New Black Ark. From Natural Whetstone Co. (Help Identify)

NORTHWEST_KNIFE_GUY

NORTHWEST_KNIFE_GUY

Joined
Jul 14, 2017
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586
So I picked up an 8"x3" X1" black Ark from NWC, I have heard varying opinions about them and decided to give them a try after a few back and forth emails. The person I spoke with said "stone has a density of 2.30-2.45 with a grit ranging from 800-1200" and is a "true Arkansas Black Hard". Now I didn't figure it would be anything like my Dan's or other older surgical blacks I have (maybe somewhere inbetween a hard ark and surgical black), the stone when it arrived had a light coat of oil and needed leveling badly (not really usable) it was so out of whack. I went through a large amount of 60/90 and 120 grit SIC on glass and was getting nowhere in a hurry, so I then broke out a DMT coarse plate and proceeded to kill it along with my neck, back and shoulders over the next two plus hours. I then finished with an ultrasharp 300 diamond plate, very flat and a nice smooth finish that leaves a really keen edge on my kitchen knives and wood working tools. The stone bare is a darker gray color kinda similar to my Dan's hard ark's with no oil or water however gets jet black with oil. I've had a lot of Ark's over the years but none that I can remember with a surface like this. Keep in mind the stone has a light coat of plain old mineral oil in the pics.

Any thought's? Maybe a Dunston black?


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I do not believe that stone is novaculite, I think it’s most likely the Dunsten. Thing is there is no way of knowing just where manufacturers source their stones. It’s been like that for as long as mines have been operating. More mines than there are manufacturers and its proprietary information.
 
garry3 said:
I do not believe that stone is novaculite, I think it’s most likely the Dunsten. Thing is there is no way of knowing just where manufacturers source their stones. It’s been like that for as long as mines have been operating. More mines than there are manufacturers and its proprietary information.
Click to expand...

Thanks, kinda what I was thinking too.
 
NORTHWEST_KNIFE_GUY said:
So I picked up an 8"x3" X1" black Ark from NWC, I have heard varying opinions about them and decided to give them a try after a few back and forth emails. The person I spoke with said "stone has a density of 2.30-2.45 with a grit ranging from 800-1200" and is a "true Arkansas Black Hard".
Click to expand...

I have no idea what this stone could be. It looks like a Hard Black stone. What I know about Arkansas stones (I have several) is, that the given density does not fit. 2.30 to 2.45 with a grit ranging from 800 to 1200 is a Hard Arkansas stone. A Hard Black (or true black) is 2.50+ and has a grit about 2.000 - 3.000. That is how my stones are rated. And what Dan says, for example.
Stones Grades
Dan calls them true hard. My stones are Soft, Hard and Hard Black (and Surgical Black). Soft and Hard are exactly in that range. And my Hard Black stone has a density of 2.55. It is dark grey and super smooth.
If it is a Novaculite, color and density do not match.
 
Papilio said:
I have no idea what this stone could be. It looks like a Hard Black stone. What I know about Arkansas stones (I have several) is, that the given density does not fit. 2.30 to 2.45 with a grit ranging from 800 to 1200 is a Hard Arkansas stone. A Hard Black (or true black) is 2.50+ and has a grit about 2.000 - 3.000. That is how my stones are rated. And what Dan says, for example.
Stones Grades
Dan calls them true hard. My stones are Soft, Hard and Hard Black (and Surgical Black). Soft and Hard are exactly in that range. And my Hard Black stone has a density of 2.55. It is dark grey and super smooth.
If it is a Novaculite, color and density do not match.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the info, I have looked over Dan's site a number of times over the years and his chart too, really handy. The stone is 7 15/16" x 2 7/8" x 7/8" and right at 2lbs, feels like a nice dense stone similar to all my other Arks (a nice heft to it) just something is a little off when comparing to other novaculite stones. It's extremely hard and leaves a great edge just wish I knew what the makeup of the stones was for sure. May try to do a specific gravity test to find out if that is the true density of the stone, I have looked for the SG in regards to Duntston's however can't seem to find anything.
 
NORTHWEST_KNIFE_GUY said:
Thanks for the info, I have looked over Dan's site a number of times over the years and his chart too, really handy. The stone is 7 15/16" x 2 7/8" x 7/8" and right at 2lbs, feels like a nice dense stone similar to all my other Arks (a nice heft to it) just something is a little off when comparing to other novaculite stones. It's extremely hard and leaves a great edge just wish I knew what the makeup of the stones was for sure. May try to do a specific gravity test to find out if that is the true density of the stone, I have looked for the SG in regards to Duntston's however can't seem to find anything.
Click to expand...
I don't know how to do links but there is a good website that has done some comparison tests on Arkansas stones, you may already know of it.
BestSharpeningStones.com They have done some comparison tests which makes you think about the grit ratings of Arkansas stones.
 
cudgee said:
I don't know how to do links but there is a good website that has done some comparison tests on Arkansas stones, you may already know of it.
BestSharpeningStones.com They have done some comparison tests which makes you think about the grit ratings of Arkansas stones.
Click to expand...
Believe I've see that before but will take another look into it just in case I'm thinking of something else.

Thanks!
 
cudgee said:
[...] there is a good website that has done some comparison tests on Arkansas stones, you may already know of it.
BestSharpeningStones.com They have done some comparison tests which makes you think about the grit ratings of Arkansas stones.
Click to expand...

You might mean this:
Arkansas Sharpening Stone Grits

What is an Arkansas Stone

and finally Arkansas Stones FAQ

Some information are done twice. I took a look at this webpage some time ago, when I was looking for information about Arkansas Stones. They say, that a Black Stone has a specific density of 2.55+ and a grit equivalent of ~2.500.
 
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