There are a band of folks who loves doing everything themselves, building, creating and bringing the usefulness and beauty of something dull, boring and 'useless' to the fore. Well guess what, have a few stones for them! These are Zulu Grey stones in their raw format, all we have done was to cut it into size that is suitable for honing and selected the ones that are in a weight class that can be shipped relatively economically. Bringing the stone to life will be the task of the new owner, who also gets to see the transformation from rock to treasured honing stone. For this purpose we chose stones that are relatively flat, with some it will be possible to lap both sides without dislocating your shoulder sockets, while others will offer one flat side and one with deeper indents. Choose wisely, flatter stones may lap easier and offer more practical use, but the rough ones have loads more character. Please send us a pic of your stone when you are done, we'd love to see how it transformed!
The Zulu Grey stone is a natural honing stone that is produced in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. As with most natural stones, they do not have grit values as such, but rather certain properties/attributes. The Zulu Grey and Silkvein stones are respectively used during the finishing and mid-range stadiums of honing. In working with the stones I have noticed some produce a slurry faster than others, so we will keep tabs on the stones and see if we can identify slight differences in performance based on customers feedback. It polishes up to a mirror like finish and will produce good results once you find the best method of using the stone, and also where it fits into your sharpening regime. I have had good results using with a slurry as final progression, and also when used with clean water/mineral oil to dress or revive a dulling edge, I'd follow with a diamond spray on one or the other medium and finally a stropping on clean leather.
As with all natural stones there are many variables, and no two stones are alike in appearance. The stone composition will never be quite the same as any other, there may be natural cavities, surface cracks or edges that are not perfect, but all stones are purpose ready.
Product of KZN, South Africa. Size 212 x 76 x 20 mm. Weight 850 grams. This one's size is pretty close to a 'standerd hone' and will fit most holders.