Lansky made man hones : dry, oil or water ?

[Louky]

Usually, I maintain my knives edge with a 4000 grits coticule stone, but it is very difficult to use it for restore damaged blades. So, I decide to order a Lansky sharpener. With the coticule stone, it is necessary to use water : it is not the stone which removes steel, but the paste formed by water and stone particles.

I don’t know if the Lansky made man hones needs to be used with water, oil or simply dry.
(I don’t really like the idea to use oil… I suppose it is impossible to change for water after a first use)

What is your experience ?

 

[stich]

There are some people who swear you don't need oil or water to float off the debris. Since your stones are new, try it dry and see how you like it. Then try it with water and note any differences. Once you use oil you are pretty much locked in. My natural Arkansas and synthetic stones have been saturated with oil for years so there is no turning back. My next stones will be water only.

 

[mlawson]

I just orderd a couple of stones from shaptonstones.com and was wondering the same thing. the sight seems to be very pushy about useing water. How long do these stones last and would useing them w/out water shorten that time?

 

[wolfmann601]

I have used stones dry since reading it here. I wash them up with soap and water after each use and dry them well.

So far I am very pleased...................

 

[Cliff Stamp]

Using stones with water does make them wear faster as there is less build up of particles and thus the cutting speed is faster. If you use waterstones without water they will turn black on contact as the steel sort of smears into the stone and forms a slick surface which then doesn't cut very well. This isn't a big deal though, it cleans easily just get it wet and wipe it on something (like your pants).

As others have noted just dry it dry and see if the results are to your liking. If it loads up too much, or doesn't cut well, or provide a crisp and sharp edge, then try soaking it in water and using it wet. You will want to clean it first, but as noted this is not a big deal.

If you are using a second hand stone, and the surface is really dirty and/or uneven, you will want to lap it to flatten and clean it. Some coarse sandpaper or lapping compound works well, as would an x-coarse diamond hone (that is fairly expensive however).

-Cliff