Translation:
These preferable stones are characterized by their special fineness for sharpening razor knives and are mainly recommended to manufacturers of razor knives and hairdressers. Only act with my signature.

Gave the seller there ask, did not even ask for a discount

Also appreciate the transition

Sliced bacon!
Now I'm hungry.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

Ok, enough of the teasing, whatcha got there??

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Sioux Quartzite, some rip rap that called to me.

Very nice.

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New Slates going on the new stands (Dai) I just built







The smaller one is from my friend Jeff in Colorado I call it the 9-ball Slate since it is Italian Slate from a Pool Table.. Incredible finisher very smooth and sharp

The larger one is from Haida Gwaii in Canada this is the second chunk of rock from Shaun up there to test, finally got it lapped in and did my first razor on there
It looks promising

That pool table slate is cool Glen.

I just gave in and got the Shapton G7 knife honing kit, the holder is cool and I have almost the full set now with the three that came with this kit. It includes 3 G7 hones, a ‘500’, ‘2500’ and a 30k, plus a small diamond flattening plate and a cheesy pencil.

The stones are about 1-3/8 x 6-1/8” (35 x 160mm) and the size is really better suited to razors than knives. These are the same material as the Shapton HR series but with 7mm abrasive vs 5mm for the HR. I’ve always liked art deco, and this is an art deco stone holder if there ever was one.

Good stuff, these stones will cut anything in short order. Hans, you could turn that pesky Tornblöm into a toothpick in about 30 minutes, lol.

A few new stones from the wild, a pair of Rosy Red Washita Oilstones in wooden boxes from pike. RRW in original box are a very uncommon find. Also uncommon, a 8” Carborundum Arkansas Oilstone. It is not labeled as, but it is every bit a Washita in low mileage condition. Came in a nice tiger oak box with pristine label

Nice finds. After you lap them flat, and clean them up, post some more pics.

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Since I'm still pretty new to looking at stones I had not thought of old pool tables.. What grit are their slates usually ? Thank you.

Let me try and explain without going to deep and sounding like an A$$

Natural hones don't have Grit Ratings, the comparisons people tend to use are about useless, worse people that sell them just make up higher and higher ratings because there can be no proof

You can rate the cutting grit in a natural stone sometimes but it doesn't really tell you much because that grit isn't uniform, like a Coticule the tiny Garnets are right around 3~micron or 8000 but they don't act like a grid sifted 8ooo SiC hone so the comparison ends there
You have Japanese naturals that the grit is probably around that same level when measured IN the stone, but once released and worked the binder and the grit begin to cleave and become something different..
This Slate is much the same I have tested quite a few slates over the years, this is definitely a Finisher, the feed back from my customers that have tried the edge have ranged from Very Nice Edge to OMG you just shook my world..
The problem is we never know what the next slate will bring, he might try another table and get something much less

This is the exact problem with many of the Slates out there, they are all over the place, ILR comes to mind, I have tested 6-7 of them over the years and no two are alike some are just not finisher grade..

This batch of 9-Ball slate as I call mine, is good, and I can recommend it

I am just now testing the HG slate, my first shave with one of my razors is here in a bit, from there I will send out a few edges to customers that are familiar with my edges so they can give feedback if my test shave went well
I am pretty picky as to what I send out, because my edges are Guaranteed, if I send one and they don't like that edge, I am obligated to re-hone for free

Anyway I hope that answered your questions as to how I rate them

"Finisher to be used" or "Goes in the bottom of the hone chest to get dusty" LOL

Thank you for the reply. I appreciate it. As I said I'm new to all of this and didn't know. All I currently have that I have used as a final stone on sharpening anything is an old barbers hone. Thanks again for the reply. I appreciate it a lot.

It’s on my work table when I return from a working vacation. Visiting some flea markets I have not been to since lockdown. Hoping for some new scores

Just arrived is a vintage extra fine metallic blue Pierrre La Lune, or a ‘Blue Moon’, yuk yuk. The modern purple ones are fine, fast, and smooth but the edges are a bit aggressive or ‘bitey’ to me so I wondered if a vintage stone was better. The blue extra fine was the recommended razor hone of that line and era. There’s allegedly an ‘extra fine’ stamp that can be seen if the light is just right, but I haven’t seen it yet, though there’s no doubt what the stone is.

It’s a small stone, 4-3/4 x 2-1/2” but La Lunes typically are so fast that they only need a few strokes to finish off a well prepped edge. So I prepped a Filarmonica 14 user to a Naniwa 12k finish, and gave ir 20 laps on the blue moon with undiluted glycerine, as the seller recommended. The edge was not bitey, so success!

Steve, thanks for the suggestion about using Smith’s honing oil with the 9 Ball Slate. I’ve been using Ballistol successfully, but am always interested in new options! Also, I’m interested in possibly picking up my first jnat finisher! I know you’re quite knowledgeable about jnats. What would you recommend for a first Jnat finisher?

I have the 0.85 and the 0.44 GS stones. I have mixed feelings about the 0.44. It seems like it generates some larger scratches then the grit rating indicate. It is really fast for it's grit rating. The 0.85 feels a little different. How do you use it for the best performance? Maybe some razors just can't handle this refinement, or only a few laps is needed.

If you’re seeing scratches, feel the surface for grit while honing and check the surface for pitting when dry. I had a bad 0.44. It shed large pieces that could be felt in the water and pits were visible in the surface. It would tear an edge up badly. The replacement(s) are fine.

I hone normally with it, usually 20-25 strokes. If the razor has problems try a layer of tape.

Good luck!

Steve

This one is on the way from Japan, 140 x 95. I don’t expect it to be this yellow, lol.

Hi - I got this stone some years ago and have used it with OK result (just OK, my fault I guess - not the stone). It is?? a japanese, stone, quite hard - the guy who sold it guessed about 13-16000.
It has got a small crack across - about 2/10mm - but if I hone at correct angle it does not seem to be a problem, the razor just slides over the crack. (the other line on the stone is just a line)
Questions: Anyone know what kind of stone it is (the marking 300mata.co.jp is not found on the internet)? and, should I, if so how - try to remove the crack?