Tormek Blackstone Silicon has been developed for shaping and sharpening high-speed steel and exotic alloyed steels. It can also touch up tungsten carbide. It does not offer faster steel removal on ordinary carbon steel. The combination of abrasive hardness, shape and grain size is optimized to work efficiently at the Tormek systems low RPM. Its faster material removal is an advantage especially when shaping tools with a large bevel surface, where the grinding pressure is limited, for example, planer blades and woodturning skews. The 220-grit size is the same as the Tormek Original Grindstone, but can be altered to work like a 1,000-grit stone with the Tormek Stone Grader (SP-650). Thanks to its sharp and relatively small grains, the Blackstone removes hard steel efficiently, even at low grinding pressure. The Blackstone Silicon also offers exceptional wear resistance. It can even touch up tungsten carbide, where the tool already has an established shape.