Which sizes of silicon carbide grits do I need?

T

tess_lawrie_fan

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Apr 18, 2021
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Hi all!

I'm a beginner in the art of sharpening, and therefore I need flat stones in order to learn. I've used SiC #220 from a friend to flat my 1k stone and it worked very fast and very well.

Now I want to buy my own SiC for the stones that I have and also for all the stones that I may have in the future. I did my homework reading all posts about flattening and silicon carbide in this forum, so I already know which grit sizes I want: #60, #120, #220, #320, #400.

However, I don't want to miss the opportunity to buy also a bit of a finer grit, even knowing it may be less useful (and more dangerous) than the other grits. That's why I'm asking for your help. Which one should I choose:#500, #600 or #800?
 
Sic powder is good.because it's cheap and works.fast. it's a little.messy. you can use the 60 grit to flatten a stone. And I would use sic wet/dry sandpaper to finish it up. I dont find a high polish useful on a stone and stop at 600 grit. So I would get 120, 220 and 600. Adequate for me.
 
Bill3152 said:
Sic powder is good.because it's cheap and works.fast. it's a little.messy. you can use the 60 grit to flatten a stone. And I would use sic wet/dry sandpaper to finish it up. I dont find a high polish useful on a stone and stop at 600 grit. So I would get 120, 220 and 600. Adequate for me.
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Thanks for the input. I'm indeed leaning for the #600, but I'm not sure yet.
 
Silicon carbide is friable, so it gets finer and finer as you work it. It's still good to have finer grades so that you can start where you want, and to avoid stray coarse grits that don't get worked down. Nevertheless you may not need quite as many grades as you list. A fairly even geometric spacing would be #60, #100, #220, #320, #500.
 
Black is the least friable Sic and I would go with 60 and 240. It grinds up so fast any finer makes no sense IMO.
 
Diemaker said:
Black is the least friable Sic and I would go with 60 and 240. It grinds up so fast any finer makes no sense IMO.
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Thanks for the input. Black SiC will be.

Mr.Wizard said:
Silicon carbide is friable, so it gets finer and finer as you work it. It's still good to have finer grades so that you can start where you want, and to avoid stray coarse grits that don't get worked down. Nevertheless you may not need quite as many grades as you list. A fairly even geometric spacing would be #60, #100, #220, #320, #500.
Click to expand...

Thank you so much for the input. So much in so few words.

In order to avoid the "glazing" effect, I don't want to work each stone in excess. I want to work quickly. That's another reason to worry about having remains of coarse grits on the glass.

I want to have finer grades because I know that in the future I'll buy finer stones, and yes, I want to be able to start anywhere. Your 5 grits suggestion is excellent. Thanks again.
 
This is an interest of mine as well... Are there any bladeforums supporting dealers that offer silicon carbide powder? Or should I look elsewhere?
 
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