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Sharpening Stones: Cheap vs. Expensive
- Thread starter JAT
- Start date
- Joined
- Oct 16, 2001
- Messages
- 1,917
With almost anything, and certainly with all abrasives, you get essentially what you pay for. A Norton fine India stone will serve you much better than a $2 Chinese stone, though both may be made from Aluminum oxide. A Norton hard Arkansas stone (No, I don't work for Norton 
) will serve you much better than a $7 stone off of Ebay, though both are made from Novaculite. And so on.
I would also add that if you are putting your final edge on with a stone, you would do well to invest in a good one, or two. If not, no matter how good your knife may be, you will never get peak performance from it, and you may well shorten its life.
Good luck,
John Frankl
) will serve you much better than a $7 stone off of Ebay, though both are made from Novaculite. And so on. I would also add that if you are putting your final edge on with a stone, you would do well to invest in a good one, or two. If not, no matter how good your knife may be, you will never get peak performance from it, and you may well shorten its life.
Good luck,
John Frankl
- Joined
- Nov 27, 1999
- Messages
- 3,745
Rodger gave you the short answer and John gave you the long one.
Ditto to both
I will add that the old time craftsmen who made their living with edged tools, valued their stones above all else. The more they were used the better they goy and I think stealing ones stone was justifable cause for hanging!
Ditto to both
I will add that the old time craftsmen who made their living with edged tools, valued their stones above all else. The more they were used the better they goy and I think stealing ones stone was justifable cause for hanging!
If I might make a plug here ...
These are probably the finest stones you'll find (other than natural Japanese stones):
http://shaptonstones.com/stones/Professional-Series.php
Steve
No I don't work there.
These are probably the finest stones you'll find (other than natural Japanese stones):
http://shaptonstones.com/stones/Professional-Series.php
Steve
No I don't work there.
- Joined
- May 26, 2000
- Messages
- 1,922
I'd read in woodworking mags that the Shapton's were excellent. Shapton would certainly seem to be serious about stones, given they offer a #15000 ($120) and a #30000 stone ($595!). Those are extremely fine grit stones. Assuming the grit rating is similar to my water stones, #8000 puts a near mirror, superduper hair jumpin edge on my wood hand planer blade.
Norton's synthetic water stones are quite good also... they cut very fast (faster than Arkansas or India stones)... IF you are willing to put up with the water stone's propensity to dish out (you have to flatten them once in a while with, e.g., a nice flat and coarser diamond stone.)
(to be clear, fine grits put a seriously polished edge on a knife... that isn't always what I want, so I usually leave my working knives a bit toothy with a DMT fine diamond stone. Refined and polished DOES help with wood hand planers, however...cuts wood grain more cleanly).
Norton's synthetic water stones are quite good also... they cut very fast (faster than Arkansas or India stones)... IF you are willing to put up with the water stone's propensity to dish out (you have to flatten them once in a while with, e.g., a nice flat and coarser diamond stone.)
(to be clear, fine grits put a seriously polished edge on a knife... that isn't always what I want, so I usually leave my working knives a bit toothy with a DMT fine diamond stone. Refined and polished DOES help with wood hand planers, however...cuts wood grain more cleanly).