Very Coarse Crystolon / Siox Stones Guzzling Up Oil?

[Luke Dupont]

I have a few coarse synthetic stones that, if I put oil on, instantly soak it right up and become bone dry. This is even after having put quite a lot of oil on the stones hoping they would eventually fill up.

I did soak these stones to remove the old oil when I got them. Do I need to soak them once more in oil to prevent this, or is this just a characteristic of really coarse stones? Would thicker mineral oil work best for this?

[Stewie Simpson]

Luke; did you mean to say Coarse Crystolon / Alox Stones.

Stewie;

[Patrick Chase]

I have a few coarse synthetic stones that, if I put oil on, instantly soak it right up and become bone dry. This is even after having put quite a lot of oil on the stones hoping they would eventually fill up.

I did soak these stones to remove the old oil when I got them. Do I need to soak them once more in oil to prevent this, or is this just a characteristic of really coarse stones? Would thicker mineral oil work best for this?

Err, what did you soak them in?

Synthetic stones are porous, and the manufacturers "fill" them with petroleum jelly when they're made to prevent them from soaking up oil as you describe. It sounds as though somebody soaked those stones in a solvent at some point, and dissolved that fill.

The usual recommendation in this situation is to boil the stones in Vaseline, in your oven (I am not joking). Mineral oil won't do much since it will run right back out. You need something that's runny enough to impregnate the stones but that thickens enough to stay there once you're done. Hot Vaseline fits the bill. Just be very careful when you do it.

[Luke Dupont]

Luke; did you mean to say Coarse Crystolon / Alox Stones.

Stewie;

Not sure what they are, honestly. They're not like the India stones that I've used.
One is less porous and a lighter grey. The other is darker and coarser.
Both are somewhat more reminiscent of the cheap grey dollar stones you'll find, though the darker one is less so.
I'm still not entirely sure what is what when it comes to synthetic oil-stones.

[Patrick Chase]

Not sure what they are, honestly. They're not like the India stones that I've used.
One is less porous and a lighter grey. The other is darker and coarser.
Both are somewhat more reminiscent of the cheap grey dollar stones you'll find, though the darker one is less so.
I'm still not entirely sure what is what when it comes to synthetic oil-stones.

Those are probably Crystolons (Silicon Carbide). Do they look like the 2 sides of this combo stone: https://www.amazon.com/Norton-Crysto.../dp/B0001MSA5Y

[Luke Dupont]

I soaked them in warm water with dishwashing detergent. I think there may have been degreaser as well? The stones were covered in old oil/gunk, so...

Yikes. That sounds like quite a bit of trouble, and a bit expensive. Thanks, though. I may give it a try, I guess. Weighing the effort vs reward, as these were just part of a batch of cheap second hand stones that I picked up.

[Luke Dupont]

Those are probably Crystolons (Silicon Carbide). Do they look like the 2 sides of this combo stone: https://www.amazon.com/Norton-Crysto.../dp/B0001MSA5Y

Yep. They're in a different shape, granted; the coarse one is in a typical 3/4"x2"x6" shape, where as the medium coarse/lighter one is in a 1"x1"x6" block, for knife sharpening, I assume.

I did pick up a cheap Silicon Carbide stone before, and whilst I don't think I tried it with oil, I remember that it soaked up water like a sponge as well. It was the first sharpening stone I bought, and I quickly abandoned it as it just filled up with swarf and wasn't flat to begin with. Was thinking of giving these a try again with oil now - but I don't have my old stone to compare to, just these.

So, as I understand it, Fine and Medium India stones are Aluminum Oxide. These grey stones / Crystolons are Silicon Carbide. And Coarse India Stones are...?

[Stewie Simpson]

Hi Luke; the following may be of assistance. https://www.sharpeningsupplies.com/W...Stone-W67.aspx

https://www.sharpeningsupplies.com/W...arse-W171.aspx

Lubricate the stone

For efficient sharpening, lubricating the stone with oil is efficient to float away metal and abrasive dust that will otherwise clog up and neutralize the stone. Norton Oil, specially formulated for sharpening stones, makes every stone work better to do a more efficient job.

