carborundum?

[regularjoe]

Just trying to figure out if this is a carborundum. I bought it thinking those layers meant it was a real stone, but it sure is soft and easy to lap...not that I'm done. Slurry seems to be pretty much black, definitely no purple hue. Under 30x I see some red, but I don't think it's the garnets people are talking about with thuringian. Then again, what do I know? Any input? Maybe slate? Sure seems heavy for a man made stone.

[Theseus]

Not sure what it is exactly, but it appears to be some type of slate from looking at the fracturing on the end.

[dave5225]

Are you sure it's really a hone ? Looks like it could be an old barber hone , in really bad shape . It doesn't look like carborundum . The utility hones that you find in hardware stores , with the course side , and the fine side are carborundum hones .

[zib]

What size is it, you can't tell in the pics.

[mjhammer]

It looks to me like a horribly mangled Aloxite carborundum I have that has the exact same slurry description. Just my 2 cents mate, but she looks pretty bad to me.

Mike

[regularjoe]

Dave, I'm certain it exists to sharpen "something". Not sure just what that something is yet. I'll give it a try after I get it put into a reasonable condition. I've got plenty of "experiment" razors. haha.
Zib, it's 5.5x2x.5 inches. Hammer, I gotta agree..it sure is ugly right now. I'll check into the Aloxite. I'm pretty convinced it's a carborundum of some sort.

By the feel of it, I'd say it's somewhere between a hindostan and a regular barber hone. Seems just about like the Norton 8k actually. But we'll see what a razor says in a few days. Worst case scenario, it goes in the truck as a portable for knives and chisels.

[dave5225]

It's about the right size for a barber hone . Let us know how it works out .

[111Nathaniel]

If its a natural stone, usually a slate wouldn't be soft, but a shale wouldn't have the slight shine, it would be dull, so it could be in between and if thats the case that would explain why its a good hone. Shale is a sedimentary rock, slate it the metamorphic product from shale, during that process of partial metamorphism it could create a small crystal growth which is good for sharpening. If you can feel a slight grit it's probably a silt-stone. You mentioned you thought it was an 8000 grit, does anyone else know if you can feel a grittiness from an 8000k? I always thought above 4000 it feels smooth but i don't have any synthetic hones to refer to. Did you buy this? does it have any markings? if not and you just happened on to it I think its natural.

If it's not a natural stone i got no idea.

[regularjoe]

Nathaniel, you got a bunch of questions. lol IMO, the 8K Norton feels pretty smooth. I'm new to most of this. The Norton 4k does feel like it's got some teeth, where the 8k seems about like a "soft-ish" porcelain plate. But like I said, I'm new . I pick up any old stone that looks like it might be something, just to deepen my knowledge base. I did pay for it, but that's all you get. haha Gonna have to wait and see if I get a DMT for Christmas, cause the more I lapped, the more resistant to lapping it became. As for feeling grit, nope...it's smooth like butter. No markings either. Stimpy had a post where he said he's had some carborundums, and that's the description he used also. So that, coupled with MJHammer's assessment, and Dave's agreement that its the right size, puts it in my spreadsheet as an aloxite carborundum hone. It brought a BJ Eyre Sheffield around in about 25 laps. Probably did it sooner, but I forgot to count at first. I stil took it to the 8k afterwards, because I had some wire hanging. Overhoning maybe? I failed to shave today though, so no results yet. Here's what it looks like today. I'm still working on it, so don't be too harsh. There's plenty of useable space on this thing, even if it was ugly as sin when I found it. Some may say it's still ugly as sin, but whatever. Utility is key for me. I'm still curious to know what production method produces layered breakage like that. Sequential pour of layers? Doesn't make sense from the efficiency standpoint. Who knows..As long as it works. And it seems to work pretty well.

[mjhammer]

Wow, It is really starting to look like a usable stone again!! Amazing job on bringing it back to life. I've restored quite a few now, but never one in such bad shape as that one was in.. Good job man!!

Mike