My first Arkansas just arrived

[Jakebullet]

I’ve been shaving and honing with straights for 3 1/2 years or so and have a liking for the feel of natural stones.
I don’t have many, a couple of Welsh slates, a little coticule and a kiita jnat. I also have a 1k 6k King combo.
I’ve long read on these forums about the qualities of black Arks so looking for the next stage in sharpness I ordered a 6x2 piece from Dan’s Whetstones a week ago and it arrived in my mailbox here in England today.

It’s a pretty black stone like one of the monoliths from 2001 space odyssey.
Now I’m not sure what to do next. I saw a video where dr Matt burnished his on water for 10 mins until it was polished and shiny.
Some people say just hone on it.
Dans has a good reputation but is my stone even flat or do I have to lap it?
Would you use oil or a water soluble honing agent?
How often would I clean /lap the hone?
Any help is much appreciated.

 

[Wid]

Dan normally does a great job at prepping and lapping his stones. Doesn’t hurt to check for flattens though. I’m not a fan of burnishing my Arks. I’ve done it but don’t really see an advantage.

Mine is lapped to 600 sic.

Hone a razor up to shave ready then take it to the Ark. I like oil, Dan makes some good stuff but I’ve used that, 3 in 1, transmission oil and host of others. Most give pretty similar results. I currently use my own mix.

 

[Tomo]

That’s a beautiful stone and a very practical size. Arks are my favourite and Dan’s Surgical Black is a top class stone. I look forward to hearing your thoughts on it.

The only rule is that there are no rules. It’s generally accepted that Dan ships pretty flat. If you have access to a granite surface plate you can get them flatter with WD paper and loose SIC. Many use them as delivered. You have made your own experiences with importance of flatness.

I would avoid using a diamond plate on it if possible. I did that once due to a sandpaper shortage during Covid. It works well but wears the plate quickly. You’ll get away with it for one stone or refreshes if you only use medium pressure. I finished two sides of a trans ark that needed some work. My 400 Atoma is still usable but no where near as fast as it used to be.

Out of the box Dan’s stones cut pretty quickly due to the surface finish. They will calm down fairly quickly if finished to a higher grit or burnished. 600-800 seems like the sweet spot to me for razors. At a minimum I would run a chisel or a big knife over it for a few minutes before you put a razor in it. It’s also worth chamfering the corners and edges. Hard Arks are brittle and will chip easily like glass. A chamfered or rounded edge will the protect the stone against that kind of damage.

I think you are going to love the Arkansas edge. They are excellent razor finishers and very consistent.

 

[captaincaed]

It doesn't hurt to run a chisel or the spine of the razor on the surface a couple times to find any small high spots that may nick the edge, but I don't see the value in doing it for 10".

Light oil, wd-40 are all fine for a little cushion and swarf lifting power. These stones are so dense that soap and water cleanup is easy.

I don't prefer oil if I can avoid it, and also have good luck with a spritz of windex, simple green, or single phase makeup remover (basically a mix of water, glycerine and some other mild chemicals that are water soluble, provide cushion, remove swarf, and won't separate from each other - I looked for one without obvious salts or acids adds to avoid rust). I'm fairly new to the razor world though so take these last with a pinch of salt.

 

[Darth Scandalous]

Dish soap and water works too. But you'll feel EVERYTHING until the edge starts to smooth out.

 

[2bit_collie]

I have a Dan’s black. Love it!
I agree with an earlier poster that 600-800 might be the sweet spot, but it’s worth trying as is - probably a touch more aggressive as-is. Both sides should be could, so best bet is to leave one side as is and perhaps do something to the other side.

I’ve used soapy water and oil. Usually I prefer oil, just need a few drops. I wash off the stone with water and dish soap after each use.

And yeah it does look like the monolith in Space Odyssey!

 

[Empire straights]

I’ve been shaving and honing with straights for 3 1/2 years or so and have a liking for the feel of natural stones.
I don’t have many, a couple of Welsh slates, a little coticule and a kiita jnat. I also have a 1k 6k King combo.
I’ve long read on these forums about the qualities of black Arks so looking for the next stage in sharpness I ordered a 6x2 piece from Dan’s Whetstones a week ago and it arrived in my mailbox here in England today.
View attachment 1480381View attachment 1480382
It’s a pretty black stone like one of the monoliths from 2001 space odyssey.
Now I’m not sure what to do next. I saw a video where dr Matt burnished his on water for 10 mins until it was polished and shiny.
Some people say just hone on it.
Dans has a good reputation but is my stone even flat or do I have to lap it?
Would you use oil or a water soluble honing agent?
How often would I clean /lap the hone?
Any help is much appreciated.

Hone a knife on it(not to burnish it per se but to test flatness) and if yours is anything like the ones I've bought you should be good to go. Use mineral oil or lather and take your time. Put a record on and after the first side is don't you should have an edge that I've yet to replicate with another stone. I don't use mine as much lately because I've been doing lots of testing but that rock is a staple and should last MANY lifetimes. Congrats, I hope you love it. Dans sells top shelf stones(at least the black/ translucent ones).

