Vintage Welsh Llyn Idwal Hone Stone & Oak Holder

Vintage Welsh Llyn Idwal Hone Stone & Oak Holder

This is a very good vintage natural hone stone from Wales, usually referred to as Idwal Oilstone or Llyn Idwal Hone.  It may be used with water or a light oil.  It has been lapped to 600 grit and the long edges have been lightly chamfered.  It is a dark green/grey colour with a slight mottling - both of which become deeper and more apparent when the stone is wet.

The stone measures a good 8.75 inches long (223mm) by 1 and 3/8th inches wide (35mm) by one half inch thick (12mm).  The two short sides have been cut very slightly at dovetail angles so that it slots sideways into the holder in just one direction.  Originally it was glued in place, but it is now loose so it can be removed if desired.  When in place in the holder the surface is nearly flush with the holder - just a millimeter or so above it, but it could go higher by placing a bit of thick card under it a thin sliver of wood.  As it is, it can be honed on either in the holder or out of it.

The holder has been fashioned out of a single piece of what looks like oak - at least the quarter-grain pattern looks like oak to me.  It is original to the stone.  It has some knocks, scrapes, blemishes and patina but is exceedingly sturdy and well made.  The overal length of it is 13.5 inches (345mm).

The stone is in very good condition - no rough inclusions and no chips to the top edge (although a bit has come away at the bottom).  There are no cracks.  In the literature available this stone is likened to a Charnley Forest hone, but harder.  It is mentioned as far back as 1798.  It would have been as popular as the Charnley Forest hones at the time, but for its price - it was a more expensive stone than the Charnley Forest.  I have done a few brief tests with the hone, dulling my razors edge by honing it to 8000 grit on a shapton hone and then finishing on the Idwal stone and shaving.  The razor was dulled once again on the shapton then finished on a good Charnley Forest and the shaves compared.  The Charnley gave a slightly smoother shave, but it is a longer stone and twice as wide as the Idwal, so the blade was probably honed to a better degree on the Charnley hone - more laps on the shorter, thinner Idwal stone would probably compensate for this to some degree.

NB: In the last four pictures three hones are shown - the Llyn Idwal stone is the one in the centre, the other hones are there for colour comparison purposes only - top is a light grey thuringian, bottom is a blue/grey thuringian.

Packaged weight will be about 825 gms.