SG-250 - Oil Better Suited Than Water?

[Thy Will Be Done]

After extensive use of this stone with water trough, I'm beginning to think that this stone is much more suited to using something like a thick mineral oil on the cutting surface.  That may not even be thick enough because ideally it would not be something that would simply soak into the stone at all.  I suppose that is the issue with oil after all and wondering if there is anything similar one could use to both act as a coolant and a friction reducer to limit wear to abrasive much more than water and also keep the edge from losing temper.

[John Hancock Sr]

Definitely not. It is a water stone and designed to be soaked in water for best results

[John_B]

The Tormek system using water does not heat the blade being sharpened to a point where it will lose temper.

[Ken S]

Has anyone tried using Tormek ACC with the SG? It has cooling properties like water, and also has anti rusting properties.

Ken

[RichColvin]

Ken once told me that grindstones are like brake shoes:  both are meant to be worn down through use.

[tgbto]

If you reduce friction you will reduce sharpening efficiency. In another post, you seem to complain that the stone is glazed and needs refreshing... If the stone wears down it means that new abrasives are exposed, therefore maintaining sharpening efficiency. If the stone wears down too quickly, it means it is not hard enough for the material you're trying to sharpen.

[Thy Will Be Done]

If you reduce friction you will reduce sharpening efficiency. In another post, you seem to complain that the stone is glazed and needs refreshing... If the stone wears down it means that new abrasives are exposed, therefore maintaining sharpening efficiency. If the stone wears down too quickly, it means it is not hard enough for the material you're trying to sharpen.

This is patently false and a myth that needs to die. Friction is nothing more than generating heat.  Abrasives work by cutting, friction actually reduces cutting of abrasives and increases wear of abrasives.  The stone surface wearing is not at all the same as the stone releasing abrasive grains via bond strength being low enough to do so.  You can easily see this in the fact that if you continue grinding on a piece there will be an increase in the level of polish very quickly and noticeably as the surface gets more and more glazed/loaded.  It will burnish more than cut the steel as this progression happens, burnishing is not desirable.

[tgbto]

This is patently false and a myth that needs to die. Friction is nothing more than generating heat.

Thank you for your kind, nuanced words.

Still, from a physics standpoint, in a situation where a solid moves in relationship to another, the friction coefficient is the ratio of the tangential force to the normal force. If there is no friction, there is no tangential force applied to the material being cut, so no work being done and obviously no matter being removed.

In the same fashion, a frictionless action of a knife blade on a tomato will press down on the tomato but not cut it. Our job as sharpeners is to make sure friction happens over such a tiny surface that the cells are instantly sheared in two by the focused tangential force without the tomato being deformed by the normal force.

Heat is a byproduct of friction, heat reduces cutting of abrasives, and increases wear ; hence the need to use a coolant in many situations where friction generates a lot of heat, or to reduce friction using a lubricant where the unlubricated action would generate more heat than the tool (drill/belt/wheel) or piece would be able to withstand locally. Cutting fluids act as both.

[Ken S]

I have seen difficulties which reoccur occasionally, such as frozen EZYlocks and noisy water troughs on T8s. These are frustrating, but can be handled. I don't recall ever reading a previous post recommending oil instead of water with the SG. I am not saying that oil would not work. I am just puzzled that in fifty years of product innovation, Tormek does not recommend using an oillike coolant instead of water. My guess would be that Tormek has good reasons for staying with water. They do recommend ACC as an alternative which offers more rust prevention.

Ken