Ceramic vs Diamond vs Synthetic vs Natural Sharpening stones

Ankerson said:
Windex.
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Wow. Being as you are one of the original old school dudes around here I was sure you were going to say oil.
You're the "Bad Boy" of SiC stones that's for sure.
And I thought I was all rogue. :)

PS : I've been taking a fresh look at using oil on stones that can be used with oil is why I asked. I've never used oil on good stones until now.
 
Ankerson said:
Toothy, and I don't strop them after, no need.
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First off I tried to figure this out from the grit chart I posted a link to above. I'm still not clear on the micron equivalent. To the far right is micron mesh and below there is the range of grits to fit into say for example an F400 designation.

I ordered a 400 SiC to fit into my Edge Pro (and a 120). They screwed up the order and sent a 8,000 SiC. Long story. (Now the 400 is no longer available).
I am about to reorder but Gritomatic no longer lists a 400 SiC sold at my vendor.
Here is a LINK>>>>> to a post with the scenario and details.

Basically my question is : What micron range is the 400 SiC stone you generally use for the rope cutting tests ?

From what I am seeing it could be anything from 8 micron to 32 micron.
Does it matter ?
But the 600 SiC stone that is actually available to order is 9 micron to 18 micron.
(the 400 SiC seems to be no longer available).
Should I get a 320 ?

help
 
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Wowbagger said:
First off I tried to figure this out from the grit chart I posted a link to above. I'm still not clear on the micron equivalent. To the far right is micron mesh and below there is the range of grits to fit into say for example an F400 designation.

I ordered a 400 SiC to fit into my Edge Pro (and a 120). They screwed up the order and sent a 8,000 SiC. Long story. (Now the 400 is no longer available).
I am about to reorder but Gritomatic no longer lists a 400 SiC sold at my vendor.
Here is a LINK>>>>> to a post with the scenario and detales.

Basically my question is : What micron range is the 400 SiC stone you generally use for the rope cutting tests ?

From what I am seeing is it could be anything from 8 micron to 32 micron.
Does it matter ?
But the 600 SiC stone that is acutaly available to order is 9 micron to 18 micron.
(the 400 SiC seems to be no longer available).

help
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https://www.congresstools.com/catalog/categories/get-subcategory/?id=27

1 x 1/8 x 6 - 320 and 400 Grit what I normally use.

Mount them on the EP plates.

Moldmaster 400 grit is 40 Micron

320 Grit is 45 Micron
 
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3-400 grit is a good place to camp for most all everyday usage with sharpening.
If you want sisal rope or cardboard cutting results to shoot up quite a bit, sharpen at 100 grit SiC. DM
 
First time poster resurrecting a very interesting older tread.

So I’ve decided that I’m going to make the effort to learn how to sharpen properly my kitchen knives.

I’m incline towards using stones which do not require lubricants, and I’ve read a lot of positive comments in here about the spyderco ceramic and eze-lap diamond, but I think these were coming predominantly from users of camping knives and the likes rather than kitchen knives. Would they still be recommend for Japanese stainless Damascus kitchen knives?

I’m thinking of sourcing the spyderco fine ceramic stone (8” x 2”), alternatively the Eze-lap fine diamond stone (also 8” x 2”), which are pretty much the same price, with the intention of adding maybe a coarser stone later on, as currently my knifes are all in good shape and only require fine sharpening (ie no big chips etc). Am I heading in the right direction?
Bearing in mind that I’m in OZ so I might not be able to source all the products offered by smaller suppliers available in US.
TIA
 
^^^^ For those knives, R rusty-pie , I think I'd go with ceramic and 'bonded diamond' hones as opposed to plated diamond...but I don't know which knives you have, so it's only conjecture at this point.

Another option would be Shapton Glass "splash and go" hones. I think they might be an excellent choice for you if you don't mind spraying the surface of the hone with some water.
 
For the moment only one quality Japanese knife, plus an older set of not so good western knives which I’ve used so far (Richardson Sheffield). I plan to buy one or two bottom shelf $5 knives to practice first. Would the spyderco ceramic stone be a good first stone then?
 
rusty-pie said:
For the moment only one quality Japanese knife, plus an older set of not so good western knives which I’ve used so far (Richardson Sheffield). I plan to buy one or two bottom shelf $5 knives to practice first. Would the spyderco ceramic stone be a good first stone then?
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It's an excellent stone for its niche...but it wouldn't be my first choice if the knives need serious sharpening. They are not aggressive, so it takes time to remove material. The Shaptons would be much more versatile in regard to removing material (much more quickly) and still leaving a fine edge for utility in the kitchen. The 500 and 2000 grit hones are classics.
 
rusty-pie said:
What about the eze-lap fine diamond stone instead? My local shop stocks those so easy to get.
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Sure, nothing wrong with them. They tend, in my experience, to be a bit more aggressive than a similarly rated DMT hone. So you might want to check out the "super fine" hone as well. Nothing wrong with picking up both. More options, depending on the edge you are looking for.

I have both the fine and super-fine in Edge Pro size (mounted on backing plates for that system).
 
Blues said:
I have both the fine and super-fine in Edge Pro size (mounted on backing plates for that system).
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Are these the diamond plates Edge Pro sold before the Matrix stones were introduced, or were these a custom job?
 
Mr.Wizard said:
Are these the diamond plates Edge Pro sold before the Matrix stones were introduced, or were these a custom job?
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They are still listed there if you go to Edge Pro Accessories : Sharpening Stones:

Listed as Fine and Super Fine Diamond hones. (They are Eze-Lap mounted on Edge Pro backers. At least they were when I bought them years ago. Confirmed by Ben Dale during a conversation with him.)
 
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