Don't know. Haven't tried. Just spray some liquid cleaner on it and let it sit there for a while. Remember to use protective gear. That thing usually is not gentle on skin at all.
The Greatest Sharpening Stone in the World
- Thread starter cotedupy
- Start date
Help Support Kitchen Knife Forums:
Indeed, won't work with all oil stones.
No change with any Norton stones, even very fine surfaces were the same. I'll take a look in a couple of days to see what exactly is in it.
No change with any Norton stones, even very fine surfaces were the same. I'll take a look in a couple of days to see what exactly is in it.
KingShapton
Senior Member
That's what I used to think too... in the end I gave myself a lot more work due to my own lazyness and with bad results.
In the end I got tired of it and ordered a bottle of Simple Green - and after seeing the results I could have kicked myself for not ordering the Simple Green sooner!
Alternatively, it might be an idea to boil the stone to get the oil out...or just order a bottle of Simple Green
Skylar303
Wannabe Stone/Razor/Knife Enthusiasts
Double on the SG. I bought a gallon like 5 years ago, still have 1/5th left.
So I finally got motivated to start cleaning some India stones... I never took notice but these both are 7"? IB7? Both I believe were bought as a set used. I figured they were either IB6/8. (IB=India Bench?) Haven't really seen a 7". Maybe someone with more experience has seen them?
Start.
Some faded lettering on the medium.
Lefts definitely a medium, can see the stamp. I can only make out India on the other.
1st 24 hours.
2nd day.
I think the previous owner used vegetable oil or similar. The stones had a almost rancid smell which you wouldn't get with honing oil. And after the 1st soak they felt like they were coated in motor grease. Had to leave the brush in as well, as all the bristles were clogged with thick black gunk. SG cleaned it pretty good also just soaking. (FWIW)
That weird black spot looks like a gouge but it's just really concentrated oil or something... The nice Terracotta color in the medium is coming out nicely. But unfortunately I lost all the stamps on these stones, which doesn't usually happen in SG. Well in my experiences with it. Maybe due to the age and maybe the oil used made them come off?
So I finally got motivated to start cleaning some India stones... I never took notice but these both are 7"? IB7? Both I believe were bought as a set used. I figured they were either IB6/8. (IB=India Bench?) Haven't really seen a 7". Maybe someone with more experience has seen them?
Start.
Some faded lettering on the medium.
Lefts definitely a medium, can see the stamp. I can only make out India on the other.
1st 24 hours.
2nd day.
I think the previous owner used vegetable oil or similar. The stones had a almost rancid smell which you wouldn't get with honing oil. And after the 1st soak they felt like they were coated in motor grease. Had to leave the brush in as well, as all the bristles were clogged with thick black gunk. SG cleaned it pretty good also just soaking. (FWIW)
That weird black spot looks like a gouge but it's just really concentrated oil or something... The nice Terracotta color in the medium is coming out nicely. But unfortunately I lost all the stamps on these stones, which doesn't usually happen in SG. Well in my experiences with it. Maybe due to the age and maybe the oil used made them come off?
on some of these stones where household/cooking oils were used... in theory, that crap should be really hard to remove. oxidized, polymerized oil. shouldn't be very soluble anymore with soap. if you hit a road block, maybe try acetone soak?
Skylar303
Wannabe Stone/Razor/Knife Enthusiasts
Fresh out the bath. Too bad they lost all their stamps... But IB7? And a India Medium. So should have my bases covered. 
Skylar303
Wannabe Stone/Razor/Knife Enthusiasts
I'm getting around to de-greasing old stones. Found this old Norton inida combination. (Right) Still needs a clean but wasn't used much.
Noticed something interesting. Compared to the one I just cleaned. The fine side is a more fired Terracotta color than tan. (The fine side color is similar to the coarse side of the left stone) And the coarse side looks more like SiC. (Black) I believe the right one is older.
