You left too late
A visit to the Moughton Whetstone Hole in two parts
- Thread starter Seveneighth
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Don't forget that it is quite possible to find good stones that are at low enough quantity that the deposit can not be commercially viable. @eKretz has gifted me a stone that he found in a glacial till, that kicks butt, but because it was a lone boulder there is not much chance of finding more of that same stone.
My wife is totally into going rock hounding with me, and perfectly happy reading the 'roadside geology' series in sink with the mile markers as we travel by car. It has turned long previously boring sections of highway into areas that are geologically hard to keep up with.
Yeah I've found several that I've actually used a lot. Poke around a bit and try a few, you might be pleasantly surprised.
- Thread starter
- #24
As I understand it legislation is generally made for England and Wales and then Scotland and Northern Ireland match it in some way. Not sure how to find either equivalent laws - or indeed whether they ever did.
This poses some interesting points.
There are at least two historical sites for Scottish hones I believe. There is the Water of Ayr site listed in Grinding and Honing, perhaps an older location where Dalmores were originally mined, and I have read some information suggesting that Fiddish stones might really have originated from Fiddich in Aberlour.
The Water of Ayr and Tam O 'Shanter Hone Works at Stair visit by Henk Bos is very interesting. If I read the pictures right there were piles of old stones lying around. Surely someone could sell these onto the market. It would be a bit like AJ's Welsh stones. More details of the site are here: Dalmore Mill, Water Of Ayr And Tam O'shanter Hone Works | Canmore
According to Grinding and Honing part 3 the old Charnley Forest Whittle Hill quarry falls within private land. Bos wrote to the owners and gained permission to visit. The Whittle stones had the reputation of being the best.
There are some other interesting sites. I have been reading about coticule deposits on the Isle of Man and also in Southern Ireland. From what I can make out the Manx deposits have very low garnet content and are not suitable for honing. Something I read seemed to suggest that the Irish stone is more similar to Belgian coticules. I wonder if hones were ever produced there.
I thought I read the Irish stone was unusable as a whetstone due to the high quartz concentration and there is no manganese associated with these.
If you know of Irish stones please let me know I will be there again this year and found nothing last year.
If you know of Irish stones please let me know I will be there again this year and found nothing last year.
That sounds really interesting...were did you find the reference material Victor?
Chan Eil Whiskers
Fumbling about.
Very cool. I am reading about the books on Amazon. Thanks.
Yeah, there is certainly no hone specific info in the books, but often slates and tuffs are pointed out. I got into geology mostly to add dimension to my hiking. It has greatly expanded my driving enjoyment too. Now I often plan routes based on the geology that we will see. My wife loves it too.
Thank you for the beautiful tour! I wish I could have walked with you.
Steve
Steve
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