Norton India stones with water or dry?

[awestib]

Anybody experience wether I can use Norton India combi stone (coarse/fine) with water or dry instead of messy oil?

 

[Russ Andrews]

Are both sides India..?
For the India stones you can use any of the ways tou mentioned...BUT,
they cut better with a light oil, and loading up is minimized.

 

[tiguy7]

I use USP mineral oil on mine, but I squeegee the oil off the stone with a rubber kitchen spatula before I begin sharpening. This step reduces the mess.

 

[gomipile]

I use either water or a slightly soapy mixture. I hear that a little Dawn dish detergent helps. Others use regular Windex.

In any case, I've had good results with water, and it is a lot less messy and easier to clean up after than oil.

 

[fast14riot]

Normally the Norton stones come pre oiled, if you wish to use water just boil it for a few minutes. Be sure to have something to keep the stone off the bottom of the pot. I use mine dry most of the time.


-Xander

 

[hunter s thompson]

I use Simple Green on mine, I read somewhere that Ed Fowler recommended it, seems to work really well.

 

[bgentry]

Anybody experience wether I can use Norton India combi stone (coarse/fine) with water or dry instead of messy oil?

Certainly you can use them dry or wet. I've used Norton Crystolon (SiC) and India (AlO2) dry and with water. They load up faster dry, but are definitely not messy at all. With water, there's more mess, but I've changed my opinion on this recently. I think the whole sharpening experience is nicer with a stone that's lubricated. There are several advantages:

1. With a stone that's wet, it's easier to start a motion on the stone. So there's less skipping or stuttering when starting or stopping a motion. In other words, every stroke or motion is more fluid and smooth with a lubricated stone. This should lead to better edges and probably leads to the person doing the sharpening enjoying it more.
2. The water or oil on the stone catches the ground off metal, trapping it before it can get into the air. Airborne metal is very bad for people to breathe.
3. Wetted stones seem to load less than a dry stone. I see big dark marks on my stones when I use them dry, but much less so when I use them with water.
4. While a lubricated stone seems like it should be less abrasive and cut more slowly, I haven't really noticed a difference in cutting speed.

I'm still not in the camp of using actual oil on a stone, but who knows? Give me a few years and I'm might write crazy things here about how everyone should use oil on stones!!

Brian.

 

[Curtis_Lowe]

I use water with a drop of dish soap on my Norton. I didn't have to boil it or anything like that. The dish soap keeps the water from beading. Oil always ends up getting all over my hands and the knife gets all slippery. I rarely use it dry because of the metal dust getting into my lungs. I sometimes, end up with a minor coughing fit later.

 

[David Martin]

Yes, Russ and gent are correct. You can use them dry (I did) but oil or soap with H20 works better and gives a better edge. DM

 

[Ed Fowler]

I used to use kerosine, then switched to simple green and have not looked back. I dilute mine about 2 parts water to one simple green, have even used it full strength, the the water added makes it cheaper to use. Wayne Goddard started using it and talked me into trying it, works great and keeps your stone clean, just give it a good spray after your are done and wipe it clean.

 

[sodak]

Thanks to Ed, I still have a quart of kerosene in my garage that I'm trying to use up. It's ok, I've actually gotten fond of the smell, but will have to try simple green. I can always use the kerosene in my lamps.

 

[hunter s thompson]

I dilute mine about 2 parts water to one simple green, have even used it full strength, the the water added makes it cheaper to use.

Simple Green is pretty cheap to start with, I am going to start diluting mine. Thanks for the tip Mr. Fowler.

 

[awestib]

Thanks guys! I understnd then that there is also no soacking necessary??

 

[David Martin]

Thanks, Ed. I'm going to try the Simple Green mix. DM

 

[Ed Fowler]

All you have to do is keep the top wet, some will soak in, that is OK, but keeping a flow of simple green in front of your blade tells you what part of the blade is being sharpened.

 

[Bill DeShivs]

WD 40 works well, too.

 

[Glytch5]

Okay I wanted to check some other threads on here. My observations are:
with oil, I cannot get my Norton India stones to stop shedding grit, so as I sharpen, pieces of the abrasive come out, and I get tiny rocks under my edge and it made for HORRIBLE results, and this stone is well broken in. If I use it DRY I get great results BUT, the stone loads up. I try to go dry, then use oil to clean it up after.
If you notice the fine side feels grainy after a couple strokes with oil, you have the same issue I do. Seems not everyone has this problem. Norton stones don't seem to be the most consistent!
John Fitzen (AKA the knife hack) boils out his oil and uses the stone dry, but what does he know? : )

 

[David Martin]

You seem to find old topics to pull up about this. Much has been written on this subject. I've not experienced a India stone with sloughing grit like you mention. In the Mexican or U.S. manufactured stones. DM

 

[Glytch5]

Yeah ive been digging. This is why I like forums. Hopefully someone out there is having the same issue as I, and will see this topic and say oh okay, so its not just me!

 

[Jason B.]

Bringing up a bunch of old topics is not the best way.

Make a video and post it to YouTube. Then we might be able to see what you are talking about. Posting pictures of your stone might work too. Make your own thread with you own title and you might find that we are more interested.