If you could have only one sharpening stone...

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microtech85

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Dec 1, 2015
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If you could have only one sharpening stone, what would it be? or what approximate grit? I think if i could have only one, it would be the dmt fine, 600 grit. I would choose this because of its low maintenance and the fact that you can use it dry. More importantly, when it loads up with swarf i am able to simply wipe it clean with a dry paper towel or with some water. With ceramic, i would have to have special cleaning supplies such as comet and scouring pad or a ceramic eraser which will eventually reqquire the deep cleaning with comet. I like 600 grit dmt because i can bring an edge back from very dull very quickly, yet it leaves a very nice fine edge that is great for edc knives and kitchen knives. Also very important is that the stone is very flat and remains flat which is crucial for successful sharpening. i think it may be one of the best single stone solutions. What do you guys think? What would you choose?
 
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I agree with the DMT fine for the reasons you state— and own one of the large bench stones with interrupted surface.

But if I could only have ONE I’d probably go with the norton fine India.
 
Venev bonded diamond stones. Dual sided.

Dunno there grit scale so I'll just say coarse and medium.
 
Only one? Probably one of my Bull Thistle scythe stones. It's fairly coarse but you can get a shaving-sharp edge off it. If I could literally only have one stone, it'd need to be something coarse, and in a scythe stone shape. Scythe stones are, in my opinion, one of the most versatile of stone shapes around, and I'd want a sufficiently coarse stone for repairing damage in a reasonable span of time. Hit something you didn't intend to with your edge and a fine stone is going to bring a world of frustration.
 
If limited to 1 for the long term and it needs to be able to sharpen many kinds of steels and tasks ranging from profiling to finishing: DMT duosharp W8ECNB. This is an 8" diamond plate with Coarse/Extra-fine, and with those two mesh ratings plus some kind of improvised strop, I could get good working edges on just about any type of user blade I can think of.
 
Eww so many to choose from... I would have to go with a norton fine india stone if I had to choose 1 grit. If I could choose a 2 grit it would be the norton 2 sided coarse and fine india. Didn't choose diamonds because I don't get as much pleasure using them. Didn't choose waterstones because I can't stop at just 1 grit or even at just 2 grit's. I am becoming a big fan of the fine india stone. Haven't had one for very long but I really enjoy the toothy edge it leaves on my EDC.
 
microtech85 said:
If you could only have one sharpening stone, what would it be? or what approximate grit? I think if i could only have one, it would be the dmt fine, 600 grit. I would choose this because of its low maintenance and the fact that you can use it dry. More importantly, when it loads up with swarf i am able to simply wipe it clean with a dry paper towel or with some water. With ceramic, i would have to have special cleaning supplies such as comet and scouring pad or a ceramic eraser which will eventually reqquire the deep cleaning with comet. I like 600 grit dmt because i can bring an edge back from very dull very quickly, yet it leaves a very nice fine edge that is great for edc knives and kitchen knives. Also very important is that the stone is very flat and remains flat which is crucial for successful sharpening. i think it may be one of the best single stone solutions. What do you guys think? What would you choose?
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WHATDAHYAHNUTS ?

:mad: :( :( life wouldn't be worth continuing . . . :( :( . . . :(
You ask me to CHOOSE between reproifiling . . . the necessity after buying most knives . . . and polished edges that cut the way I need them to . . . no profiling = sucky cutting . . . no polishing (at least stropping toothy) = sucky cutting.
nnnnoooooooooooOOO !
I'll get back to you . . . :confused: :confused: :confused: o_O o_O o_O

PS: I was going to say I would go with a Shapton Pro White 120 . . . buuuuuuuuuut . . . .
then there is all that diamond requiring super vanadium stuff . . . and I hate diamonds so much . . . rough scratchy things . . . o_O o_O o_O :confused: :confused: :confused:
what a question
you suck :)
 
Mo2 said:
Venev bonded diamond stones. Dual sided.

Dunno there grit scale so I'll just say coarse and medium.
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AhoooogAAAAH . . . AhooogAAAH
disqualified !
That's two stones.
Or do I get to glue two of my Shaptons together ?
Nah Dude, Nah.
:)
 
maximus83 said:
If limited to 1 for the long term and it needs to be able to sharpen many kinds of steels and tasks ranging from profiling to finishing: DMT duosharp W8ECNB. This is an 8" diamond plate with Coarse/Extra-fine, and with those two mesh ratings plus some kind of improvised strop, I could get good working edges on just about any type of user blade I can think of.
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I concur. I just recently bought that stone. I think it has great versatility. So if i could list a two grit stone, it would be the coarse/extra fine dmt duosharp. In the spirit of the thread for a single grit stone, i would choose fine.
 
maximus83 said:
Coarse/Extra-fine, and with those two mesh ratings plus some kind of improvised strop,
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sheeeee now we are up to "three" "stones".
Gosh this isn't going to be as hard as I thought . . . oh . . . I hit that poor old person when I threw the rule book out the window there . . . :eek:
 
Wowbagger said:
sheeeee now we are up to "three" "stones".
Gosh this isn't going to be as hard as I thought . . . oh . . . I hit that poor old person when I threw the rule book out the window there . . . :eek:
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How do you figure? One dual-grit stone, and a strop. Which almost all of us who don't have "perfect" stone techniques mastered must use. :-) But since I can gin up a strop out of a leather belt, a board, or my jeans, it's nothing to acquire, right?
 
