Black Arkansas

I'm considering a black ark. stone. Looking at a 8x2 but the question is; where are you guys getting your stones from?

Paco had some for sale, not sure if he still does.

i can get them at a good price from a local source... but they are 5" x 2" x 1/2".....

they are really fun to lap... just ask krodor....

I've heard they are a bear to lap but I also hear they give great edge. I'm looking for a bit more real estate on the stone.

I got mine from Paco, but you can get them from Dans or direct from Best. They are really a PITA to lap.

I'll send it to Keith to lap LOL!!!

Got mine lapped perfectly for $6 plus shipping.

Samjax said:

Got mine lapped perfectly for $6 plus shipping.

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Can you provide contact info and maybe a picture of your rock?

I'm still on the road so I cannot get you pictures of it yet. Here is Nick's contact info:

Nicholas Mastricola

[email protected]

His price is $6 per side plus shipping.

Nicholas P. Mastricola, MSEM
Graduate Research Associate
Acoustics and Dynamics Laboratory
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
The Ohio State University

Let him know that I (Tom Mitchell) referred you.

Thanks!

Looking a bit more into to it; it looks like a black translucent is a more recommended stone over the regular black. Opinions?

Regular black is a Hard Ark, not a Surgical Black. Surgical Black and Translucent are in the same class of hardness and specific gravity.
Old timers will say one is better than the other for whatever reasons... I've had both and they're just about identical and to be truthful I don't think I could ever tell the difference between edges honed on one or the other. I want to believe that the Translucent had a leg up on the Surgical Black but that was probably just one of those psychosharpness things.

Yeah yeah yeah - I made the word up. It's a phenomenon that's the honing/shaving equivalent of the audio world's psychoacoustics.

i love the edges off my translucent arki. just realize to get all u can on the stones below it because it does cut slow. but the edge knows no bounds.

tomjr said:

i love the edges off my translucent arki. just realize to get all u can on the stones below it because it does cut slow. but the edge knows no bounds.

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What do you use before the Arkansas?

i have translucent and surgical black......

i will be honest... the edges are spectacular off either... and i really don't see the "slow" aspect of it.....

it takes as long as it takes.....

I liked To go from 10/12k to the Ark. Maxed out Coti or Escher to the Ark was also good.

Have ya ever tried Jnat to Black Ark?

When I started with Jnats, I put the Ark away for a while so I could dial into the new stones. Eventually I'll get to that though.

Oil or water?

Water with a tiny tiny bit of dish soap or glycerine - I don't like cleaning up oil.

Nice, I was hoping so.