- Thread starter
- #181
I agree with the rest of the guys. It’s from the box. Like Ian said they get listed all the time as Coticules because the sellers think they’re two layered.
Arkansas Love...Let's see those Arks!
- Thread starter David
- Start date
Furthermore, that filth line running exactly at box level right across the label would make me feel pretty good about it being a legit label. See what simple green does for you and check it for flat, you may be all set to hone right now.
- Thread starter
- #184
When people start faking No.1 Washita labels we’re all in trouble. It’s 100 % genuine. Now go rub some steel on it and watch how quickly it turns black.
Yeah, Washita's aren't to the price point where that stuff makes sense yet (so I say... but someone was counterfeiting Yellow Lake labels a decade ago... and that's a $50 stone on a good day).
Looks like a nice stone man, enjoy it. You have a convex soft ark as well as the hard ark right? I'm curious how you feel you do speed-wise on a flat Washita vs the convex soft.
Looks like a nice stone man, enjoy it. You have a convex soft ark as well as the hard ark right? I'm curious how you feel you do speed-wise on a flat Washita vs the convex soft.
Probably a relabeled Lily White from another brand would be my guess.
Only snow white I'm familiar with is that ~8k Jsynth
Google finds one on eBay about 6 months ago. Deerlick Oil Stone Co. Snow White Washita.
Stone way too oily, but I'mma guess it's a Lily White and they were dodging the trademark.
Buyer got it for a song too... lucky.
VTG SNOW WHITE WASHITA DEER LICK OIL & SHARPENING STONE CO original box knife | eBay
Only snow white I'm familiar with is that ~8k Jsynth
Google finds one on eBay about 6 months ago. Deerlick Oil Stone Co. Snow White Washita.
Stone way too oily, but I'mma guess it's a Lily White and they were dodging the trademark.
Buyer got it for a song too... lucky.
VTG SNOW WHITE WASHITA DEER LICK OIL & SHARPENING STONE CO original box knife | eBay
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Chan Eil Whiskers
Fumbling about.
Okay, I'm convinced enough by the consensus to proceed with the process.
- I will splay shellac the label.
- I'll soak the stone in straight undiluted Simple Green.
- I'll use paper towels to blot and remove the Simple Green.
- I'll soak some more.
- Etc. until it seems "clean enough."
Then, I'll look again. If you guys are wrong it will become obvious, but I'm betting you're right.
So, nobody is saying there are any two layered Washita stones. Everyone is saying the stone appears layered because of the box. Makes sense to me.
Very interesting to read about these being listed as coticules. My eyes will be open.
I'll have more pictures after the process.
Yes, I have the Double Convex Ark 8x3 so I have on one side of that stone a convex soft Ark and on the other side a convex translucent black Ark.
I also have a Norton Translucent Hard Black Ark and a Dan's (surgical) Hard Black Ark. Both are good finishers. I like the translucent better, but I'm not sure the shaves are at all different.
Thanks so much, gentlemen, and happy shaves to you all,
Jim
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The only two layered Washita are glued combos where they are glued to hard/soft arks, indias and maybe carborundums. No natural ones. Not saying a stone can't be different on one side vs the other, but it's still gonna be washita on both sides, and they were never deliberately cut to select two sides the way different color Thuri's were.
What's a good product for sealing a side label? I'm reattaching the Possible RR side label and want to protect it.
What's a good product for sealing a side label? I'm reattaching the Possible RR side label and want to protect it.
So here’s the 7”. I soaked it for two days in the purple stuff. Didn't really improve much after the first 16 hrs or so. I then Chamfered it to make sure I could see what it looked like inside (get all the steel swarf off). Doesn't seem like purple stuff harms Washita's at all as far as I can tell. I also soaked a synth (carbo I think) in it for about an hour and it seems fine, but I'd definitely be more careful with those.
Anyway, this looks to be a #2 or lower grade (or ungraded). Much closer to a Soft Ark than the higher grades, but still distinctly Washita from the friability. Instead it has larger, less regular, and more spaced out pores in the surface... as well as being more like an Arkansas in hardness. Should be pretty easy for everyone to notice the differences from the Lily Whites, RR and WD's that've been posted.
Anyway, this looks to be a #2 or lower grade (or ungraded). Much closer to a Soft Ark than the higher grades, but still distinctly Washita from the friability. Instead it has larger, less regular, and more spaced out pores in the surface... as well as being more like an Arkansas in hardness. Should be pretty easy for everyone to notice the differences from the Lily Whites, RR and WD's that've been posted.
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I’d be tempted to try nitrocellulose lacquer for either models or fingernails, not much formulaic difference. Could be removed later with the right solvent and probably still mostly preserving the label.
But that’s just shooting from the hip.
