Arkansas Knife Sharpening Stones Arkansas Natural Arkansas Stones

Hall's Sharpening Instructions
Honing Oil Use	Honing Oil Instructions
Wet Hone 11 1/2"	Wet Hone Instructions
Bench Stones	Use General Sharpening Instructions
Deluxe Honing Kit	Use General Sharpening Instructions
Tri-Hone Sharpening System	Use General Sharpening Instructions
Pocket Stones	Use General Sharpening Instructions
Ceramic Sharpening Sticks	Use Ceramic Stick Sharpening Instructions
Single Sharpening Rod	Use Sharpening Rod Instructions
Bonded Synthetic Stones	Use General Sharpening Instructions
Blade Sharpener Knife Sharpening Instructions	Blade Sharpener Sharpening Instructions

GENERAL SHARPENING INSTRUCTIONS

1. First you need to select the proper sharpening stone for your sharpening job.

1) SILICON CARBIDE CARBO-ARK tm. (coarse) for very dull or nicked blades.

2) WASHITA OR SOFT ARKANSAS (Medium) for preliminary honing.

3) HARD ARKANSAS (Fine) popular finishing hone.

4) SURGICAL BLACK ARKANSAS (Extra Fine) finest finishing hone.

Put a small amount of Hall's Honing Oil (or any light mineral oil or water) on your stone. Using a Natural Stone without oil or water will damage and clog your stone.

2. Place your blade flat on the end of your stone. Raise the back of your knife to an approximate 22-degree angle as illustrated. This angle will ensure a perfect edge.

3. PULL the blade TOWARDS from you, just like your are trying to carve a thin slice off the top of the stone. Don't be afraid to use pressure against the stone while sharpening since it will not damage the stone or your knife. Repeat this PULLING stroke 3 to 10 times. Remember, try to keep the same approximate sharpening angle all the time since this is the key to obtaining the sharpest edge

4. To sharpen the other side of your knife place your blade at the opposite end of your stone and repeat steps 2 and 3, but instead of pulling the knife towards you push it away from you. Repeat this stroke 3 to 10 times as well. Remember to take a full sweep as you pull or push the knife across the stone for a full effect of sharpening your knife properly.

5. After each use we recommend that you clean your Arkansas stone by scrubbing it vigorously with warm soapy water and a stiff nylon brush. This keeps the pores free of stone and metal particles.

SINGLE SHARPENING ROD INSTRUCTIONS

1. To sharpen, always hold the handle with rod facing down. Then place the heel of the blade on the ceramic rod close to the handle as shown in the illustration. No lubricant is required.
2. Hold the blade of the knife at the manufacturers suggested angle.
3. Push the knife away from you on the ceramic rod applying pressure as you push the blade toward the end of the rod. Draw the knife down so the tip of the blade comes off the ceramic rod close to the end as shown.
4. For the other side of the blade, repeat the technique above with the same number of strokes.
5. After several uses the surface of the rod will began to fill up with metal particles. To clean the rod, simply clean rod with warm soapy water.

WET HONE INSTRUCTIONS

HOW TO SET UP YOUR SYSTEM

1) First you need to lift the three stone carriage out and pour Hall's knife and honing oil into reservoir.

2) Replace stone carriage into unit.

3) Select the proper stone for use. On the W/H 11 1/2" unit, there are six stones that are available for that unit. You have 3 synthetic stones and 3 natural stones.

The synthetic stones include a:

80 grit (coarse), 180 grit (Medium), and a 220 grit (Fine)

The natural stones include a :

Soft Arkansas (Medium) - for preliminary honing, Hard Arkansas (Fine) - Popular finishing hone, and a Surgical Black Arkansas (Extra Fine) - One of the Finest finishing hones.

4) Rotate the stone carriage through the oil onto the stone you selected and then position it on top so you can use it to begin your sharpening. Now you ready to begin.

5) Now follow the general instructions on how to sharpen your knife starting with Fig. 2.

CERAMIC STICKS SHARPENING INSTRUCTIONS

1. Place knife blade on the inside of the left rod approximately three quarters of the way up the rod from the base. Hold knife at a 90 degree angle to the base.
2. Pull the blade down and across the left rod from the back of the blade to the tip as shown in (Fig.2).
3. Repeat the stroke on the inside of the right rod to sharpen the other side of the blade.
4. Do 4 or 5 strokes on a side then a like amount on the other rod. Usually after about 10 to 15 strokes on each side your blade will be sharp and ready for use.
5. After several uses the surface of the rods will began to fill up with metal particles. To clean the rods simply detach from the base and clean each rod with warm soapy water.

After you are finished sharpening, simply remove your rods and slide them into the built in storage area in the bottom of your base. Then you are ready for storage.

HONING OIL INSTRUCTIONS

Always use a light oil while sharpening on our Natural Arkansas stones. Hall's honing oil protects the surface of the stones and prevents them from being clogged with metal particles from your knife. Using a cooking oil may damage the stone by forming a thick gel coat on the surface, making the stone unusable.
There is no need to soak your Arkansas stone in any type of oil. Before you begin sharpening each time, apply a thin stream of honing oil to the surface of the stone, then spread that oil over the entire sharpening surface.
Don't use a lot of oil - just enough for a thin film of oil between the stone and your knife blade. Using too much oil will make your knife blade glide over the surface of the stone and will prevent the stone from sharpening your knife. One application of honing oil while sharpening a knife is usually enough. However, you may need to apply additional oil to your stone, especially if you are sharpening for a long time.
When you're finished sharpening, be sure to clean your stone each time. When using oil while sharpening, you may also use honing oil to clean it by applying a small amount and rubbing it in a circular motion all the way down the stone. You will see the metal particles start to rise from the stones pores, just wipe them off with a clean paper towel or rag. Hold the stone under running water to finish cleaning it, then dry with a paper towel or rag. If you don't clean your stone after each sharpening, then small metal particles from your knife will dry on the surface and clog the pores of the stone.
The Hall family has seen and worked with various types of oil during the past 30 years, and we have found that this mineral based honing oil is the best available for cleaning and working with on the stones.

There is no need to soak your Arkansas stone in any type of oil. Before you begin sharpening each time, apply a thin stream of honing oil to the surface of the stone, then spread that oil over the entire sharpening surface.

The Hall family has seen and worked with various types of oil during the past 30 years, and we have found that this mineral based honing oil is the best available for cleaning and working with on the stones.