Noticed something interesting. Compared to the one I just cleaned. The fine side is a more fired Terracotta color than tan. (The fine side color is similar to the coarse side of the left stone) And the coarse side looks more like SiC. (Black) I believe the right one is older.
i finally got around to using mine, and i really like it.
i used it on a pocket knife that i've had trouble with.
i wrote about it some here:
https://www.kitchenknifeforums.com/threads/trouble-sharpening-spyderco-cts-xhp.56019/
basically, something about the short blade and the profile trips me up. i'm not great at sharpening anything, but i've had much better luck with kitchen knives.
i've tried several times with full sharpening progressions, and i could never get it consistently sharp all the way along the profile. i've been settling for an edge that cleanly slices printer paper along the flat part but then kinda snags from the belly to tip. i've just been living with that and stropping with diamond spray on leather to maintain it. i occasionally fully re-sharpen, but i've never gotten better results until now...
tonight, i felt inspired after re-reading my thread where i asked for help. i was looking carefully at the bevel, and i think @Steampunk was absolutely right:
the bevel actually did look kinda rounded. almost like a convex bevel. though i've picked up harder stones in the medium-fine/fine range since then, i didn't have a hard, coarse stone until now. only a 400 grit soft soaker.
this time, i really took my time. i put sharpie on that sucker every single time i flipped the knife over. sometimes even between passes on the same side.
i started with both sides of the india combo. the feedback i got out of it was actually pretty helpful. i could actually sort of feel when i was on the bevel i just created, and this was a first for me. it seemed to slide over the stone a little more smoothly when i was hitting the same angle.
then i went to my JKI diamond resinoid set (1k and then 6k). these are both quite hard as well.
at the end on the 6k, i was just barely moving the knife around on the stone and lightly polishing the bevel.
finished it up on diamond loaded leather strop.
kind of pathetic that after all that, i couldn't cut paper towel with it (have only achieved this with shirogami kitchen knife). but i COULD cleanly slice printer paper along any part of the profile, which is a first for me on this knife. good enough for a pocket knife anyways.
also, the bevel looks a bit flatter and crisper than my previous attempts.
i think this is the perfect extra-coarse/medium-coarse stone. using that and the JKI stones, i didn't even have to work in the sink. working at the table with a spray bottle is so much more ergonomic and much less messy.
i used it on a pocket knife that i've had trouble with.
i wrote about it some here:
https://www.kitchenknifeforums.com/threads/trouble-sharpening-spyderco-cts-xhp.56019/
basically, something about the short blade and the profile trips me up. i'm not great at sharpening anything, but i've had much better luck with kitchen knives.
i've tried several times with full sharpening progressions, and i could never get it consistently sharp all the way along the profile. i've been settling for an edge that cleanly slices printer paper along the flat part but then kinda snags from the belly to tip. i've just been living with that and stropping with diamond spray on leather to maintain it. i occasionally fully re-sharpen, but i've never gotten better results until now...
tonight, i felt inspired after re-reading my thread where i asked for help. i was looking carefully at the bevel, and i think @Steampunk was absolutely right:
the bevel actually did look kinda rounded. almost like a convex bevel. though i've picked up harder stones in the medium-fine/fine range since then, i didn't have a hard, coarse stone until now. only a 400 grit soft soaker.
this time, i really took my time. i put sharpie on that sucker every single time i flipped the knife over. sometimes even between passes on the same side.
i started with both sides of the india combo. the feedback i got out of it was actually pretty helpful. i could actually sort of feel when i was on the bevel i just created, and this was a first for me. it seemed to slide over the stone a little more smoothly when i was hitting the same angle.
then i went to my JKI diamond resinoid set (1k and then 6k). these are both quite hard as well.
at the end on the 6k, i was just barely moving the knife around on the stone and lightly polishing the bevel.
finished it up on diamond loaded leather strop.
kind of pathetic that after all that, i couldn't cut paper towel with it (have only achieved this with shirogami kitchen knife). but i COULD cleanly slice printer paper along any part of the profile, which is a first for me on this knife. good enough for a pocket knife anyways.
also, the bevel looks a bit flatter and crisper than my previous attempts.
i think this is the perfect extra-coarse/medium-coarse stone. using that and the JKI stones, i didn't even have to work in the sink. working at the table with a spray bottle is so much more ergonomic and much less messy.