Well, I'm really worried about the label. Nothing you put on the front is going to seal it from behind. If SG migrates through the stones porosity, it will lift the label for sure. It doesn't really look that bad. If it were my stone sporting that label, I'd start by gently cleaning the label, seal it, and then move on to spot cleaning. In situations like this I've had excellent results by using WD 40 and a small, fine, carborundum pocket hones to scrub it a little. WD 40 will lift things out you won't believe and the stone breaks up the hardened gunk.
Chan Eil Whiskers
Fumbling about.
Good points. Well made. I had thought of the SG migration. How porous is the Washita? How deep is the oil?
Po
Porous, but idk about soaking all the way through and actually lifting a label that’s been sealed in place...
Porous, but idk about soaking all the way through and actually lifting a label that’s been sealed in place...
My thinking on this is the that the WD 40 will loosen or thin any oil and funk on the stone. WD 40 is easier to remove than the congealed gunk at may get you where you want to go. I'm talking spray on a spot, rub and dab. I've also used electrical contract cleaner to get gunk out of a stone I didn't want to soak. At this point spot cleaning with Simple Green may be enough. Start gentle and add more aggressive means as needed. Yes the porosity will actually wick Simple Green higher than the soak line. There was a thread on here a couple weeks ago where some one had a labeled Washita and wanted to clean it. I wonder how that one turned out...
Say you soak the stone on it's back edge to protect the label. You will still have a dirt line where the Simple Green ended and the front will still be dirty. To really make it look real nice it will need to be submerged and soaked. Label will not survive that. It was discussed in the other post about removing the label and re-applying it. Hope this helps.
Say you soak the stone on it's back edge to protect the label. You will still have a dirt line where the Simple Green ended and the front will still be dirty. To really make it look real nice it will need to be submerged and soaked. Label will not survive that. It was discussed in the other post about removing the label and re-applying it. Hope this helps.
Huh, I’ve definitely never tried soaking my stones so I just wasn’t thinking they’d wick all the way through with a face submerged but the whole fulldunking required for even cleaning makes sense.
I’ve been able to get away with basically surface scrubbing with simple green or another soap good at dissolving oils like dawn or Dr Bronners has worked well for not too dirty stones. I don’t lap all my stones either, just check for flat and then do the minimum to get working. If you get a stone in good shape but it’s for doing work, put it back into work.
WD-40 original formula in the liquid bottles is probably my favorite light honing oil choice. It’ll displace and dissolve tons of funk and not do any damage. It’s actually just a fish based oil, and non toxic in the original formula. You could put it on pizza in place of anchovies in a pinch.
I bid/gamble on Ebay quite a bit due to HAD and Arkaholism. I've scored some really skanky, bar of tar looking hones, over the years, that had "tells" that there was something wonderful underneath it all. Some of my favorites started out nearly untouchable. I mean scrape with a putty knife, soak, scrape some more nasty. Some were submerged for weeks with changes of Simple Green about once a week. I buy Simple Green and WD 40 by the gallon.
Jim's stone should clean up nicely enough with spot cleaning like you mentioned. When he said Simple Green I took for granted he was going to soak it because that what normally end up doing. I've tried SG for spot cleaning and it didn't work as well as WD 40 and fine carbo. What I didn't try was SG and the carbo.
Jim's stone should clean up nicely enough with spot cleaning like you mentioned. When he said Simple Green I took for granted he was going to soak it because that what normally end up doing. I've tried SG for spot cleaning and it didn't work as well as WD 40 and fine carbo. What I didn't try was SG and the carbo.
Chan Eil Whiskers
Fumbling about.
Yes, my plan was to submerge the entire stone in Simple Green.
Since I've not done anything yet I'd like to read any tales of what others have done with their Washita stones, label tales, cleaning methods, etc. I'll look around to see if I can find any.
My label sprayed a few times with shellac is drying. I've read elsewhere that shellac does better if allowed to dry for a longer time than most people give it as the solvent continues to come to the surface and evaporate for a while. It feels and looks dry but it gets drier if that makes sense (from what I've read).
Happy shaves,
Jim
These were both recent buys I needed to strip heavily. One is one of those opaque white hards I love. This one passes more light than the one I have used for years to finish razors on. The other I think is a lww but not label so I can't prove it. Beautifully tight grain. Both need a small touch up lap-wise just to clean edges and fine tune flatness. Planning on installing these as my permanent knife touch up setup.
Probably shaved with more edges off this stone than any other. I think it would have had either the solid green or solid red pike's best in the world use sperm or lard oil label as the box construction is the same and they tend to be opaque. Came from a long gone dentist in upstate ny that operated end of the 1800s to early 1900s. Can't prove the label deal obviously, but it doesn't matter as I'm never selling it. It tweaks almost any finished edge I put to it in a positive way.
