I read somewhere that when the Chosera stones were first introduced, American suppliers adviced them to be used (very) wet, whereas European suppliers adviced them to be used dry.

I thought these opinions would converge over time. All I've read lately about Chosera's (from American sources) is that they should be soaked for 5-10 mins before use and be kept wet during use. However, my local Dutch knife seller (who is one of the sharpening experts here) recommends that the stones should only be wet a bit just before sharpening. They even warn against soaking which, according to them, would degrade the quality of the stone.

Here is a translation of a part of their warning:


Who is right? Or, perhaps more appropriately, why do such differences of opinion still exist now the Chosera stones exist for some time and we can exchange facts and ideas at the speed of electrons moving through internet cables?

He is correct.

The full size Choseras have been known to crack on occasion - notably the 5K and 10K if they are left in water for extensive periods of time (more like several months). They can also crack if they are left out in more extreme conditions like direct sunlight or exposed to rapid temperature changes. The cracking is not a wide-spread problem, though.

Basically, you can wet them or soak them for a few minutes - either way, but just let them air dry out slowly, and store them dry in a consistent atmosphere when not in use.

For maximum potential of the stones, they should be used wet, IMO.

Magnesia based stones like the Choceras should NOT be soaked for prolonged periods, or like any stone dried in sunlight or be subjected to extreme temp changes. But soaking them for 5 or so minutes is fine. No soaking will cause the stones to go dry constantly and you will get metal swarf buildup on your stones and they won't perform up to their potential. In other words don't run them so dry so that the surface doesn't stay wet for reasonable periods of time without refreshing them. First time use stones will require more water than later on, even after complete drying.


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Ken

Right on Ken! I spritz mine to keep them moist as I proceed with the sharpening. How wonderful to have you aboard mate!!

Cheers
Leo

Leo, THANK YOU for the warm welcome. Anything I can do to help you or any forum members - just ask.

As most people who know me will attest, I can chat about sharpening all day long.

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Ken

KenSchwartz wrote:


You are so welcome Ken! I know the depth of your knowledge in the field of sharpening and I also know all of us here will enjoy soaking up some of that wisdom. A generous offer my friend!
Kangaroo leather strops eh! Now that is interesting! Do tell us more!

Best regards
Leo

Well Kangaroo strops are worth a whole separate post. I'll include some high power pics of the surface in that post. I'll be sending out a sample for Clay to try, along with some nanocloth.

Basically the surface is SUPER smooth, yet has good draw. As soon as you touch it, you will immediately 'get' what it is all about. It is also VERY thin, yet sturdy, so you get much less convexing of your edge - more precision on your flat grinds and more control convexing your convex edges. If you wish, you can press harder on 'roo than other thicker leather to get a similar degree of convexity if you want to be more aggressive, although I prefer to take advantage of it's precision with a more gentle 'hand'.

It works extremely well just by itself as a final finisher and also more fully takes advantage of ultra fine stropping compounds like the 0.1, 0.025 and 0.050 micron compounds. You can use it to significant advantage as a final strop coming from a polishing stone like the 10k Chocera or 15k or 30k Shapton Pro to further enhance the edge too.

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Ken