Can/should water be used on an Arkansas stone?

M

mrapino

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Aug 21, 2014
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Do you think it is a mistake to use water on Arkansas stone at any time? I have been told that water is not a good Arkansas stone lubricant because the stones will clog.

I want to use these stones as part of a backpack trail kit, and I may not have access to oil at some point when I need to use the stones.

I'd like to use the stones the same way all the time, so my thinking was that if I use water (which is found in nature), I don't have to worry that I can't use water on a stone that has already been saturated with oil.

What is your take on this? Can I efficiently and effectively use water on my Arkansas stone for the life of my stones? Will using water somehow ruin the stone, or shorten their life?

Any info on this topic would be helpful, so I can decide how to best proceed.

Cheers!
 
I use water on Arkansas stones. I prefer winded or water with a bit of dish soap but plain water works as long as the stone has not been used with oil before. Try it and let us know. If it loads up no problem the stone isn't ruined just scrub out the swarf with comet or something or lap the stone. Arkansas stones are a naturally occurring stone. Which means they were at one time outside. If they couldn't get wet.... :-)
 
I've been using water and a bit of dish soap for 25 years. Even better is a bit of Mr. Clean with the water. My granddad used to get old Arkansas stones and soak them in kerosene to get the old clogged oil out so he could use water and soap.
 
Thanks guys! Now, have any of you ever used your Arkansas stones with oil? Can you talk about a comparison between water/soapy water, and oil in terms of the speed that the stone gets clogged?

As an example, from my research, it seems as though if you use oil, and wipe the stone after using it with some additional oil, the stone stays very clean and doesn't get clogged.

Is this the same with water/soapy water? If I wash the stone or wipe the stone off with additional water after every use, will that prevent clogging, or does it happen faster than with oil?

Cheers!
 
Yes, by using oil my edges are a step finer than with water. Plus, the stone cleans easier as you found. I think the stone clogs faster with water than with oil. DM
 
I use oil, over time my Arkansas all seem to glaze a bit if used with water, though occasional use is no problem. A drop of dishsoap in the water lets it be used over an oil stone without having to degrease it first.

I used to carry a small bottle of mineral oil when backpacking - serves double duty as cutting oil on a sharpening stone, and a drop on a cotton ball or piece of unraveled natural rope makes a good fire starter.
 
After a bunch of research and discussion, my opinion as a newb to sharpening, for what it is worth:

1.) Yes, oil may be messy, however, dirty swarf water is probably messy, too. Also, if you're not sharpening like a maniac, oil probably isn't much messier that dirty water with suspended metal shavings, etc.
2.) Since oil is thicker than water, it won't be as runny, which probably makes it easier to wipe up.
3.) You're only supposed to use a small amount of oil anyway, and that's makes you mobile, so you don't have to hover over a sink.
4.) I like HeavyHanded's backpacking hack. Plus, if you use a food grade oil, it make it that much better!
5.) Too much research and discussion KILLS forward momentum, so I am going to choose the path of least resistance. From what I can gather from all of this, BOTH oil and water are fine, but oil has the added benefit of not clogging your stone as fast, if at all, which eliminates the added step of having to unclog and clean your stone over and over again, when you could be putting another razor edge on one of your favorite cutting tools.

All in all, I'm glad I did the research, and I am glad I got to discuss it with you fine folks, but I think I am going to go with oil.

Also, if I change my mind after a while, boiling your stone is all it takes to reset to zero and start again with water (from what I have gleaned).

Thanks for the discussion, and I'd love to hear everyone's thoughts on all of this.

Honestly, at the end of the day, there is such a thing as beating a dead horse :-)

Thanks!!
 
I use water with a drop of dish washing soap. Works great for me and produces a very sharp edge. For cleanup I just scrub the stones with an old tooth brush under running water, let them dry and they are ready for the next time.
 
I am going to bring this back up top because I have a question.

I am trying my hand at freehand sharpening using an Arkansas stone. During the summer months I spend a lot of time down at the coast fishing. Just curious, could salt water be used as a lubricating media? Would the salt have a negative effect?

I know this is a weird question but my inquiring mind wants to know. Thanks!
 
If water didn't evaporate so fast where I live (southwestern U.S.), I'd likely be more inclined to use it on my stones. A thin film of water dries too fast on the stone's surface, which means the stone begins to clog almost immediately when it dries. Hence, I've settled into using mineral oil instead, if only for this reason. That being said, I have no complaints about using the oil at all, aside from the extra bit of cleaning up that's necessary afterwards, and the added expense of the oil itself. It does a very good job keeping the stone from loading up and clogging; I've even started to use it on diamond hones, for this reason.


David
 
armytxn said:
I am going to bring this back up top because I have a question.

I am trying my hand at freehand sharpening using an Arkansas stone. During the summer months I spend a lot of time down at the coast fishing. Just curious, could salt water be used as a lubricating media? Would the salt have a negative effect?

I know this is a weird question but my inquiring mind wants to know. Thanks!
Click to expand...

it will clog faster with water, when your stone clogs up it doesn't work anymore.

oilstones have a stronger binder that doesnt release the abrasive as fast during use so the metal shavings end up clogging the pores unless the lubricant can break up the surface tension of the water such as soapy water ( surfactant) or oil that helps float the swarf away.

waterstones have softer binder that works with water, the oil or surfactant will not work or is just less effective with that stone type.

The world won't explode if you use water on your oilstone its just not as efficient.
 
Water is the ONLY thing I will use on mine. I started out with oil stones. I'm just a water stone person. I spend most all my time on Shapton Pros. That said most of the steel I sharpen is not particularly rust crazy. Some of the o1 steel blades people have or similar plain carbon steel, that will rust while you stare at it. Rinse it under hot water, dry it and it is quite rusty. Sharpeing that stuff, I suppose, is a good argument for using kerosene rather than water, etc.

As far as clogging the stone that is the least of my worries. Most of the stuff I sharpen is so danged hard / alloyed that it makes the stone smoothed over and I have to dress the stone on diamond or on silicon oxide grit to get the stone cutting again. That'll "unclog it" sure. Second photo is a taste of what happens / stone smoothed and not cutting well. See the shiny area. The whole stone gets like that.

One warning : water in the stone can freeze and crack the stone or cause it to flake. "Oil" . . . kerosene or other sharpening fluid won't.



 
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Diamond hones work better in the field. You can use them dry. They also work on high carbide super steels (S30V, etc.).
 
Ok. Im a newbie on knife sharpener world and I'm learning a lot here, thanks guys. I just bought a arkansas stone, alittle one with 4 inch. I oiled it and was trying with an old scratch knife. My questions is about stone cleaning. I use in my every day sharpen a corborundum that I believe is 120/320 with water and it's easy to clean each use. How do I clean a oiled stone after each use or just to take out metal particles? Today I was watching a Cliffs video about it and try use oil on carborundum. Look like the stone wear out a little bit less than using with water, but the stone was clog quickly, than I wash it. I know it's not indicated but was the way to unclog it and keep going. Before to start I drop a lot of oil on one surface, wait for oil deep into stone until almost get out the other side. What amI doing wrong?
 
I keep a spray bottle of water and a squirt bottle of mineral and use both on my many Arkansas stones for 40+ years. I try both and see which works best in a particular situation.

Also, there are many grades of Arkansas stones at a range of prices, so you can't assume one is comparing the same sharpening experience by default.
 
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