Norton Crystolon Combination Oilstone, Fine/Coarse, 1 x 2 x 8"

by Norton

Product Features

• Combination oilstone has 100 grit on one face for repairing cutting edges and 280 grit on the opposite face for sharpening and maintaining them
• Silicon carbide sharpens to moderate tolerances with minimal loading when it is more important to sharpen the blade quickly than to produce a fine cutting edge
• Prefilled with oil to allow lubricant to stay on surface during sharpening
• 1 x 8 x 2 inch (H x W x D) size makes this stone suitable for use as a bench sharpener for knives and tools
• Oilstone is more durable and harder than a waterstone

Product Details

• Item Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B0001MSA5Y
• Item model number: 61463685455
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,372 in Industrial & Scientific (See Top 100 in Industrial & Scientific)

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

JB8 Combination Crystolon@ Bench Oilstones have 2 grits on opposite sides of each stone, reducing the cost of owning a variety of grit sizes for sharpening. Coarse Crystolon@ on one side is a fast cutting man-made sharpening stone for quick edge sharpening. Use for sharpening severely dull knives, repairing nicks, chips and damage from improper sharpening and generating new edge angles. Fine Crystolon@ on the other side is a used to sharpen slightly dulled edges and upgrade the finish left by a Coarse and Medium Crystolon@ stones. Norton Crystolon@ oilstones are manufactured using a proprietary process that impregnates them with a petroleum based product that allows the lubrication used during the sharpening process to stay on the stone's surface. As a result, the metal from the object being sharpened and small pieces of abrasive that break off the stone become suspended in the lubricant. This prevents these materials from imbedding into the sharpening stone's surface, keeping it free cutting and making it easy to keep its surface clean.

Product Description

The Norton Crystolon 100/280-grit combination oilstone is made of silicon carbide with 100 grit on one face for repairing cutting edges and 280 grit on the opposite face for sharpening and maintaining them; it sharpens to moderate tolerances with minimal loading when it is more important to sharpen the blade quickly than to produce a fine cutting edge. This oilstone is used to restore cutting edges on straight-edged tools, such as chisels, knives, plane blades, and precision instruments. The stone is prefilled with oil to save time and eliminate the need to presoak it prior to use. The oil prevents metal from bonding with the abrasive surface by flushing away dislodged abrasive and metal chips.

This silicon carbide stone is fast cutting, and offers effective sharpening, even under light pressure. It is created by grading silicon carbide to a consistent particle size and blending it with bonding agents. It is then molded and surface-finished. This 1 x 8 x 2 inch (H x W x D) stone, suitable for bench use, is harder and more durable than a waterstone. (H is height, the vertical distance from lowest to highest point; W is width, the horizontal distance from left to right; D is depth, the horizontal distance from front to back.) It conforms to the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) abrasive grit standards.

Sharpening stones, or whetstones, are abrasive surfaces used to sharpen and hone the edges of steel cutting implements, such as chisels, knives, scissors, hand scrapers, and plane blades. Sharpening is the process of creating or re-establishing a cutting edge by grinding away portions of the metal to adjust the angle of the edge and reform the shape. Honing removes small imperfections. Stones can be flat, for working flat edges, or shaped, for edges that are more complex. Sharpening stones are made of natural or synthetic materials that range from softer to harder, and are categorized by the size of their abrasive particles, known as grit. A stone with a coarser grit is used when more metal needs to be removed (e.g., when sharpening a nicked or very dull blade); the stone with the finest grit produces the sharpest edge. Where numbers are assigned to specify grit, they range from coarser grit (low) to finer grit (high). Some sharpening stones are designed for use with a lubricating liquid, some can be used dry, and others can be used either wet or dry. When used with lubricating liquid, a sharpening stone can be called a waterstone or an oilstone, based on the lubricant required.

Norton Abrasives manufactures sanding, grinding, and polishing abrasives, and has been located in the United States since 1885. Norton, now a brand of Saint-Gobain, meets ISO 9000 and 14001 certification for quality and environmental management standards.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Foundation of an inexpensive sharpening system, April 3, 2011

By 

Scott Burright (Laramie, WY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Norton Crystolon Combination Oilstone, Fine/Coarse, 1 x 2 x 8" (Misc.)

This is a terrific synthetic oilstone for the coarsest two grits of any sharpening system.

If you have some Arkansas stones, for example, then you need this for coarser work such as reshaping bevels, taking out nicks, erasing the factory machine marks on your edge, and so on. Crystolon (Norton's name for Silicon Carbide, aka Carborundum) removes steel much, much faster than any natural stone.

Conversely, if you get one of these, then you should supplement it with some finer grits, such as a few grades of Arkansas stone or Japanese waterstone. The combo oilstone alone will get a knife or tool started but won't get it truly sharp.

This Norton stone arrives nice and flat, with none of the irregularities you find on cheaper stones. It also wears or "dishes" more slowly than coarse waterstones do.

Best of all, it's presoaked with oil. You would be amazed at how much honing oil a dry stone will soak up.

I use Norton honing oil on mine. It is just the right consistency to float away abraded metal and stone debris.

To clean it, you just flood the surface with honing oil and squeegee it off with a finger.

The coarse side is about 100 grit (USA), and the finer side is more in the neighborhood of 220.

You might notice that Norton sells a combo India (aluminum oxide, aka corundum) stone of the same dimensions. That stone is less aggressive and just a bit finer. I use both, but I favor the Cystolon because it makes faster work of major repairs.

Considering that your coarsest grit gets the most use, the price makes this an incredible bargain. I've been using mine fairly heavily for years. Everyone with a kitchen or a workshop needs one of these.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great starting stone!, January 25, 2012

By 

Hug a shopper - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Norton Crystolon Combination Oilstone, Fine/Coarse, 1 x 2 x 8" (Misc.)

I've had trouble re-profiling and fixing nicks in my knives, it just took far too long! So I decided to try this out and it was exactly what I was looking for. It still takes time to re-profile(especially with harder steels), but it is not unbearably long or hard to do with this stone. This is perfect for starting an edge, but you will want a finer grit to compliment this stone once you set the edge. Overall I'd highly recommend this for anyone that likes sharpening freehand and needs a coarse stone.