- Joined
- Nov 29, 2001
- Messages
- 1,247
Using oil or water?
You can use either but if you use water you should clean the stone afterwards with liberal amounts of oil and wiping with a clean cloth. I've heard you can also put it in the dishwasher but I don't know about that. Anyone else?
Why use oil?
Honing oil works as a lubricant and also suspends the steel shavings so that they don't clog up the stone.
What kind of oil?
Most honing oils are mineral oil-based, some have petroleum oil additives but don't use cooking oil. It'll gum up the sharpening stone.
Using additives in the oil?
People sometimes add silicon carbide to the honing oil to help the sharpening process. It's better just to use a good quality, plain honing oil and a sharpening stone on our tomahawks. They're tools and people have been sharpening tools in this manner for hundreds of years.
You can use either but if you use water you should clean the stone afterwards with liberal amounts of oil and wiping with a clean cloth. I've heard you can also put it in the dishwasher but I don't know about that. Anyone else?
Why use oil?
Honing oil works as a lubricant and also suspends the steel shavings so that they don't clog up the stone.
What kind of oil?
Most honing oils are mineral oil-based, some have petroleum oil additives but don't use cooking oil. It'll gum up the sharpening stone.
Using additives in the oil?
People sometimes add silicon carbide to the honing oil to help the sharpening process. It's better just to use a good quality, plain honing oil and a sharpening stone on our tomahawks. They're tools and people have been sharpening tools in this manner for hundreds of years.