Did you reverse that or is that what you meant? To me it appears more mottled on the far end. The end near the camera appears homogenous in color.
As a 2 stone challenge, is a Washita the best initial stone or should one be looking for a vintage soft Arkansas. I suppose a Washita can make the edge finer so you save time on the finisher but I am just talking the fastest at re-establishing a bezel. If a Washita is quicker than soft, what end of that stone you pictured would be what i would want to look for in a stone? (again, as a prelim stone, something you'd use like a 1,000 grit artificial)
I think i have one of those combo hones you were referring to and it seems to give a finer edge that a white Ark slipstone i have. That white really is a lot more agressive than I was expecting. I did not think a Hard Arkansas would make much if any swarf but it was not too dissimilar from a artificial waterstone.
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Is that type of case what you were referring to as a combo hone? I have seen an identical one but with green felt sold as a Norton Washita/India combo. Mine has no markings to indicate that.
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These thinner stones tend to be inferior? I was going to sell it here but will put it on the bay if it is not a good representation of a Washita.
And Pike had the best Washitas, did they also have the best hard Arkansasseses? That slipstone and another hard white Arkansas i have are labeled Pike, Norton, and Behr-Manning; all on the same label.
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Are stones with this label a good vintage? Incidentally, The one to the left was owned by a R.H. Weaver.
Is the plaster of Paris so that you can bear down on the stone without fear of cracking it? The case of the above Washita only supports the stone about an eighth of an inch around the perimeter. That is one thing i like about these stones is that you can use extreme pressure with no fear of gouging them if you make a mistake.