Whetstone suggestion?

MUAlum13

Active Member
I got into knives a few months ago and I want to pick up a sharpener. Ive been told to avoid pull through sharpeners. I dont have any expensive knives yet to worry about blade damage but I figured to go the Whetstone route regardless. 1. Any suggestions for a budget stone/kit brand? 2. Ive seen maybe 10 different responses to this so Im pretty confused but what stone grit is needed for removing minor folded over areas on the blade and then to sharpen the knife?

Thanks!
 

I don't have the rest of my life to hone a dull knife sharp, so I like to start on something fairly aggressive, courser than 400 or so, refine on a finer stone in 600 to 1000 range, then finish with a strop with medium aggressive compound like green.

What I posted there will do all of that, though I'd personally add the strop too.
 
Just be aware that the “grit” of one type or brand of stone may have almost no relationship to the grit of another. It’s not even remotely standard like sandpaper.

For example, a tremendous value setup for the money is a King 1000 waterstone and a King 6000 waterstone. followed by a leather strop, or some denim if you can’t find a strop. Add a sharpening stone holder, it really makes life easier when the stone isn’t skidding across the bench.

A second option is a glass plate and wet/dry sandpaper. You’ll be amazed at how well this works and you can experiment with grits. Auto parts stores sell packs of half-sheet sandpaper in the paint section. 320 grit, 600 grit and a leather strop. Maybe add 1500 grit for kitchen knives.

Or get a dual-side diamond stone in Fine / Extra Fine.

See how the grits have almost no correlation between these options?
 
If you want my honest advice-

One of the best sharpening systems on the planet is a 1x30 belt sander from Harbor Freight. Grab a 220 ceramic belt and a 600 ceramic belt, (and a 15 micron if you want to get super polished edges). Zip, zip done. Finish on a leather strop. (edit: harbor freight will not have these belts. You will have to order them from Tru Grit or grab some on Amazon.)

I love stones but I haven’t got the time. Stones are a labor of love kind of thing. There is no doubt that you can get the ultimate refined edge on a stone. Seriously, there is no better edge. But getting the skills to do that takes a very long time and a lot of practice. Again- labor of love. The ultimate anything comes at a price. For sharpening on stones, that price is measured in hundreds of hours of practice. Of course you can become proficient in much less time, but that perfect edge on stones is really a wonder to behold and it’s worth learning how.

….until you spend two hours on an edge and immediately run your edge across a staple opening a box.
 
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+1 on the DMT diamond stones. I use a Lansky set up for smaller blades which also works great, but got the DMT diamond stones for larger knives like chef knives. I think I have 600 and 1200 if I remember correctly.

Another plus is you can hold them with a magnet, either in hand or in a vise. I use a welder's magnet in a vise sometimes because then it frees up both hands to maintain the angle a bit better.
 
On the DMTs I got the Corse, Fine and Extra Fine I bought Bench Stones 11-1/2"x 2-1/2" (Largest ones they make cause I need all the help I can get!). I only have ever used the Corse to reprofile an edge if it had a chip in it. If you are interested in any type of sharpening "stone" The owner of The Perfect Edge is super knowledgeable about all of the stones and how to use them! His name is Howard Schecter and he use to put a sharpening class on at the Adirondack Folk School (if I remember right) I was going to take it but Covid screwed that up! He actually specializes in Stright Razors and has a sharpening service, GREAT GUY! GREAT SERVICE, if he ever offers the class again I will be first in line! LOL!!
 
I am fond of my Spyderco ceramic bench stones (fine and ultrafine). There are diamond stones, Japanese waterstone, oilstones here that I've been collecting my whole life but I prefer maintaining edges with the ceramics. Adding in their "medium" boron stone will give you grits to solve most maintenance issues.
 
Just be aware that the “grit” of one type or brand of stone may have almost no relationship to the grit of another. It’s not even remotely standard like sandpaper.

For example, a tremendous value setup for the money is a King 1000 waterstone and a King 6000 waterstone. followed by a leather strop, or some denim if you can’t find a strop. Add a sharpening stone holder, it really makes life easier when the stone isn’t skidding across the bench.

A second option is a glass plate and wet/dry sandpaper. You’ll be amazed at how well this works and you can experiment with grits. Auto parts stores sell packs of half-sheet sandpaper in the paint section. 320 grit, 600 grit and a leather strop. Maybe add 1500 grit for kitchen knives.

Or get a dual-side diamond stone in Fine / Extra Fine.

See how the grits have almost no correlation between these options?

I had no idea. Thank you for the heads up!
 