 

[Empire straights]

If you happen to own a softer llyn idwal, washita or Cretan/ turkey stone you use them for light slurry to speed it but i only use water for that though I'd imagine oil would work, especially if you rubbed up dust with them dry first. A Tam slurry will put a very nice edge and polish on a blade when using a black ark(or any hard novaculite for that matter) as a base stone.

 

[Timeclo]

Congrats! I got my soft/hard combo Ark stone the other day and I've been testing it out. It's hard to figure out if it's doing anything because I don't notice much difference until later on but it's still fun. The natural stone feels great. Especially with the hard Ark, the edge starts to just glide through the surface and I love the feel of it. Hope you enjoy the Black Ark! I'm thinking of picking it up later on.

 

[5whiskey]

I have a Dan's black (I got an 8x2) and honestly I just started honing on it when I got it. I didn't burnish or lap it. It honed just fine. I love the edges I get, but to be fair I've only had one other edge (honed on a synthetic by a friend) to compare and that was a few years ago.

I also bevel set with a soft arkansas from Dan's. I usually hit it with 600 W/D before every razor. It does ok with blades that don't need much reshaping work, but if I need to work out a slight frown or a deeper chip in the blade it takes FOREVER. I'm thinking about getting a good synthetic 1k for bevel set, like a shapton glass or something.

 

[Empire straights]

Congrats! I got my soft/hard combo Ark stone the other day and I've been testing it out. It's hard to figure out if it's doing anything because I don't notice much difference until later on but it's still fun. The natural stone feels great. Especially with the hard Ark, the edge starts to just glide through the surface and I love the feel of it. Hope you enjoy the Black Ark! I'm thinking of picking it up later on.

Did you get your stone from dans? If so do you like the soft side? Is the surface of your stone is flat and smooth, water for lower grits(soft or washitas) and mineral oil on the upper grits(black/ translucent, newer hard Arks) you can can do a whole progression on 2 stones. Circles and half strokes speed up arks a lot when honing a razor on them.

 

[Timeclo]

Did you get your stone from dans? If so do you like the soft side? Is the surface of your stone is flat and smooth, water for lower grits(soft or washitas) and mineral oil on the upper grits(black/ translucent, newer hard Arks) you can can do a whole progression on 2 stones. Circles and half strokes speed up arks a lot when honing a razor on them.

I got it from bestsharpeningstones. Soft side seems to be okay. It's said to be a general-purpose honing stone and it is on the courser side. I had a shave after honing on the soft side for a while and it felt okay. Tuggy, not clean-cutting, but comfortable on the skin. I honed on the Hard side today and that seemed to cut the arm hair quite easily. Testing out the shave tomorrow.

 

[SliceOfLife]

Yes, in my experience and from most reports I've read, Dan's are finished well enough for our the box use.

 

[Jakebullet]

Whilst siting here inspecting the stone, I’ve been rubbing it with palms and fingers which made the new surface less dusty and blacker.
Might sound like a silly question - I plan on using a water soluble solution to hone on but I read that once oil has been used on a stone that water soluble fluids won’t work.
In rubbing natural oil from my hands into the stone have I changed how it is to be used or can I still use a water soluble fluid?

 

[Tomo]

Whilst siting here inspecting the stone, I’ve been rubbing it with palms and fingers which made the new surface less dusty and blacker.
Might sound like a silly question - I plan on using a water soluble solution to hone on but I read that once oil has been used on a stone that water soluble fluids won’t work.
In rubbing natural oil from my hands into the stone have I changed how it is to be used or can I still use a water soluble fluid?

You haven’t changed a thing. Oils don’t penetrate the hard arks. You can use them with oil, wash the oil off with dish soap and then use a water soluble liquid again no problem.

I have used both oil and soapy water. These days I generally go for oil because it’s less messy. You only need a half dozen drops and it just stays on the surface of the stone. Soapy water tends to drip everywhere but gets the job done just as well.

 

[duke762]

Excited for you! There's a slight learning curve, push through it. I think you will be pleasantly surprised if not blown away. Best routine I've found is lap dead flat, finish to 600 W/D, WD 40 for lube and most importantly nail the previous stones edge before going to the Ark. Never, ever thought I would be able to shave with an edge like this let alone create it myself.

 

[Christian1212]

Don't be afraid of using oil! I have seen so many coticules that were used with oil by the previous owners that were just lapped flat and immediately fine to use with water.

 

[R7photo]

I have a Dans blk surgical as well
Came dead flat as I checked and they have a new flattening process
Mine came ready to use from out of the box
Congrats on your stone

 

[Mr Kooby Shemayrew]

Yeah, I remember my first hit of rock from Dan’s.

 

[thp001]

Imo oil works best on Arkansas stones. Something nice and thin for a fine Ark like a black/translucent. All it takes is a few drops spread evenly over the stone.