Thread: Arkansas: Translucent or Surgical Black?

I think the primitive cuts from Dans are the best value available in an Ark and being primitive cut, it really adds some character to an amazing stone that is usually very vanilla.

Here is my new primitive I picked up as a self Xmas gift

It is much easier to flatten a stone face, than to flatten the edges.

A Surgical Black will finish the same as a Translucent if the density of the stones are the same.

Most new stones are flat enough, to easily bring to full flatness in a few minutes. What you don’t want is an unsurfaced pocket, a stone does not need to be dead flat. But it is not difficult, if you use the right equipment.

60 grit loose Silicone carbide on a steel cookie sheet, ($15 for a 60-500 progression). You can flatten on glass or piece of marble, but neither are flat to begin with, and as soon as you start grinding on either of them with loose grit, they quickly go concave.

Precision Ground Granite surface plates go out of flat, simply by flattening tools with sand paper on them, the grit gets under the paper and grinds the stone.

But as I said, Dead Flat is not important, just be sure to remove any pockets, as those will continue to introduce parts of the stone that are not smooth as the surrounding stone wears.

A small or thin stone will hone a razor just fine for multiple lifetimes. There are very nice Surgical Black stones 8x2 or 8x3 .50 in thick at $60-80, that will work just fine. And Vintage Small 4 &6 inch Translucents are available for half that price or less in the wild,$ 2-20

It is how you finish the stone that matters, you only have to flatten and finish the stone once.

Bevel the edge with a Garage Sale file, it will trash the file.

I have never flattened a dans stone. They come dead flat, at least to my measurements. I rarely flatten any stone except to clean it or refresh the surface.

Originally Posted by Rugger007

I think the primitive cuts from Dans are the best value available in an Ark and being primitive cut, it really adds some character to an amazing stone that is usually very vanilla.

Here is my new primitive I picked up as a self Xmas gift

Well said and an absolutely beautiful stone! Wow.