Carborundum Sharpening Stone

Trent Rock

Trent Rock

Joined
Jun 29, 2007
Messages
4,698
I picked up a Carborundum Company (Niagara Falls,NY) sharpening stone at an estate sale yesterday
On one end of the box it says:
110

7X2x1
Combination

S?0 (It's hard to read the number)
Click to expand...
Is the number 110 the grit number?
What does combination mean?

The box looks like this one
324224150_tp.jpg


What are the advantages of a Carborundum stone?
Disadvantages?
It is some form of silicon impregnated material??
I had never heard of Carborundum until yesterday:o

Seems like every estate sale I go to I end up picking up a "vintage" sharpening stone
I beginning to worry I am gonna start collecting them!!!:eek:
 
Carborundum, or silicon-carbide, runs 9.5 on the Mohs scale, where diamond, the hardest substance on earth, runs a 10. 66 HRC knife blades (the hardest I've seen) are about a 6.5 on the Mohs scale. Should be a very fast cutter for whatever grit it is.
 
Hi,

Yeah it's silicon carbide. Carborundum just an older term for it. They were normally just listed as coarse, medium, and fine.

dalee
 
Thread moved to maintenance forum.
 
Upon further inspection
It is has TWO coarses
One on each side
Now the combination part makes sense
I'll try out some knives on the fine side
 
dalee100 said:
Hi,

Yeah it's silicon carbide. Carborundum just an older term for it. They were normally just listed as coarse, medium, and fine.

dalee
Click to expand...

The carborundum company invented the process for making it, sometime about the turn of the 20th century. It's still widely used as an abrasive: most sandpapers use it, as do most of the cheap combination stones (the sort sold at the hardware store for $5 or so.) it's also used in better stones, too.

If the material are properly graded, they make fine sharpeners. Cheap ones tend to suffer from inclusions of larger bits, or areas of finer grit. the fine side on these isn't terribly fine, though, usually.
 
Some of the off brand names who offer those stones are of low quality . The one you have and others from Norton are good quality . The coarse is usually 100 grit and great for rebeveling and sharpening very worn knives . The fine should be close to 280 grit and is a good starting spot when sharpening a dull knife . Norton names theirs "crystalline" but it is the SiC . They are an agressive cutter and sharpens quick because of the binding agents . If you use them alot in 2-3yrs. they will dish and need to be flattened. Good find and I hope you enjoy them . DM
 
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I have a few old Carborundum stones which I inherited from my dad and my uncle. They had been used with oil, but I soaked them in household ammonia for a couple weeks, and they now work just fine with water. They cut very well, and I use them exclusively for harder steels, such as D2, and for rebeveling, although I prefer the Sharpmaker for almost everything else.
 
silicon carbide has sharpened many cutting tools for many generations for a long time.i sharpened the tools 4 a few wood shops,gouges,lathe tools,chisels and knives and scissors.all i had was a carborundum 6" stone for many years.
 
I was wondering if the type of stone dictated what type of lubricant you must use. I also inherited a Carborundum. Can I use water with this? One website lead me to think I needed to use oil with this stone.
 
Yes, you can use it with H2O. I would use it with soapy water or mineral oil. Those are good stones. DM
 
When I was a kid in the boy scouts, the old Carborundum stones were pretty much all we had. They were pretty much all anyone used in those days. If used right, they will put a very good edge on a wide variety of cutting tools. A few years ago, I was rooting around in the attic and found a box of stuff from my childhood. Among the stuff was some of my old scout things and my "official" boy scout stone. JUst for yuks I sharpened a few knives with it just for old times sake. I was surprised at how well it still worked. Then I remembered how our scout master had coached us in sharpening our scout knives so they would shave. After the stone, I stropped on the back of an old Dickies work belt, and the blade shaved. Oh, and I use it dry. JUst brush it off when done.

The old carborundum stone still works good!:thumb up:

14211539277_6e5e6c318e_z.jpg
 
Ditto, on using it with water (or better, with water + dish detergent). I've used my Norton Economy stone (silicon carbide) with dish detergent like Palmolive or whatever; works well, and cleanup is an obvious breeze afterward. I use mine near a sink with the soapy water, and periodically 'dunk' the stone in it. Rinse it out with some hot water and let it dry. Keeps the stone looking and working like it's brand new, with no clogging at all. And depending on the dish soap used, it'll even smell nice & fresh.

{ Edited on Jan. 22, 2019 - My opinions have changed with time & use. I now favor using such stones with mineral oil, as the oil does better, longer-term, in keeping the stone from clogging or glazing, which keeps it cutting more consistently. Much less cleaning or resurfacing needed, this way. }


David
 
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Corundum (Al2O3) stones work well for most steels. Carborundum (SiC) stones were developed to sharpen Tungsten Carbide Tool bits at 72 HRC (Hardness Rockwell C scale). So Silicon Carbide is harder than Aluminum Oxide (India stones).
 
Yes, they are but slight. Plus, the grit structure of these two are different, so they cut different and wear different. Which do you like. I have both and enjoy using both at times.
 
Many many years ago, I read a little book by John Juranitch called The Razor Edge Book Of Knife Sharpening. It was an eye opener in that he blew up many myths of the so called art. One of them was the oil/water on the stone thing. John was a dry sharpener, and I started to do that, and it was really amazing. Sharpening stones actually work just as well dry as wet, and in some cases actually better. The one big thing you are doing is making a mess that is totally unnecessary. If you use your stone dry, then just dust it off when you are done. Simple as that.

There's so much bull hockey spread around generation after generation that it would be funny if it were not so sad. People love to complicate things when it it not needed. Don't make rocket science out of frying an egg. Try dry sharpening. You may be surprised.
 
Using it dry is something one should try. The silicon carbide seem to tolerate this a lot better than most AlumOx and it is easy in a pinch - seems to depend on the manufacture and how the stone has been bonded together. Rinsing the stone with water often is a big help as well. In my own experience this only works well on touchups, otherwise the stone will plug and glaze over time if used for more serious grinding - there's a reason Norton and others sell inexpensive honing oil.
That said, give it a try.

Everyone that sharpens tools should have a combination SiC stone in their inventory - it is the AK47 of sharpening gear.

I've wondered about the Niagara Falls Carborundum company and whether it was located there for the early AC hydroelectric generated at the falls. IIRC it takes a wallop of juice to make SIC. Under magnification one can usually spot pieces of clear, blue and green glass in the stone, but I have no idea if this is left over from being turned into silicon carbide or if its introduced after the fact in a regular kiln to hold the bits together.
 
Jackknife, I have that book and have read it and refer to it at times. That said, I don't agree with some of John's findings. I do agree with Heavy that this stone will glaze over from sharpening with dry use. Using oil keeps it clean. Nor do I sling oil all around the counter making a mess. I don't even put down paper under the stone to catch oil. Not one drop anywhere except on the stone. Wheres this huge mess folks keep talking about that occurs when using mineral oil on a sharpening stone? DM
 
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