Thread: Storing / cleaning a dirty norton

I am currently using the 1/4 i bought off of Gorila for the first time to sharpen a paperknife.

Nortons rock. Had I had this for Nelsons knife, the challenge would have been over sooner

But now for the ugly: the 1K side if pretty dirty from all the slurry and removed iron. I have washed it off, but the smears remain. is this a problem? I notice with an older stone that this can lead to a rusty looking stone whe the iron oxidates.

Also, if the 4K side gets a grey smudge from handling it, does this have a noticable impact when honing a razor or not?

Bruno,

The dirt doesn't affect the stone's honing ability, but it bugs me like crazy. The exception would be if the stone gets clogged--but I've never seen that happen, and I hone a lot of razors.

You can clean it with a green nylon scouring pad like you'd use in the kitchen. If it gets really bad, you can just lap it for a couple of minutes with 600 to 1000-grit wet-dry sandpaper. (Be sure you use a good grade of paper, as the cheaper papers can leave grit embedded in your hone.)

Nortons do rock. Enjoy!

Josh

Yeah I was removing a false bevel on each side, caused by factory sharpening.

I put pressure on the blade on the 1K side while honing back and forth...
And suddenly I noticed that a piece of the blade had simply disappeared . I noticed just in time so that it was not too bad. With some aditional honing on the other places I was able to restore the blade shape.

Lucky that I didn't have a 220 grit. One lap and 4/8 suddenly becomes 3/8

You can use pumice stone with circular motion to lap the Norton. That's what I use on my 4/8K combo...

Nenad

Originally Posted by JoshEarl

(Be sure you use a good grade of paper, as the cheaper papers can leave grit embedded in your hone.)

Even good paper gives up grit, no? And if after lapping you take a scotch-brite to your hone under swift running water, doens't this take care of the problem?

You are correct. They all do, to some degree. I always wash my Waterstones after I use them with lots of water and a mild liquid soap. We use soap whenever we clean anything because it helps to bind with and lift out the dirt and allow the water to wash it away. I’ve found the same to be true with my Waterstones.

I prefer to use one of those stiff nylon vegetable brushes you can find everywhere, rather than a Scotch-Bright, but both work. It took me quite awhile to find the perfect brush, with just the right length and stiffness of bristles. Then my daughter took it to college and I never saw it again. I found them again at a local grocery store, bought two, and immediately hid them is a secret place. Now, if I could just remember where I put them.

If there is that much staining on it it probably hasn't been lapped in a loooong time or it hasn't been properly cared for. In either case lapping is indicated. Personally I have a shapton plate which is a pleasure to use. That and some medium grit to lap and extra fine to polish and my Norton is a thing of beauty. I use a scotchbrite pad and soap and water to clean thoroughly after each use.