Thread: Viking Whetstone

I found this site selling Viking (from Sweden) and Finnish whetstones. May be too coarse for razors, but no loss if you also sharpen knives. I'm going to give them a try on a razor anyway.

If it doesn't work out, I'll tell SWMBO she has a new Viking necklace.

Great! Please do post your observations; I was wondering about those Jasper stones as well.

Would be nice to try one but the Viking stone is terribly small: 3x3/4".

Being reproductions of actual originals, I thought it was interesting that they actually used a ~ 3" hone. Probably even for long knives, axes, and swords.

3" length isn't too difficult. I do use 2 different "dogbone" knife sharpeners that are also right at 3" in working length, and 1/2" in width, on knives (and sometimes razors) of all lengths.

If you like to sharpen knives, these are the two "dogbones" that I use (also handy to carry in-the-field for knife touch-ups if you prefer ceramics over diamonds):

• Lansky Crock Stick
• Gatco TRI-CEPS

I agree: for knives it is fine, you just move the hone along the edge. But razors have to be flat on the hone, so if you have a 5/8 razor you only have a bit over 2 inch to complete your X-pattern stroke. It is doable I guess, it just means more strokes on the hone. if these stones are really as fine as a surgical black or translucent Arkansas hone it might be worthwhile asking if the could cut a larger hone and see how it works.

This is my Swedish hone:

Originally Posted by Kees

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This is my Swedish hone:

Nice looking hone. Never saw one of those before. Any idea where it was quarried/manufactured?