If you want my honest advice-

One of the best sharpening systems on the planet is a 1x30 belt sander from Harbor Freight. Grab a 220 ceramic belt and a 600 ceramic belt, (and a 15 micron if you want to get super polished edges). Zip, zip done. Finish on a leather strop. (edit: harbor freight will not have these belts. You will have to order them from Tru Grit or grab some on Amazon.)

I love stones but I haven’t got the time. Stones are a labor of love kind of thing. There is no doubt that you can get the ultimate refined edge on a stone. Seriously, there is no better edge. But getting the skills to do that takes a very long time and a lot of practice. Again- labor of love. The ultimate anything comes at a price. For sharpening on stones, that price is measured in hundreds of hours of practice. Of course you can become proficient in much less time, but that perfect edge on stones is really a wonder to behold and it’s worth learning how.

….until you spend two hours on an edge and immediately run your edge across a staple opening a box.

Ive never used a stone once so I most likely will need a lot of practice. To be honest I dont think Id use the knives to the point where they need real work but rather a touch up sort of thing like as you said 'zip zip done' probably is better for me and my needs. Thank you! I am definitely going to hit up HF this weekend.
 
Ive never used a stone once so I most likely will need a lot of practice. To be honest I dont think Id use the knives to the point where they need real work but rather a touch up sort of thing like as you said 'zip zip done' probably is better for me and my needs. Thank you! I am definitely going to hit up HF this weekend.
after initial sharp...never need a stone...just strop with green buffing compound. Jmo....or what I do.
 
The guys here will never steer you wrong. As you’ve read above, there are a dozen ways to skin a cat.

No matter which route you take, one of these belongs in every toolbox, tackle box, glove box, or bugout bag on earth. It’s too cheap not to have and works like a champ. Is it going to replace bench stones or a belt sander? Of course not. But I can put a shaving sharp edge on a busted a## beater knife in minutes. For a good knife, just a few swipes will bring back a hair popping edge.

DMT Diafold in fine/extra fine. About $30 on Amazon. It’s about 4 inches long when closed.
 

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The 1x30 will sharpen knives very quickly, just need to be very light on the pressure and let the belt do the work so you don't overheat the edge. I will use my variable speed 2x72 and a 120 grit belt to cut in the primary bevels and then jump to a 400 grit belt to clean up the edge a bit and make sure I have an apex, and then I progress to Japanese Water stones (Bester 1200 and Rika 5K) and then strop. You can get a sharpening assortment of belts on amazon for the 1x30 that work pretty well. Just remember for a touch up, you don't need to work all the way up the grit range. Even a 600 or 1000 or leather stropping belt may be all you need to bring an edge back.

I had a King 1000/6000 combo stone and it was very soft and slow to sharpen, especially with higher alloyed steels and dished quickly. Amazon has a bunch of water stones, but I would stick with a real name brand like Norton, Bester, Suehiro, Shapton, Cerax etc and not go with the knock off funny name stones since they won't work as well. I have some of those cheap stones and they suck. Stones take more practice and longer to sharpen.

Ken Onion has some sharpeners, both belt and stone versions. The stone ones have built in angle guides, too. Diamonds work quickly, but leave a coarser edge than I prefer, even when using 1000+ grit diamonds. HF has a 4 sided diamond stone that is pretty inexpensive, too. Diamonds work quickly, but still require some practice/patience.

Belt Sander or Ken Onion Worksharp are the fastest options, but be aware they can remove material quickly or over heat steel if used incorrectly.
 
Just be aware that the “grit” of one type or brand of stone may have almost no relationship to the grit of another. It’s not even remotely standard like sandpaper.

For example, a tremendous value setup for the money is a King 1000 waterstone and a King 6000 waterstone. followed by a leather strop, or some denim if you can’t find a strop. Add a sharpening stone holder, it really makes life easier when the stone isn’t skidding across the bench.

A second option is a glass plate and wet/dry sandpaper. You’ll be amazed at how well this works and you can experiment with grits. Auto parts stores sell packs of half-sheet sandpaper in the paint section. 320 grit, 600 grit and a leather strop. Maybe add 1500 grit for kitchen knives.

Or get a dual-side diamond stone in Fine / Extra Fine.

See how the grits have almost no correlation between these options check out PREMIUM DAMASCUS KNIVES?
I'm tired of the crappy knife sets that I keep buying from most of the chain stores around here. Does anyone have any good recommendations for a quality kitchen set? We don't need a huge set or anything, but just a pretty standard set of something quality that will last for a lot of years. I'm not opposed to having to buy some knives separately, like a single chef knife, or a set of steak knives.
 
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