Thread: What is this?

Hi Guys,

Been using this as a finishing stone for a couple days, and it works well, but what is it!

looks like an arkansas whetstone...the grit is probably around 300 to 500, but because it is sooo dense and cuts sooo slooowww (polishes as it cuts) it'll leave you an edge that looks like it came off of an 8000 or so grit rock.
i used arkansas stones exclusively when i first got into honing as they are cheap, and i belive slow cutting stones are ideal when youre just learning....the edge it left me was shaveable....bareley ..
i am a journeyman meatcutter (butcher) and those stones are more suited to putting a polish on my work knives and my kitchen cutlery.

check this out...maybe this'll help you

Stone Grades 101

~ cheers !!

Yes, at least it does seem to look quartz-like with some shiny pyrite inclusions.

Those specks look like Tam O'Shanter to me.
Where did it come from? UK?

I presume so, I bought it in the UK, I guess it could have come from any where.

3 to 500 seems a little low to me, it's refined an edge of a coticule.

Originally Posted by 0livia

Those specks look like Tam O'Shanter to me.

The base colour seems too white to me and the speckles too varied in size, shape and density. The pictures to me seem to allude that light travels a minute distance into the stone. If this is so, I don't think it's a ToS. Does pyrite (if that's what it is I see) occur in ToS?

Some things I think are characteristic of ToS (argumented contradiction is encouraged!):

- spots are near-round ovoids without straight lines or corners
- under magnification, spots display a distinctive rim
- large spots in ToS seem to always be coagulations of discernible smaller ones
- dark streaks occur too, they are like brush strokes evenly colouring all components of the stone
- ToS appear (when clean and not used with oil) dull, almost dusty, and not a bit shiny or translucent
- on the sides, stratification is visible

Hope this helps!

It looks like a soft Arkasas to me also. In fact the pattern reminds me very much of a small Arkansas stone I sent to Oldengarde.

Looks like an Arkansas to me.

Hmmmm...Have you lapped it yet? If not, I wonder what it looks like under the surface material. It has some lines that remind me of coticule inclusions.