Franz Swaty stone, what do I have here???

S

Simple Man

Joined
Nov 6, 2001
Messages
2,558
Over the years, I have inherited several stones from both of my grandfathers, of all the stones, this one is one that has some identifying marks and also happens to be the one I use most. With this and an old leather belt used for a strop, I can get a fairly good edge on most of my knives. (It feels like a better edge that Spyderco ships their knives with, but I could very well be dreaming.) It get the best edge with my VG-10 Endura with a couple other AUS-8 Spydies close behind.

The text on the stone is this;

FRANZ SWATY
WAHRING BEI WIEN
(AUSTRIA)

My questions:
What do I have here?
What do I do to get the best performance from it?
What grit could it be?(it's quite smooth)
Anything about it's history would be great.

Recently, I have cleaned it real well and have been using it dry, that seems to work best for me.

11057024.jpg


11057027.jpg


11057030.jpg


Thanks
 
Hi,

What you have there is a really cool:) Straight razor hone. I don't know about the company's history, but their very well thought of. Most comparisions of these these stones I have read liken them to the Hard Ark. type of stone. I believe they were to be used sans oil.

Very nice condition on your's, usually there all busted up because of mishandling over the years.


HTH:D:).
 
Just a few more questions.
Is there any reason not to use it to sharpen my folders?
Is stroping really necessary? The edge actually feels sharper before I strop it, but I figured that was more or less a wire edge and would not hold up.
 
The Swaty hone is made from an artificial abrasive rather than a natural stone. They are well respected in straight razor circles. If you do too much sharpening (remove too much material) with a fine hone at a fixed low angle (either with a steady hand or using a blade guide) you may get a wire edge. I would not simply assume that you are getting a wire edge.

Stropping can make your edge feel duller either by removing a wire edge or by smoothing the edge. Either way you can probably assume you don't have a wire edge when you are done. If you go back and hone edge-first alternating sides for only a FEW strokes after stropping you will not create a wire edge. You will slightly roughen the edge and may make the edge a little sharper. It will probably cut better for most purposes. If an edge honed after stropping stays sharp longer than an edge that has never been stropped you may have a tendency to get wire edges with your hone. If there is no difference you can probably skip the strop in the future.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top