Thread: Coticule expert needed

Hi, I recently purchased a stone that measures 1" x 2" x 8" and on the end of the stone it is stamped "made in USA". I cleaned it up and discovered it is a coticle. I have yellow coticule, so I put it next to the light grayish tan more grey than tan coticule. The edges have the same look of the sedimatary layers, at ten power the have the same apearence, except for the color . This stone is finer than yellow coticle, in fact it is finer finisher than my thurigan. It is the fastest finisher if ever had a hold of. It produces a grayish black slurry. holding to the light and sighting done the face it looks smoother than glass. I guess my question is, What is coticule doing with made in usa on the edge, where might this stone originated? The longer I collect stones the less I know about them.

I'm not a coticule expert but I've fooled with a fair amount of them over the years. AFAIK they originate in Belgium. If I'm not mistaken there was a vein of coticule that ran into Germany and those are around, but never any from any other geographical area. If you post some photos of both stones side by side that would be instructive. As far as why it is marked 'made in USA, perhaps the vendor bought some quantity of coticule that needed to be milled to shape and stamped it afterwards ?

It's hard to say what's going on without pictures of the entire stone...Either way if you like it then that's all that matters! I've owned quite a few coticules before and they can vary in terms of speed a lot, as far as finishing I have four right now I love the finish on all equally, it just took more or less work to get to the finish I wanted.

We need pictures. Is it a solid color? Are there any other stamps on it? By your description, it sounds like a man-made honing stone, specifically like Frictionite or other similar varieties.

I will post pictures but ill never be able to give the detail for identification. when picked it up at a junk store I thought it was a frictionite until I cleaned it up an saw the sedimatary layers on the side identicle to my yellow coticule. Do frictionite stones have sedimentary layers on the sides and produce a slurry?

Originally Posted by russhi

I will post pictures but ill never be able to give the detail for identification. when picked it up at a junk store I thought it was a frictionite until I cleaned it up an saw the sedimatary layers on the side identicle to my yellow coticule. Do frictionite stones have sedimentary layers on the sides and produce a slurry?

frictionites are barber hone size, since that is what they are, and have two distinct sides. The colors blend a bit where they join but no resemblance to sedimentary layers.

Yea I agree with what's been said, I hesitate to speculate without some photographic stuff.

oh hell, I'll speculate anyway. This is the internet age right? I don't have the time to wait for pictures!

Maybe--and I don't mean to insult your diagnosis or identification, but--just maybe, is there any way it could be something else other than a coticule? My gut reaction to "made in the USA" is that it was made, not dug up. Plus, the dark slurry says to me that it may not be a coticule. But the size you quoted doesn't scream "synthetic" to me. Thus I'm conflicted. If they did any sort of gluing to a backing in the USA could that constitute "being made" in the USA?

Maybe some kind of weird novaculite? Some super long barber hone? Petrified possum poop?

Probably safe to say if the stone is stamped made in USA it's probably synthetic. Of course we don't have anything to look at.

I found an artist's rendering. Not the real deal, unfortunately.

Here is a picture of a Frictionite hone. Is it similar to this?