Originally Posted by
Rugger007
I mentioned this an another post but here goes. I only dress my Arks as far as 600 Wet/Dry and quickly run a chefs knife over the surface a few times (12 at most) and as soon as my Arks start to become "polished" they go right back to the 600. Polishing your Ark beyond this level, all your doing is removing the stones abrasive properties and you are there for 200+ strokes only to make limited progress if any at all. If your using a well polished/burnished Ark all you are doing is moving the steel around in the same way a Knife Steeling Rod works, you are not actually cutting/removing steel which is the only way to refine the edge, you may as well just strop and forget about the Ark, IMO. Terms such as 'polishing" the edge are very misleading, in order to "polish" your edge to a higher degree one MUST remove steel with progressively finer abrasives, its really that simple. Dont worry too much about pressure, honestly, we all put far too much stock in it and it causes many more issues to arise, just do what feels right. As for lubrication, straight water will work on a very dense Ark such as a Surgical Black or Trans Ark, however, on say a soft Ark it will not carry the swarf away and clog your stone. I personally use propylene glycol USP on my Arks and Cotis. Its non-toxic, 100% water soluble and used throughout the food industry. Add a few drops or your Ark and dilute with water (water soluble) until you get the viscosity you like. Your Ark will tell you when its done and then you can add another drop or two and keep going if your so inclined.