arkansas oil sstone what oil???

[thebushcrafter99]

hi all
just recently got given a arkansas oil stone the guy said it was a surgical one so it was used for sharpening surgeons scalpels and the such like so it is a very fine grit but now i am wondering what oil should a use, does it have to be cutting or honing or can it be any sort of lubricating oil as i have some that is used for lubricating a metal lathe can i use that? also any other tips and tricks for this stone would be greatly appreciated as i am a massive sharpening nooooooooooob

 

[Teepee]

3-in-1 general purpose is fine for oilstones. The machine oil should be fine to, as it not too thick or sticky.

Avoid any drying oils at all costs (linseed, tung etc)

 

[sasquatch]

Sewing machine oil is some of the best to use on fine hones. As Teedee said 3 in 1 will work but it's fairly thick compared to sewing machine oil.

Is it black? If it's an old grey or whitish translucent stone it's probably too fine to be of much use on knives, they're more for razors and surgical instruments and chisels as your man said.

They're great stones, if you ever want to sell or trade let me know please! You're lucky to have been given one, buy that man a pint!

 

[thebushcrafter99]

yeah its black with a sort of little white bit and so far im not looking to sell it!!! heres a awful pic of it sorry im lazy and used my webcam... in bad lighting!

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[MartiniDave]

Even WD40 should be fine. You can buy speciallist honing oil, I should think you'll find it on e-bay.

Personally I hate the smell of 3-in-1, don't know why I just do.

Dave

 

[thebushcrafter99]

Even WD40 should be fine. You can buy speciallist honing oil, I should think you'll find it on e-bay.

Personally I hate the smell of 3-in-1, don't know why I just do.

Dave

ok will try W-D 40 then as i hve a can or 2 already and i only need a very thin coat!

 

[sasquatch]

No harm in trying water either, they're that fine they don't tend to hold much of anything anyway. Hang onto it and enjoy using it!

 

[thebushcrafter99]

so water wont damage the stone or your edge then

 

[Teepee]

so water wont damage the stone or your edge then

Only if you don't dry it off afterwards. All is good

 

[thebushcrafter99]

Only if you don't dry it off afterwards. All is good

so im confused you should dry off the stone afterwards or you shouldn't im guessing you should?
also because it is so fine do i move the knife in the normal sharpening direction or in the stropping direction

 

[Woodcutter2]

Once oil has been used on the stone water will not then work, but as you say its very fine I would highly reccomend a very very thin oil, straight 3in1 will be too dense not allowing the edge proper contact with the stone without lots of pressure which in turn can distract you from maintaing the correct angle in fluid strokes.

70% paraffin to 30% 3in1 oil should be about the right mix for it but you can go thinner if you can feel the edge skate off the stone without abrading it.

Hope it helps

 

[Woodcutter2]

so im confused you should dry off the stone afterwards or you shouldn't im guessing you should?
also because it is so fine do i move the knife in the normal sharpening direction or in the stropping direction

Eh, Sharpening is a fluid forwards and backwards motion much like a snooker players cueing action and stropping I have always found best pushing away from the body with the edge in question nearest to you, this will help accurately maintain the required angle because your arms etc are opening out in front of you. Drawing towards you and everything is bunching up and shoulders start to roll making it to easy to end up with a rounded over edge!!!

Leastways thats my 10p anyway

 

[Teepee]

so im confused you should dry off the stone afterwards or you shouldn't im guessing you should?
also because it is so fine do i move the knife in the normal sharpening direction or in the stropping direction

I was just referring to the knife blade being dried off if water is used as the lube instead of oil. If its a stainless blade, then this isn't pertinent.

I've never used that fine an oilstone, but I can't see why it would'nt be used like a coarser stone-opposite direction to a strop. Others will hopefully chime in.
The only reason the edge is dragged in the opposite direction on a leather strop(away from the edge) is so the edge doesn't dig into the leather. Apologies if this is teaching egg sucking
Personally, if I was using any stone with water, I would rinse and dry after every use to remove the metal filings that are created.

If a stone is used with oil, it won't need drying.

I've never used an oilstone with water, so can't comment on whether its better or not TBH. Sasquatch knows his stuff, and if he says try it, I would. Water is so much easier to clean up afterwards.

 

[sasquatch]

All sound advice here, the stone is so fine it won't really take oil into it's pores like a coarser stone would. I don't soak superfine natural stones in water as they're that hard and fine they don't take any water on. A coarse oil stone will just bead water off, once it's had oil you need to keep using oil. A stone as fine as yours probably reacts the same to thin oil and water, it'll just skate on the surface but helps build up a swarth to polish the edge. You can always try it and see, even thin oil will probably bead on that stone. When finished with water or oil I'd wipe the stone off to remove swarth.

Many ways to skin a cat, personally I use x strokes with the edge facing me then flip the knife and have the edge going away from me. The edge of the blade is always at the front of the stroke. On a strop it's the opposite as Teedee stated to avoid the blade digging into the leather.

There are so many ways to sharpen things, people find methods that work for them so it can be confusing when advice is asked. Watch a few videos if you're unsure then see what suits you. Be patient and you'll soon get into a rythme and enjoy spending time on stones to get crazy sharp edges. If you search for razor honing x strokes you'll see what I mean. Same rules apply for a knife but I don't ever take them above 6K as there's no real need to. Stropping gets rid of any burrs and really makes an edge come to life. If you're not working through progressive stones you'll just be polishing a dull edge with that Arkansas stone. It's more for finishing fine edges.