Thread: New to me Hone

My I initial thought was an oil soaked coti, but i think everyone is right. Definitely looks like a washita.

I just looked at this thread again and paid more attention to the pics. My hones are brown with darker brown markings.
On my monitor your hones look brown. If yours is a dirty white base color then I agree it is most likely a Washita. I have 3 of those also including a Lily White Washita. I would estimate the grit at appox 800-1000 but they do vary. Clean it with soap, water and a scrubbing brush then use oven cleaner a couple of times, then repeat the soap and water.

Yes, mine is definitely light brown with darker brown markings. It needed very little/almost no lapping the stone is very flat and based on the amount of water it soaks into it(takes in very little before it pools)when I used it leans to the harder side. It's a beautiful stone. More ideas?

Now you have to compare it to a known, labeled stone, such as the aforementioned, by actually using a razor on it with a bit of pressure. One of the posters, RodB, stopped over to my home and we compared a hone of his to some labeled hones, a Hindostan I think it was, and confirmed they were the same. That is about the only way to know with certainty.

If it is a soft Arkansas or a Washita then you will not enjoy the shave you get off it. A hard Arkansas would be better but still not something you will enjoy. In short, yours is not a stone that will give an acceptable shaving edge. The best that can be done is to determine where in the honing process this stone will fit. My guess is that it is a soft Arkansas suitable for the rough stage of honing, if it is a Washita then it is best used to develop the bevel. A hard Arkansas would not take up any water.

Hope this helps,

Having play around with all my Ark stones a lot with razors, as Randy has said, the soft white and Washita are somewhere in the 800-1200 range, I've set bevels with those, they also act differently with oil instead of water and cut slower and polish slightly better. They are not fast and can get frustrating, but they do work as a lower grit hone. If you can't get it to work with razors, they will give a wicked edge to kitchen/hunting knives and tools.