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Well, technically a washita is an ark since it is from Ouachita county in Arkansas but iirc they are from a different vein from what is traditionally called an Arkansas stones by name. Also...

It takes a little getting used to though. Like the first time you find your balance on a bicycle. It's a little scary at first for fear you'll wreck it but you just have to take a leap of faith and...

I too have a stone with a small hole in it. The blade skips right over and you can't even feel it.

Nice work cleaning up that stone. Properly dressed I think it will really help with your...

That's certainly an easier way to do it. I have been doing this ark bevel set to finish thing as an exercise and it has worked really well for me. I've been playing with it like I would play with an...

Fair enough. So flatten the stone. Even if it's not an issue it's not going to hurt anything And at least then you know and can check that off your list. Besides it's probably pretty good practice...

Hey, don't take my word for it. What do I know? My bet is still on not enough laps.

It certainly won't hurt to check it but I'd be willing to bet that's not your issue. My usual run on each side of the stone is about 400 to 600 laps.The slowness of an ark is both a good thing and a...

A stone from Dan's should be dead flat already. I doubt that's your issue.
Arks, especially that fine require a lot of laps. If you have done less than 150-200 I wouldn't expect.to...

After reading back over this it occurs to me that this came out a little...what's the word?...smart a$$ maybe? That was not my intention. In fact I fully expected a lot of feedback and the LACK of it...

Well bear in mind that your mileage may vary due only in part to the fact that I cannot accurately define these stones. I have Just worked out a process with what I have, and even if I could you...

Hope you got your trans in Steve. Waiting stinks. So here is something you might want to try. You asked about a full ark progression. This is a method I've been refining for a while.
I have this...

There are actually times that I think a narrow stone is better. For instance if you have an uneven spine where the bevel is not always reaching evenly. This should actually help you then

In fact that tiny little stone of mine works great. I would love if it were bigger but I can get shaves where it feels like there's not even any whiskers there with it. I have been using hairs from...

Here is one of my small hard stones. I don't know what it is exactly.
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I lapped one side to 600-800 ( I can't remember) and one side I lapped up to 3k with wet/dry. On the fine side it is...

Well again we're at the good and bad, yes and no. The good thing or bad thing depending on how you look at it about natural stones is that no two are alike. Each and every one is an individual even...

Hey Mike, have you ever tried heating the detergent while you're soaking it, sort of simmering or maybe even boiling the stones? It seems like that would work the oil out faster / more thoroughly or...

The answer is yes and no. They are different stones with different mineral makeup but are all soft in comparison to the translucent or the surgical black. However, they all come from that same group...

Mainly what I do with arks is sets of 10 back and forth for about 200-300 then forward only for another 100. If I do a progression it's usually just back and forth sets of 100-200 depending until...

Well you should always at least rinse the razor off before stropping anyway. You can embed grit from the stones or metal shavings / filings into your strop if you don't. Preferably wash it with soap...

Boy Steve you have the hunger for sure. Good for you. If you want a puzzle fall down the ark rabbit hole. There are SSOOOO many variations and so much that can change on surface prep. If you want a...