a synthetic progresson to 8k then an Ark.

Yeah, a little rough on the DMT. But it its perfect for building slury with, now.

Yup, you almost can’t completely destroy a Diamond plate. Even trashed I have several that are still great as the first pass on tools and shop knives when you just need a touch up, then on to a Lilly White.

You don’t need a lot of diamonds for most uses, I sharpen razor knives all the time on a worn diamond plate, in place of replacing the blade, when involved in a project. A worn 300-400 plate is great for working knives, especially for cutting meat.

I don’t think I have ever thrown out a diamond plate.

Those “Washita” stones other than pike/norton are a whole different animal and it is what I started with too. They are pretty much a soft Arkansas and act more like that than a Washita. They can set a bevel but not as fast and they will not leave the edge as far along. Definitely on the lower side of a progression. Fun to play around with and it is a gorgeous stone SHD.

I have a #1 Norton/pike washita

I like Lose grit / wet dry sand paper to flatten on a granite tile. Same to chamfer. I like to keep on side coarser

I like 1:1:4. Balistol dawn water. It try different lubes to see what works.

That is pretty stone!

Hope it performs like the vintage washita’s.