Lately I've been using a smear of Stirling preshave soap with water. Same slickness as pure glycerine but doesn't get sticky for me. And the lubricity doesn't seem to change appreciably as it gets diluted.
Water on Arkansas?
- Thread starter pravula
- Start date
There is only one rule: what works for you. Lots of choices:
For mineral oil, here are some of the more popular choices:
- Mineral oil
- Water
- Water with dishwashing soap (like Dawn)
- Water with glycerin
- Mineral oil with grain alcohol
- Mineral oil with transmission fluid and diesel fuel. @Wid has the magical formula
.
Most of the guys tend to shy away from oils that go rancid over time.
- 3-In-One
- Ballistol
- Food-grade mineral oil
- Norton Sharpening Stone Oil
- WD-40
I have tried all of the above except for Ballistol and @Wid's magic formula with my current favorite being the Norton oil.
After using oil, I wash the stone with Dawn.
The formula is
Mineral oil/trans fluid/Diesel fluid
60/20/20
Singer sewing machine oil works great.
- Thread starter
- #25
Why?
My normal routine, after honing I will add some fresh oil and rub the surface of the stone with my fingertips to loosen any swarf, then wipe it all off with a paper towel and put the stone away. No need to wash it that I can see.
So I don't get oil in the drawer or on the stone holder where I keep other stones.
It shouldn’t be an issue if you wipe them off well. The only time it might be an issue is if you store them in direct contact with some sort of porous water stone (like a ToS or a Jnat or something)
To prevent that possibility I keep all the stones that don’t have a box in a felt sleeve, and have never had an problem throwing them into storage all together. Less trouble than washing away oil, and no chance of soap residue getting into the stone, like Gamma mentioned.
Any stone I use oil on I wash with Dawn. It really doesn’t take any time and I can use another medium next time if I choose.
I use water on my hard black as a finisher. Swarf is usually not an issue since it's not generating much.
I get your point, @Legion, and will take it under advisement .
.So, one thing to think about and why we can all get good results from hard Arks is how the stone is finished. Many of us use different techniques to finish. These hard stones are very stone face finish dependent.
Once an Ark is flat-ish and smooth, (about 600 grit Wet & Dry), the face can easily be altered to a more aggressive or polisher finish with Wet & Dry, Film, Nagura, tomo/Asano or other natural slurry stones. There are no rules. I have been using an old fine Norton India with good results on a vintage translucent for an aggressive finisher.
On the other end I have taken stones to high grit wet & dry finish, lapping film and polished with good metal polish, Maas or Flitz. If you do not like the finish, you can easily get back to a baseline with 600 wet and dry or India.
I write on the end of the stone how it was finished, Black sharpie for translucents, White paint pen for Blacks, the other side is finished differently, so whatever side you can read the label that is how that face is finished. 600 will remove the sharpie or paint, as will WD40 and scotch Brite.
When we add different finishing film lubricant and technique, (pressure) to the myriad of stone face finishes, it is no wonder that we all have our own preferences.
Once an Ark is flat-ish and smooth, (about 600 grit Wet & Dry), the face can easily be altered to a more aggressive or polisher finish with Wet & Dry, Film, Nagura, tomo/Asano or other natural slurry stones. There are no rules. I have been using an old fine Norton India with good results on a vintage translucent for an aggressive finisher.
On the other end I have taken stones to high grit wet & dry finish, lapping film and polished with good metal polish, Maas or Flitz. If you do not like the finish, you can easily get back to a baseline with 600 wet and dry or India.
I write on the end of the stone how it was finished, Black sharpie for translucents, White paint pen for Blacks, the other side is finished differently, so whatever side you can read the label that is how that face is finished. 600 will remove the sharpie or paint, as will WD40 and scotch Brite.
When we add different finishing film lubricant and technique, (pressure) to the myriad of stone face finishes, it is no wonder that we all have our own preferences.
Great idea! I use a ballpoint pen to write the finish on a piece of blue painter's tape and then cut the piece of tape down to size with scissors and stick it to the end of the stone. Is surprisingly durable.
I guess that's why painter's use it.
The ATF is thinner than mineral oil as is the fuel oil. It thins the oil down if one like s a thinner oil. I personally don’t like a thick oil. I think I read mineral oil has a viscosity of around 80-100.
Interesting. I've always tried to use fabric instead of paper towels to avoid lint. Maybe it's just the particular brand of paper towels I'm using. They are noticeably worse than something like a t-shirt.
I use a type that doesn't dessolve. The type you can use in the garage.
Yea, paper towels run the gamut in linting and polishing ability.
I use 4 different paper towels for different purposes. My favorite is the rolled Blue paper Shop Towels, they last a long time are pretty lint free and are great for applying polish and polishing. A bit pricy for paper towels.
Wal Mart brand, “Good Value” I think, rolled paper towels in half sheets for most task, also pretty lint free, good polishers but do not hold up as good as the Blue Shop Towels. The half size is perfect for most tasks, great size for honing. Inexpensive.
And folded bathroom white paper towels, I bought a new metal wall dispenser at a flea market and buy the towels by the case at Smart & Final, wholesale restaurant supply. The are super cheap, great for clean ups, very absorbent, a bit more aggressive polishers than Wal Mart brand towels. The big benefit is they are pennies, and the dispenser holds 2 packages, so you always have clean towels at hand. Super cheap.
Last, Unbleached folded restaurant paper towels, like the ones in Starbucks. These I also buy at Smart and Final by the case. Super absorbent and great final polishers for a high sheen great on scales and to make a blade gleam after polishing leaving no lint.
I also use a lot of Costo Microfibers. My bride washes a load in the machine and dries in the dryer, they will shrink a bit the first time but are ok after that.
I use 4 different paper towels for different purposes. My favorite is the rolled Blue paper Shop Towels, they last a long time are pretty lint free and are great for applying polish and polishing. A bit pricy for paper towels.
Wal Mart brand, “Good Value” I think, rolled paper towels in half sheets for most task, also pretty lint free, good polishers but do not hold up as good as the Blue Shop Towels. The half size is perfect for most tasks, great size for honing. Inexpensive.
And folded bathroom white paper towels, I bought a new metal wall dispenser at a flea market and buy the towels by the case at Smart & Final, wholesale restaurant supply. The are super cheap, great for clean ups, very absorbent, a bit more aggressive polishers than Wal Mart brand towels. The big benefit is they are pennies, and the dispenser holds 2 packages, so you always have clean towels at hand. Super cheap.
Last, Unbleached folded restaurant paper towels, like the ones in Starbucks. These I also buy at Smart and Final by the case. Super absorbent and great final polishers for a high sheen great on scales and to make a blade gleam after polishing leaving no lint.
I also use a lot of Costo Microfibers. My bride washes a load in the machine and dries in the dryer, they will shrink a bit the first time but are ok after that.
