Thread: Any general advice for using Arkansas stones?

Make sure to try varying degrees of torque too. I tried using some torque on the translucent after coming off a naniwa 12k. I used a little water, enough to wet the surface with a couple of drops of glycerin. Did about 20 laps with some pressure concentrated towards the edge then 20 ish with slightly lighter amount of torque, added a couple of drops of glycerin and then did 40 more laps again decreasing torque gradually. Diluted a little more with glycerin and went 20 more again lightening up on torque until about “weight” of the blade then added more glycerin and did 30-40 more strokes with very light finishing strokes. The feed back from the stone let me know when I was done. Not a sticky feeling but consistently smooth with increased drag, once the feeling stopped progressing I went maybe 10 more laps before I called it done. Did 10 laps on nylon strop and a pile of leather (120-130 laps), at least for me.

Sharpness was a touch below the naniwa but boy was it smooth.

Dish soap is about the same viscosity as glycerin if you don’t have any.

Try different razors too, some steel takes a lot better than others to the Arkansas.

Originally Posted by outback

JJ, have u tried finishing with soap n water, on the black.?!
( dish soap, liquid hand soap )

I've been finishing out a few on my black, coming off a Coti, to the black w/ soap n water, has been producing some incredible, results.

I took razor #1 (German steel) back to the burnished side with dish soap. A tiny drop with water and slowly increased the concentration as the lap count got higher. It was nice on the stone. It felt like there was a little less cushion than the Smith's and I could sort of feel the stone a little more.

Shaved with it this morning and it was quite nice. Subtle difference, maybe a little smoother. I'm not sure I could tell the difference blind, but really nice. I'll definitely use it again. One of the closest single pass shaves I've gotten.