# Should I throw this stone away ( Pictures inside )



## jasonjjj (Jun 5, 2013)

As you can see in the pictures the coarse side is worn out like hell !!





  








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jasonjjj


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Jun 7, 2013











  








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jasonjjj


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Jun 7, 2013








I found this stone in my garage probably around 10 years old maybe more, I think its an oil stone but im not 100% sure

The fine side is ok to use i think cause ive sharpened a few knives with oil and they were pretty sharp.

Anyway if i should throw it away what stone should i get?

Im thinking 1000/6000 grit whetstone?

or 1000/3000, i sharpen my knives like once a week, so its just a 5 min job, instead of once a month and taking like 1 hour to sharpen them all.

so really they are pretty sharp all the time,

Also is there anything else i need? to maintain the whetstone,

Do i still need a strop or ceramic steel even with a grit as high as 6000 or 3000?

If so how important are they

I have a few Wustof ikon knives and a few Procook knives

Any help would be great thanks


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## kokopuffs (Aug 4, 2000)

I use oil stones for all of my german and american made knives from *here* and from *Hall's Pro Edge*. I use the soft-black combination bench stone from Hall's as my finishing stone and it takes the knife's edge up to the next level of fine sharpness, very fine sharpness. Halls stones, the soft and black arkansas, never need more than two or three drops of oil for sharpening and is a snap to clean using less than six drops.

And check *here* for flattening and lapping used stones.


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## foodpump (Oct 10, 2005)

To flatten, use your sidewalk--I'm serious, use your sidewalk and plenty of water to take away most of the "valley".  When you get close, switch over to a piece of glass with a 120- grit drywall sanding screen on it.  This should get you pretty darn flat.

Sharpening?  Everyone has different methods and materials, there is no right or wrong, and it gets very personal.  Whatever works for you, works.


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## kokopuffs (Aug 4, 2000)

120 grit wet-or-dry..........................


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## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

That old stone appears to be a Norton "combination" Crystolon. If so flattening on concrete would take forever, and include a good chance of breaking the stone. If you want to save it you should probably get a mason to lap it flat for you. But since new ones cost $18 for the 6" length, and $20 for the 8" length, it's not really worth it.

The stone flattening equipment on the page Koko linked is for water stones, not oil stones and would not do the job.

Anything finer than 3K JIS or "Translucent Arkansas" for Wusthofs is a waste of time.

When it comes to synthetic oil stones, Norton India stones are better than Norton Crystolon, but Razor Edge (8x3, Coarse and Ultra-fine, $65 the pair) are the best.

This is the set I use for soft steel knives:

Norton IB-8 ($20 8" x 1" combination India with Coarse India surface for profile and repair, and fine India surface for drawing the first burr);
Norton IM-50 Sharpening Station for holding the IB-8 ($15)
Hall's Soft Arkansas for refining the burr ($29); and
Hall's Surgical Black Arkansas ($84) for finishing and polishing the edge.
You could do worse.

You don't need a $180, 11-1/2" Norton tri-hone. 8" stones are perfect for a home sharpening kit. If you decide to get Arkansas stones, remember that the quarry counts for a lot. Hall's is either equal to the best or the best for all four grades (soft, hard, black, translucent). You could save $42 by going with the $71 combi Soft/Black instead of the separates.

Try to remember that grit numbers do not translate from one system to one another, and for that matter grit numbers within the same system aren't consistent from manufacturer to manufacturer and sometimes not even from one line to another. Even terms like "coarse," "medium" and "fine" don't translate particularly well. Any chart you see comparing Arkansas stones (and many other natural stones) to particular grit synthetic stones is going to be extremely misleading.

If you have questions, ask. Don't rely on retailers' or manufacturers' descriptions.

BDL


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