i finally got around to using mine, and i really like it.
i used it on a pocket knife that i've had trouble with.
i wrote about it some here:
https://www.kitchenknifeforums.com/threads/trouble-sharpening-spyderco-cts-xhp.56019/
basically, something about the short blade and the profile trips me up. i'm not great at sharpening anything, but i've had much better luck with kitchen knives.
i've tried several times with full sharpening progressions, and i could never get it consistently sharp all the way along the profile. i've been settling for an edge that cleanly slices printer paper along the flat part but then kinda snags from the belly to tip. i've just been living with that and stropping with diamond spray on leather to maintain it. i occasionally fully re-sharpen, but i've never gotten better results until now...
tonight, i felt inspired after re-reading my thread where i asked for help. i was looking carefully at the bevel, and i think @Steampunk was absolutely right:
the bevel actually did look kinda rounded. almost like a convex bevel. though i've picked up harder stones in the medium-fine/fine range since then, i didn't have a hard, coarse stone until now. only a 400 grit soft soaker.
this time, i really took my time. i put sharpie on that sucker every single time i flipped the knife over. sometimes even between passes on the same side.
i started with both sides of the india combo. the feedback i got out of it was actually pretty helpful. i could actually sort of feel when i was on the bevel i just created, and this was a first for me. it seemed to slide over the stone a little more smoothly when i was hitting the same angle.
then i went to my JKI diamond resinoid set (1k and then 6k). these are both quite hard as well.
at the end on the 6k, i was just barely moving the knife around on the stone and lightly polishing the bevel.
finished it up on diamond loaded leather strop.
kind of pathetic that after all that, i couldn't cut paper towel with it (have only achieved this with shirogami kitchen knife). but i COULD cleanly slice printer paper along any part of the profile, which is a first for me on this knife. good enough for a pocket knife anyways.
also, the bevel looks a bit flatter and crisper than my previous attempts.
i think this is the perfect extra-coarse/medium-coarse stone. using that and the JKI stones, i didn't even have to work in the sink. working at the table with a spray bottle is so much more ergonomic and much less messy.
I find sharpening pocket knives incredibly difficult as well, and no idea what I'm doing wrong.
I like to think I'm ok at kitchen knife sharpening, understand how bevels and geometry works, and I can hone a razor pretty acceptably now too. But pocket / EDC knives I'm completely lost on!
My guess are problems that people who are used to sharpening kitchen knives run into with pocket knives are mainly 2, maybe 3 things.
Size. Probably the biggest difference. A pocket knife is obviously much smaller. The movements going from tip to heel happen in a much short period of time. Meaning the raising of the handle to get the proper contact near the tip, then lowering it again to sharpen the rest of the knife.
Steel. Pocket knives tend to have a much bigger variety of steel. This obviously depends on the knife, the maker, and about a million other variables. But many pocket knife makers aren't afraid to use steels with much higher wear resistance.
Blade shape. The variation in blade shape is also much bigger from knife to knife. Different grinds, different factors to deal with. Like plunge grinds. Getting a pocket knife sharpened all the way to the plunge is something that isn't even thought about with a Japanese kitchen knife. Because there are no plunge grinds.
Even with all 3 of these things combined. It doesn't mean anyone in particular shouldn't be able to sharpen a pocket knife. These things need to properly be taken into account, and honestly just practice. Go buy a super cheap pocket knife that you don't care about sharpening away, and sharpen it over and over until you get just as good as you are with a gyuto. And the weirder the shape of the knife the better.
One thing I've done with various types of blades (like tools, knives, whatever) I buy one of them just so I can have something to give myself some kind of experience with.
Size. Probably the biggest difference. A pocket knife is obviously much smaller. The movements going from tip to heel happen in a much short period of time. Meaning the raising of the handle to get the proper contact near the tip, then lowering it again to sharpen the rest of the knife.
Steel. Pocket knives tend to have a much bigger variety of steel. This obviously depends on the knife, the maker, and about a million other variables. But many pocket knife makers aren't afraid to use steels with much higher wear resistance.
