Thread: Wichita ?

Excuse the title*
The other week i started using my Escher / Thuringian stones and this gave me inspiration to get my USA stones out.

These two are quite interesting but i don't know much about them. They have been de greased and lapped with SIC powder.

They lighter one (extremely hard) seems very smooth and i planned on trying to set a bevel with it tonight but ended up honing in a different direction.

The coloured one interests me a bit more because this one was in use a lot ,black with oil when i recieved it. So the "If it's been used a lot it must be good theory" came into play. Probably for woodworking tools.

Are they Wichita stones?

Any thought would be good.
Cheers
Joseph

Look like Arks, to me. Med. & Fine. A common set, like mine. Sorry, their dirty, and haven't been used in a long time. Knives, mostly.



I've got one that looks almost identical to the one in your second pic, I keep it at work for touching up my utility knife.

They can be used in a progression, for sure. But you know how it goes with arks, YMMV, and prop your eyelids open, cause theys sloooow.

Originally Posted by JOB15

The other week i started using my Escher / Thuringian stones and this gave me inspiration to get my USA stones out.

These two are quite interesting but i don't know much about them. They have been de greased and lapped with SIC powder.

They lighter one (extremely hard) seems very smooth and i planned on trying to set a bevel with it tonight but ended up honing in a different direction.

The coloured one interests me a bit more because this one was in use a lot ,black with oil when i recieved it. So the "If it's been used a lot it must be good theory" came into play. Probably for woodworking tools.

Are they Wichita stones?

Any thought would be good.
Cheers
Joseph

I would try bevel setting on the lighter colored one. If it slurries fast and cuts fast. Prolly a washita . If you can degrease it more, color might lighten up. The bottom stone could be used as finisher, What grit did you finish them to. i have a vintage norton pike behr #1 washita. when clean it is almost white. but have seen others close to color of yours.

I must have gone to 600 grit. I will give them a go with a razor just to see the effects.

So washita's cut faster than than arks?

Mike yours dont look like anything ive seen before.

Rarely do I buy into, or promote, the hype of this vein is better than that or vintage is better than newer BUT there are Washita stones and then there are granular/crystallized soft Arkansas sold as Washita stones. There is a world of difference IMO and in my experience. Here is a link to Dave giving some pretty good info on them.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TgQ1xhMtoBQ&t=931s

Well....so let's make this clear.
When I'm talking about honing on a Washita, its a true Washita.



These are really neat rocks, Joe. If ya can find one, grab it.
They are a versatile hone, but not quite a finisher. You could shave off it, I suppose. Would take some time on the pasted strops to smooth it out for comfort. Still need to try it myself.

I use my Washita after a bevel set, on a 1K Chosera. The feedback that stone gives me, tells me if the bevel was truly set, in just a few passes.

Originally Posted by JOB15

I must have gone to 600 grit. I will give them a go with a razor just to see the effects.

So washita's cut faster than than arks?

Mike yours dont look like anything ive seen before.

Washita is an ark

No..they are not. Their in the same class of novacule, but different stones all together.

Arks are what they are, soft to hard, and hone only so far for each density.
A Washita will set a bevel, and go a lot further, to the point of polishing, in the right hands. I've pushed mine several times, to roughly 8K.

Its truly, a different animal, compared to a Ark.

The lids of these do have codes and im guessing these codes tell you what the stone is.

The top one then could be a Washita from what was said in the video but until i try a razor on it i will not know and the colourful one is defo an Arkansas .

Originally Posted by outback

No..they are not. Their in the same class of novacule, but different stones all together.

Arks are what they are, soft to hard, and hone only so far for each density.
A Washita will set a bevel, and go a lot further, to the point of polishing, in the right hands. I've pushed mine several times, to roughly 8K.

Its truly, a different animal, compared to a Ark.

Please explain?
A washita stone is mined in Arkansas.
Washita is novaculite.
They’re from the Ouachita mountain range.
I do understand and agree that the vintage Washita stones have unique performance compared to other arkansas stones, I own a vintage pike/norton/ behr #1 washita.
if it is not an Arkansas stone, from Arkansas how would you classify it?