Thread: Need a bit of slate advice

I may be able to pick up three welsh stones (slates).

DRAGONS TONGUE est 8k - 10k
PURPLE LLYN MELYNLLYN est 12K-15K
DARK/GREY YELLLOWLAKE est 15K+

Anyone have any experience of these?

Thanks guys

The purple is good. The "8-10k" stone I don't like for razors but is ok for knives. Never used the dark grey stone. The grit ratings aren't accurate but the stones are all reasonably fine. I don't use mine much anymore, there are better stones out there.

I wouldnt trust the ratings on them. They all seem a little high. I dont have experiance with sny of them. Just from reading others posts. If the price is right go for it. Stones are fun to play with.

I'm not sure if I want more stones yet but here is the link if anyone else is interested, obviously they would be a bit cheaper in USD

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/174299368207...wAAOxyuPtQ~E5U

I don't use my purple or the 8-10k much, if you want I can give you a good price on the pair. Just shoot me a PM if interested. Little bit smaller at 5 x 1.5", slurry stones included. Maybe you'll enjoy them, like I said the purple is good, I personally can't get on with the black but some people like it so to each their own.

Years ago, when they first came out and were cheap, I bought several, They are no-where near the advertised grits and can vary in performance from stone to stone.

They are mid range stones at best not advertised grit rating. Good for tools.

Natural stones can not be grit rated.

I had a borrowed purple one. It worked like a charm. So I bought one and sent back the loaner. Mine has little to no cut. Very very slow hone.

Slate,

There are quite a few running around right now, most people are NOT disclosing the sources, I have found a few out

Most are Paving and Decorative stone cast off.. People add fancy names and high grit ratings and we have new "Stones"

All of them have started off cheap and as soon as the "FanBoy" talk kicks into high gear the pattern develops

The grit rating increases
The price increases
The hype increases

IME slate is all about the slurry feel, test that and you usually can figure out if the chunk-o- rock is a finisher
If the slurry feels silky and has no grittiness you might have a winner..

Personally I like the people that are straight up front and honest that say "Hey I cut up a pool table slate" try it out (Been testing that for a month or so with good results and reviews from customers)




JMHO here

ps: Yes I got a set of the Welsh slates on this side of the pond, I think I paid $50ish for all three

The one that was called Dragon Tongue sucked
The Purple one was pretty good
The one that was compared to a Thuri was pretty good very silky feeling

(I never used them for a customer's razor they didn't pass that threshold)

None of them matched my Thuri as a finisher and I sold them for what I paid

I have the set in both 6- and 8-inch lengths. I liked the two higher-grit stones enough to get the longer versions. Glen's right about the "Dragon's Tongue," it sucks at any length and isn't worth the carbon footprint to mail it from the UK. Both the purples are good but slow, and one of the highest grit ones was vastly better than the other. But still slow, and not Thuri-quality.

I got these stones early in my honing learning process and have since found much better (and faster) ways to get where I need to go. I think the only one of these I've even touched in the last 5 years is one of the purples.

Now IF you can find an old school with real slate blackboards, those were usually very fine grained stuff and would make a good honing stone. The trick is finding an old school undergoing renovations or being demolished or has been abandoned.