Old Norton combination oil stone

F

FJ1906

Joined
Jul 3, 2012
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36
I picked up this old Norton combination oil stone along with some hammers and tongs at a nearby antique tool store. Any info on it? Dimensions are 5"x2" ~11/16" thick. It feels very fine on the black side and just slightly coarser on the red side. I'm thinking that it might be a razor hone. It is a bit grungy and could use a good cleaning. What do you recommend for cleaning? I was thinking of soaking it in some simple green or maybe some acetone and scrubbing with a scotch brite. Other than being dirty it is in pretty good shape, nice and flat, hardly any dishing on either side, but there is just a tiny bit. would a large DMT coarse stone work to flatten?

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Thanks.
 
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Just a guess, but that looks like an old Norton India stone. The dark side (unloaded a bit) might be the coarse or medium side, the tan colored side will be the fine. For clean-up I get good results just letting some thin oil sit in a puddle on top, then agitate it with a toothbrush etc and wipe off with a rag. A stout lapping with some soapy water and loose silicon carbide or blasting grit against another stone will make the surface like new.
 
I've found wiping it down with acetone works pretty well, then I'd rub it down with a scotchbrite and flatten it if you can.
 
I agree with Heavy. It's a Norton combination coarse/ fine India. It's from the 40's perhaps early 50's with the name in it like that. Anyway, old. It can be cleaned up with a wire brush and lacquer. Then wiped off with a cloth. The grey-- coarse side will be the side that could be dished, in need of leveling. A good find. DM
 
So I gave it a soak in some Dawn dish soap and warm water. scrubbed it with a sponge and old tooth brush and got it cleaned up a good bit.

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The red side is actually the coarser of the two sides and the black side is very smooth. I dug around and did some research and found that this stone is a barber hone and is considered one of the best ever made, it is HIGHLY sought after by competition axemen in Australia and straight razor shavers. Previous auctions on ebay have ending prices ranging from $500-1000 The Australians paying the most.
 
That is a very good find. I knew Norton made those but had not seen one. What grit are they stating for the fine side? DM
 
David I heard that it is anywhere between 20-30k grit and maybe as far as half micron. These number are just what I heard when I asked somewhere else.
 
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