Blade shape. The variation in blade shape is also much bigger from knife to knife. Different grinds, different factors to deal with. Like plunge grinds. Getting a pocket knife sharpened all the way to the plunge is something that isn't even thought about with a Japanese kitchen knife. Because there are no plunge grinds.
Even with all 3 of these things combined. It doesn't mean anyone in particular shouldn't be able to sharpen a pocket knife. These things need to properly be taken into account, and honestly just practice. Go buy a super cheap pocket knife that you don't care about sharpening away, and sharpen it over and over until you get just as good as you are with a gyuto. And the weirder the shape of the knife the better.
One thing I've done with various types of blades (like tools, knives, whatever) I buy one of them just so I can have something to give myself some kind of experience with.
Last edited:
It's not in your head, sharpening pocket knives is a total pain in the ass compared to kitchen knives!
I was given a Norton oil stone when I was a boy after I got my first pocketknife. I have mine around here some place.
What I was taught is to sharpen to the curve of the knife around 20 degrees in slices. There is no back and forth sharpening and no thinning.
A powered WorkSharp is the fastest or belt system.
The aha moment for me was when I realized just how axe like the grind on most of these things is. I do thin them gradually the same as I would a kitchen knife. But I don't go all the way down to zero grind / raising a burr because I convex the cutting bevels a bit intentionally. So I thin a little every year or two with back and forth scrubbing strokes. Then I keep them sharp by doing long sweeping strokes. No back and forth. And the actual cutting angle is really high like @coxhaus said. 35-40 degrees inclusive. I think a lot of the problem people have is they just aren't making it to the apex. Especially near the tip if they aren't lifting their elbow enough like @jwthaparc said above.
I will say. I actually do thin my pocket knives too, depending on the grind. which is why I really like spyderco's. I mean, you call it regrinding, but its really just the same thing.
Anyway, since these knives are in steels like maxamet, and k390 (mine specifically are). I'll take them, and do all the thinning on my belt sander. Plus it allows me to maintain a similar look on the plunge grind. I personally like my pocket knives almost just as thin as my kitchen knives. I never use them to chop anything just cut stuff. So a thinner grind is better for me.
Also not insignificant: The substantially wider bevel means more time grinding since your surface area has increased more than you'd think. This equates to proportionally less pressure, and less grinding power over time. Makes angle consistency tougher too.
Desert Rat
Senior Member
I picked up a India coarse fine combo a few weeks ago. It was so dirty I couldn't tell what it was. It's badly glazed and I'm having a hell of a time getting it to open back up.
Is there a source for cheap diamond plates at least 2"x 8"?
I did pick up some 80 grit sic powder yesterday so I will see how that goes.
Is there a source for cheap diamond plates at least 2"x 8"?
I did pick up some 80 grit sic powder yesterday so I will see how that goes.
Chef knifes to go has one that is passable for pretty cheap.
It'll give you one hell of a combo edge.
80 grit will probably work fine. If not I bought some 36 grit sic powder, and that stuff works on even the coarsest stones.
The only problem is I haven't found a surface the 36 grit wont eat through, and make not flat in a relatively short time.
I've never used the shapton 4k. I think you could go from the fine india to a suehiro rika and have a nice edge. If that helps answer the question?
Yes it is.
I’d be doing this on super coarse SiC rather than diamond tbh, concrete might work even better. Or even a metal rasp / file.
Indias are frightenly hard in terms of their composition, and whatever you do it’d need to be at heavy pressure on something coarse.
Give it a good squirt with oven cleaner, let it sit for ten minutes, and then scrub it with a wire brush. Give it a wash with dish soap to get the oven cleaner off, and you should be good to apply new oil and use it.
Wouldn't that ruin the file, or rasp?
Yeah might do. Perhaps best to use the kind of beaten up old rusty one that seem to be everywhere for about $1.
The reason I suggested that is because I understand they're meant to be made out of extremely high hardness steel (?)
I mean. It could work possibly. I've never tried it.
I believe they're either just very hard high carbon steels that havent been tempered down. Or they're just case hardened. Depending on who made it
did you make any progress? just curious