All in all, I think coarse stones are severely under-valued and should really be considered as the foundation of all other sharpening work. A good coarse stone can remove material at high speed, but with good technique can also be used to produce surprisingly fine edges. Meanwhile, fine stones are good for routine maintenance, but if you're a serious user of edged tools, it's just about inevitable that you'll end up with an edge that's damaged beyond what a fine stone can easily iron out. An overabundance of fine stones is a sure path to impatience and rounded edges from trying to cheat and shortcut the sharpening process by increasing the edge angle.
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
All in all, I think coarse stones are severely under-valued and should really be considered as the foundation of all other sharpening work. A good coarse stone can remove material at high speed, but with good technique can also be used to produce surprisingly fine edges. Meanwhile, fine stones are good for routine maintenance, but if you're a serious user of edged tools, it's just about inevitable that you'll end up with an edge that's damaged beyond what a fine stone can easily iron out. An overabundance of fine stones is a sure path to impatience and rounded edges from trying to cheat and shortcut the sharpening process by increasing the edge angle.
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I completely see the value in coarse stones, that i why i bought the duosharp coarse/extra-fine. However, for me personally, i touch up my edc knife (a 940-1 with 20cv steel), on a regular basis. Because of this, i so very rarely must go coarser than the dmt fine. In fact, i rarely go coarser than dmt extra fine or spyderco medium ceramic. So, for the way i maintain my knives, i consider the fine to be more than adequate. If i had to maintain several tools and knives regularly, i think i would choose coarse for the sake of efficiency.
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
All in all, I think coarse stones are severely under-valued and should really be considered as the foundation of all other sharpening work. A good coarse stone can remove material at high speed, but with good technique can also be used to produce surprisingly fine edges. Meanwhile, fine stones are good for routine maintenance, but if you're a serious user of edged tools, it's just about inevitable that you'll end up with an edge that's damaged beyond what a fine stone can easily iron out. An overabundance of fine stones is a sure path to impatience and rounded edges from trying to cheat and shortcut the sharpening process by increasing the edge angle.
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This is a good point, and it depends on how the blade is used and maintained.

I have to use ridiculously sharp knives, and if I do a good job setting the edge with a series of coarser ==> finer media, I can get 10+ years out of one "sharpening." This includes using the knife for hours/day and meticulous maintenance. When it is time to thin the blade and/or regrind/resharpen, I will want something coarser. But only selecting one item, I can't get the refined edge I need with the coarse stone--so it's a tough question.
 
If we're limiting it to a single GRIT and not just a single stone, I'd go with DMT XC (220). Because it can do a lot more, a lot faster, than even the DMT coarse can when you have to repair a wide range of tool types, but can still put on a good finish too.
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
All in all, I think coarse stones are severely under-valued and should really be considered as the foundation of all other sharpening work. A good coarse stone can remove material at high speed, but with good technique can also be used to produce surprisingly fine edges. Meanwhile, fine stones are good for routine maintenance, but if you're a serious user of edged tools, it's just about inevitable that you'll end up with an edge that's damaged beyond what a fine stone can easily iron out. An overabundance of fine stones is a sure path to impatience and rounded edges from trying to cheat and shortcut the sharpening process by increasing the edge angle.
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This and what 83 said above. For me it's an easy choice. I'd get a coarse SiC stone in about 150 grit. They are just sooo much more versatile,
and faster than finer stones. And I'd shy away from diamonds. For someone Just maintaining Their own knives, ok go finer. But the coarse stone is the work-horse of sharpening. Without it you are taking the long way around the mountain. With only it you can get a good quick edge off it.
Then later strop or refine it further on many surfaces. From your garden tools, Mother in laws knives to sharpening for neighbors get the coarse
stone first. DM
 
I'll play by the rules and choose one.
A lot of my blades actually require diamond, and I find diamond good for everything else too.
As much as I like to finish with the fine/600, I'm always repairing damage.
Although not my preferred 1st stone for damage, the eze-lap coarse/250 is 10x faster for that than the f/600.
The c/250 is also capable of a very respectable finished edge, with the right technique.
Interrupted surface can be a problem.

So my 1 stone and grit solution is eze-lap coarse/250 continuous diamond. This is BTW, what has always in my wallet and on me, for the last 20+ years. It's seen a lot of use.
 
For all the knives I typically carry (small/medium-sized folders), I could do everything and have done everything, occasionally, with a DMT Fine (600). That said, I could also get by with a DMT Coarse (325). I specify diamond, simply because it offers that much more portability and ease of use, with literally any steel or other edged tool (ceramic blades, carbide-tipped tools, etc). That, and I also happen to carry it in my wallet everyday anyway (DMT credit card hones). It's already my DEFAULT, Go-To hone, in the event I might, someday, have to choose only one. ;)

The grinding speed of a coarser (XC) hone is advantageous at times, for larger & thicker blades. But, for the smaller, thinner, finer blades that I use most often (traditional knives in simple steels), an XC would leave the edges on those too rough, and eat too much steel away from those preciously-thin edges. I've never used or needed anything coarser than ~325 (in diamond, SiC, AlOx) for those. So, I'd trade away some grinding speed for a finish that works better and preserves their life longer, for those knives.
 
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