Most Norton India and Crystolon stones are pre-filled with lubricating oil at the factory-a unique Norton quality feature that lets you put the stone to work right away without pre-soaking. Even with oil pre-filling, be sure to apply lubricant every time the stone is used- it's vital to continued good stone performance. http://www.knifecenter.com/info/sharpening-with-norton

Stewie;

[bridger berdel]

Vaseline isn't expensive. I have toyed with the ides of filling a cheap stone with parraffin wax, just to see how it performs.

[Patrick Chase]

Vaseline isn't expensive. I have toyed with the ides of filling a cheap stone with parraffin wax, just to see how it performs.

You'd have to get it hotter than Vaseline to saturate the stone, and it might have more tendency to load or "gunk up" the surface during subsequent use. The beauty of Vaseline is that it's basically the least viscous petroleum product that will stay in the stone, so it has a minimal impact on subsequent use and lubrication.

[Stewie Simpson]

All sharpening stones should be lubricated while in use, so the pores can float off and not clog the pores of the stone. Special honing oil is available, but kerosene works very well as a lubricant. In an emergency, even water may be used as a lubricant. If a stone cuts too rapidly, it can be tempered by soaking it in a pan of hot petroleum jelly, filling the pores of the stone with a thick lubricant. If the pores have been filled due to improper lubrication, clean your stone by soaking it in kerosene, then wash off the surface with a brush soaked in kerosene. This technique can even be used to reclaim almost worthless old stones that most people would consider useless or have already discarded! http://www.endtimesreport.com/preservationoils.html

[Patrick Chase]

If a stone cuts too rapidly, it can be tempered by soaking it in a pan of hot petroleum jelly, filling the pores of the stone with a thick lubricant.

There are a couple problems with that quotation:

1. Norton at least pre-fills their stones with petroleum jelly at the factory, as mentioned in the quotation you previously posted in #8. By soaking in hot Vaseline you're just restoring that, not "tempering" (at least relative to factory condition).

2. Vaseline does indeed fill the pores, but it isn't thick enough to materially slow honing. Try smearing some on the surface of a stone, wiping off the excess such that it's in the surface pores but not on the surface, putting some of your usual lubricant on the stone, and honing. I've done this with a Crystolon and I couldn't tell any difference (perhaps because the stone was already full of petroleum jelly).

[Stewie Simpson]

Patrick; if you re-read #8, I made no mention of Norton using petroleum jelly to prefill their stones. My quote came direct from the Norton Website.

Most Norton India and Crystolon stones are pre-filled with lubricating oil at the factory-a unique Norton quality feature that lets you put the stone to work right away without pre-soaking.

http://www.knifecenter.com/info/sharpening-with-Norton

I have no idea where you source most of the information you post.

It cant all be from practical experience.

Stewie;

[Warren Mickley]

I have the box from a Carborundum stone my father bought around 1950. The directions on the box say:

If stone cuts too rapidly, temper by soaking the stone in a pan of hot petroleum jelly, filling the pores of the stone.

I remember asking my father what "temper" meant around 1960. The Carborundum Co. silicon carbide stones predated Norton's Crystolon stones by about twenty years. Forty years ago the Carborundum stones were a little softer and cut more rapidly than Crystolon. Today Carborundum and Norton are both owned by St. Gobain.

[Patrick Chase]

Patrick; if you re-read #8, I made no mention of Norton using petroleum jelly to prefill their stones. My quote came direct from the Norton Website.

http://www.knifecenter.com/info/sharpening-with-Norton

I have no idea where you source most of the information you post.

It cant all be from practical experience.

Stewie;

Petroleum jelly is "an oil", so the quote you posted partially supports what I said, though I was admittedly more specific than it.

I don't remember where I heard that Norton uses a petroleum jelly to be honest as it was many years ago. It can't be mineral oil or else it would just run out for exactly the same reason that Luke's oil keeps disappearing, so it has to be a grease, jelly, or wax. I have in fact tried the simple experiment I suggested, the first time I was trying to decide whether to fill a stone that was soaking up oil. You should try it too - there's no need to wonder about how much vaseline will "slow" your stone's cutting when you can quickly test it.

Since you seem to be the final arbiter of all that is true, what are they using to prefill their stones?