What do you lubricate your Norton Sic Stones With?

[PoorUserName]

I read in the link below that metal particles that build up in the lubricant can reduce the sharpness of your edge, so either use your stone dry or keep your lubricant clean.

I've had this point proved to me many times. A few years ago, we were called into Iowa Beef; the worlds largest. The meat cutters thought our edges were great, until one day management asked us why we didn't use oil. We explained situation, but they asked us to try anyway, just to see what would happen. So we used oil.

It wasn't long before the reports started coming back from the lines that the quality of the edges had dropped. So we cleaned all the oil off the hones and the reports suddenly got better.

Sharpening Secrets of a Pro

 

[maximus83]

Curious now as to how you clean your stones? What's your method?

On my Alox stones, they get used wet. When done I just rinse them off with water and a little soapy dish detergent, and air dry. If I needed something more scrubby, I'd use Bar Keepers Friend and a scotch pad, but seems like these stones rarely need it.

On my diamond stones, I took a tip from Obsessed with Edges and started using them with a few drops of light Norton honing oil. This serves 3 purposes: reduces wear on the diamond plate, gives you a little lube for sharpening, and makes them easier to clean when done. I can literally just rinse them off with water and a little light scrubbing with my fingertips, don't even need soap on these anymore.

 

[cbwx34]

I read in the link below that metal particles that build up in the lubricant can reduce the sharpness of your edge, so either use your stone dry or keep your lubricant clean.

Sharpening Secrets of a Pro

The part that's often left out of the discussion of the article you referenced, is that the stones used in the Razor Edge System, break down quickly... so they won't load like most oilstones will, and generate a lot of swarf, if used with a small amount of oil.

 

[HeavyHanded]

The part that's often left out of the discussion of the article you referenced, is that the stones used in the Razor Edge System, break down quickly... so they won't load like most oilstones will, and generate a lot of swarf, if used with a small amount of oil.

Oil floats the swarf right off the surface, most of it anyway - just like the mud on a waterstone. Used dry it stays...right on the surface where the edge is. There's no free lunch.

I always wondered about that RE story. Juranitch uses a smooth steel after the stone, which completely changes the edge morphology. How could a minute effect visible at 3000x still be having an effect after the apex has been deformed via plastic flow.

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

I read in the link below that metal particles that build up in the lubricant can reduce the sharpness of your edge, so either use your stone dry or keep your lubricant clean.



Sharpening Secrets of a Pro

That much swarf on the stone will do it whether it's oiled or not, and probably worse if the stone is dry, because the swarf is less mobile on the surface, maybe fully embedded. Oil on the stone will at least help float the swarf aside and/or over the apex, instead of being forced into the apex when it's stuck to surface of the stone. In fact, it's easy to actually see the oily swarf flow over the edge on a well-wetted stone.

The better strategy with oiled stones is to wipe away the dirty oil & swarf after the heavy grinding is done. Apply some clean oil and use that to lift the swarf away, rubbing with a fingertip and then wiping it all away with a towel. Then maintain a cleanly-oiled stone for the finishing touches to the apex. That's what I've always done with mine, and there's no issue with dulling of the finished edge.

In a sense, there's sort of a mixed message in the Juranitch quote:

"So we cleaned all the oil off the hones and the reports suddenly got better."

I'd bet it was more about the fact the stone was 'clean' of the heavy accumulated swarf, and less about whether oil was being used or not. And perhaps ironically, the stones were likely easier to clean because they'd been oiled in the first place. A dry stone with a lot of embedded swarf isn't as easy to clean up.


David

 

[Magnaminous_G]

Saturate it with oil as a first step. If it is an old, clogged stone, degrease it first. Let the stone air dry thoroughly after cleaning/degreasing. I personally would recommend honing oil. I like Lansky because it smells nice. Some say honing oil is a waste of money and you should just use mineral oil. Actually, a bottle of Lansky oil only costs a few dollars and lasts a very long time. So you're talking about saving pennies. Plus a random oil may not be the right weight. Honing oil is formulated at the right weight to penetrate the stone and float swarf without gumming the stone up too quickly.

You can saturate the stone by pouring oil on the surface and letting it soak into the stone. Then pour some more (don't let it spill over the top, just pour enough to pool on the surface). Repeat until it won't absorb any more oil. When you sharpen, start with putting a few drops on the surface of the stone, enough to just have a sheen on top. As swarf develops from sharpening, wipe it off with a cloth. When finished, wipe all swarf from the surface with a rag and store the stone in an airtight container like a Ziploc bag so that it doesn't dry out. That will keep your stone in good shape and prevent it from clogging up. When you need to use it again, it should still be saturated and will only need a few drops to make a sheen on the surface again.

 

[jpm2]

If a stone comes pre oiled, like Norton jb8, I use thick drug store mineral oil, it keeps the trash in suspension better than thinner oils, which delays loading/glazing. When cutting performance decreases, apply a few drops, rub it in, sharpen a few strokes, then wipe off any pooling. This restores original cutting performance and provides a fairly long sharpening/grinding time before a repeat.

With untreated Norton economy type stones, I first melt gobs of Vaseline into them, then do same as above.

 

[awestib]

Saturate it with oil as a first step. If it is an old, clogged stone, degrease it first. Let the stone air dry thoroughly after cleaning/degreasing. I personally would recommend honing oil. I like Lansky because it smells nice. Some say honing oil is a waste of money and you should just use mineral oil. Actually, a bottle of Lansky oil only costs a few dollars and lasts a very long time. So you're talking about saving pennies. Plus a random oil may not be the right weight. Honing oil is formulated at the right weight to penetrate the stone and float swarf without gumming the stone up too quickly.

You can saturate the stone by pouring oil on the surface and letting it soak into the stone. Then pour some more (don't let it spill over the top, just pour enough to pool on the surface). Repeat until it won't absorb any more oil. When you sharpen, start with putting a few drops on the surface of the stone, enough to just have a sheen on top. As swarf develops from sharpening, wipe it off with a cloth. When finished, wipe all swarf from the surface with a rag and store the stone in an airtight container like a Ziploc bag so that it doesn't dry out. That will keep your stone in good shape and prevent it from clogging up. When you need to use it again, it should still be saturated and will only need a few drops to make a sheen on the surface again.

It's been a while M!