Thread: Natural Belgian Ebay Find?

I found this on eBay last Thursday evening. The seller thought it was quarried in Holland or the Netherlands (same place?). He didn't have any more info than that.
The seam between the colors is a wavy, naturally occuring seam and the yellow side has a better finish. The blue side is not as smooth of flat.
Is the blue really a blue Belgian or simply a natural backing and not designed to be honed on like the yellow side.
Measures 5 3/4" x 2" x 7/8".





Tony

That looks like a natural Belgian stone. Good catch!
The dark side is about 4000 grit but is very slow cutting. I would use a 4000 Norton instead or any other medium grit stone.
The Belgians are generally used with water.

That's brilliant Tony. Let me know if you're ever thinking of letting it go.

X

Tony,
The stone you purchased is what the Belgians call a "natural" stone which is their term for a combination stone. The stone is actually fairly rare in that gradable stone that straddles the seam where the yellow coticule vein intrudes into the blue base rock is unusual. In this country we would call such a stone a "combination stone". It took me two years to get a natural stone from the belgians but I'm now receiving them occasionally and have recently sold several in the 8"x3" form factor.

The stones are used with water but you don't have to soak them like Norton Waterstones as the Belgian stones are not porous. They don't soak up water. It's because of that fact that the belgians don't "load". "Loading" is when "swarf" becomes embedded in the stone's pores reducing your ability to sharpen steel on that stone. Loading is bad. "Swarf" is the combined product of stone particles, water or oil, and steel.

I have revived many stones such as India stones or artificial waterstones or oilstones by lifting out the swarf with Easy Off Fume Free. Works like a charm and several applications have brought back some of the most poorly cared for stones I've ever seen.

Nice purchase!

Howard
[email protected]

Howard,
Thanks for the info. It did sem an unusual piece and a stroke of luck catching it. It was listed just moments before I found it and had a a Buy It Now.

The little dark patch in the upper corner of the dark side was the original price sticker from the store the seller found it in.

I have just started fooling with my barber hones and wanted a Belgian as well. I do have a Norton for the heavy work..........and no, I'm not giving up on pasted strops <g>.

Tony

Originally Posted by Tony Miller

I found this on eBay last Thursday evening. The seller thought it was quarried in Holland or the Netherlands (same place?).
Tony

very same. Not far from Belgium either.

BTW, what happened to Theo?? Hoek, where are you?

Nenad

The seller sent me a little more info this morning. He bought it new in 1995 in Soviet Georgia at a store that had shaving supplies from Germany. He said at that time there were many European item available there but now it is like here, everything is from China.

I didn't realize the seller was from Russia whgen I photographed the stone with my Soviet Paketa razor.............. good Karma I guess, same thing that lead me to the stone.

Tony

Originally Posted by Howard

Tony,
The stone is actually fairly rare in that gradable stone that straddles the seam where the yellow coticule vein intrudes into the blue base rock is unusual.
I have revived many stones such as India stones or artificial waterstones or oilstones by lifting out the swarf with Easy Off Fume Free. Works like a charm and several applications have brought back some of the most poorly cared for stones I've ever seen.
Nice purchase!
Howard

[email protected]

Nice Post Howard. I saw some of those recently; I guess they were yours. Wow, a 3X8 sounds like a very rare find. I'm curious about the oven cleaner trick. I have a 15k Shapton that loads up pretty readily. I have never seen this solution on the knife forums. Do you know if its ok on Ceramic stones?

Thanks

Originally Posted by Tony Miller

I didn't realize the seller was from Russia whgen I photographed the stone with my Soviet Paketa razor.............. good Karma I guess, same thing that lead me to the stone.

Tony

Tony, that reads "Raketa" in Cyrilic, which means Rocket...

cheers,
Nenad

I would hold off on using the oven cleaner on that Shapton!
Howard was referring to Arkansas and Carborundum stones. They are very different from a Shapton. You might dissolve the binding in the Shapton.

Originally Posted by Korndog

Nice Post Howard. I saw some of those recently; I guess they were yours. Wow, a 3X8 sounds like a very rare find. I'm curious about the oven cleaner trick. I have a 15k Shapton that loads up pretty readily. I have never seen this solution on the knife forums. Do you know if its ok on Ceramic stones?

Thanks

Just my two cents,