I was pawing through an old toolbox that was given to me from an old GF's grandfather. he had been a surgeon in upstate NY around the turn of the last century. it seems likely that he used it as a hone for his razors and possibly his medical instruments. it came to me broken on the one end. that was back in 1978. it was covered with black gunk and I have been ignoring it for all this time. I soaked in in SG for a day and here is what I found. the stone is very hard and not porous. any guesses on what it is?
![20241016_134737[1].jpg](https://www.badgerandblade.com/forum/attachments/20241016_134737-1-jpg.1928601/ "20241016_134737[1].jpg")
![20241016_134747[1].jpg](https://www.badgerandblade.com/forum/attachments/20241016_134747-1-jpg.1928602/ "20241016_134747[1].jpg")
stone from GF's doctor grandpa.
- Thread starter rockwell88
- Start date
It’s an India stone. Probably Norton/pike.
- Thread starter
- #3
thanks for the super fast response. excuse my ignorance. but what's an india stone? synthetic or natural from some quarry in the sub continent? I should add that I honed a semi-junker ebay wester bros straight with it- after setting a bevel with an arkansas soft. it served well as a finisher and my face is not on fire. i guess i must have looked mighty pleased with myself after that shave.
btw, using the search feature didnt shed much light on india stones.
It's a synthetic stone, using Aluminium Oxide as the abrasive. They have been made for at least a hundred years, and you can still buy them new in most any hardware store. Probably the single biggest selling whetstone in history.
They were called India because that is where the abrasive material was originally sourced from, but they eventually learned to make it themselves in the USA.
Because they sold so many, and the fact they wear very slowly, they are a very common stone. But they work well for knives and tools, and there should be ay least one in every workshop (Somehow there are at least a dozen in mine...)
I'll try to dig up more info for you.
They were called India because that is where the abrasive material was originally sourced from, but they eventually learned to make it themselves in the USA.
Because they sold so many, and the fact they wear very slowly, they are a very common stone. But they work well for knives and tools, and there should be ay least one in every workshop (Somehow there are at least a dozen in mine...)
I'll try to dig up more info for you.
Have a dig through the links in this thread. There are some old pamphlets and ephemera that tell the story.
www.badgerandblade.com
Repository of Information about Pike / Norton / American Novaculite
Here to compliment @Adamo22 's label thread is some various old information, catalogues, &c. Starting with some essential reading: The Griswold 1890 Geological Survey.
www.badgerandblade.com
You have one of the most useful knife/tool stones in existence. Ask @cotedupy, he agrees. I carried only one of these at work, and a black hard ark, both 1.5" x 4.5". Great combo for getting my filled and chipped machete in order quickly or have my pocket knife sharp enough to use as a plane.
Well, because that is what it looks like to me. Looks like every other SiC stone. Perhaps not but it would surprise me. Every spongy coarse stone like that I’ve had was silicone carbide. The finer light grey is aluminum oxide as is the standard india stone(s). I’ve got a hefty box of those things I don’t use and any like that in my box are SiC. Hope I didn’t mislead the OP but my eyes see what looks like SiC.
I have several of these stones and all the ones I've got the coarse side is "coarse India" but it looks like medium Carborundum, the difference I notice it's that the inside doesn't shed grit and wear quickly like the Carbo. I've got one also that is a "quick cut India combo" from norton. I got into contact with them as to what the difference is in the normal India. I was told that the structure of the stone was more like a Carbo but still used AlOx as the abrasive. It wears and kicks up grit like a Carbo but is definitely AlOx as far as abrasive. That stone is AMAZING with axes and machetes and other garden implementation. It's an india stone that is faster than an india stone. Like comparing a new soft ark and an old soft washita when comparing speed. I love India stones for tools.
They do look similar, but the coarse side on all the India combos I have look much like that. In fact, to the best of my knowledge, I don't believe Norton ever mixed and matched India and SIC on their combo stones? It was either one the other, as far as I know.
Maybe other manufacturers did.
Norton IC11 is an India/Crystollon combo. I think they are more modern, do not recall any from the Behr M period.
A lot of people get this mixed up because some of old Behr Manning boxes referred to both India and Crystolon on the bottom whether the stone in the box was all india or all Crystolon.
A lot of people get this mixed up because some of old Behr Manning boxes referred to both India and Crystolon on the bottom whether the stone in the box was all india or all Crystolon.
Wow Gamma, nice call. You've forgotten more than I'll ever know.....
Oh yeah, fair enough with the IC11. But the SIC side of that is a medium, and looks a lot finer that the coarse India side of a India combo(and the hone is 11" long) .
It's odd that they would make such a thing. You would think the SIC side would wear much faster than the India, and you would end up with half a combo. There might be some specialty market for it. Butchers maybe? Where the knife is getting regularly touched up, so sees the fine side much more often than the medium.
Edit; Just looked on Nortons site, and they also do an IC6, 6" version. Learn something every day.
They were ok for home kitchen stuff. When using a simple carbon steel chef knife that gets beat to heck daily, the SIC side makes fast work of relieving the chips, the AO puts on a decent working edge, and does ok for touchups.
The IM11 is comparable in grit #s sorta, seemingly slower on the coarser side, but nicer to work with overall imo.
I had them long ago. I had the 11-inch stones before they started making the stone holders that fit them.
Never really liked them, was happy to get rid of them.
The IM11 is comparable in grit #s sorta, seemingly slower on the coarser side, but nicer to work with overall imo.
I had them long ago. I had the 11-inch stones before they started making the stone holders that fit them.
Never really liked them, was happy to get rid of them.
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