Who Has Switched From the Wicked Edge to the Edge Pro System, and Why?

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For resin bond diamond, I find the fastest grit progression is to halve the abrasive size for the next stone. This seems to work on steel, ceramic, and quartz so pretty universal. I don't know if this works for other abrasives or bonds but I think it would be a good starting point.

With water stones that's the same way you should progress or at least that's what I have been told many years ago and still use that same progression today with water or diamond stones.
 
I have Shapton glass for my Edge-Pro in 220, 500, 1k, 2K.

I dearly love them. I will eventually get them up to 15K. But for the time being, my Shapton Pro stones from 5K to 30K are in good condition and work well. As they wear, I will replace them with glass stones.
 
I do not care for the 6 8 and 16K at all,they are very slow cutting stones or polishing however you want to say it and with all the extra maintenance you you have to do to them so they cut fast is not worth it to me.

I'd rather use Chosera's Sigma Power 2 or something from Suehiro before using anything Shapton in the higher grit range's and the cost of some of the Shaptons is a bit high.
 
I do not care for the 6 8 and 16K at all,they are very slow cutting stones or polishing however you want to say it and with all the extra maintenance you you have to do to them so they cut fast is not worth it to me.

I'd rather use Chosera's Sigma Power 2 or something from Suehiro before using anything Shapton in the higher grit range's and the cost of some of the Shaptons is a bit high.

Wade, it depends on what you are doing. I personally consider anything above 5K as a "polishing" stone. But I like a polished edge on some (not all) of my knives.

Haven't tried Suehiro yet. The only Chosera that I used were softer than I like. Good stones, but I prefer them a bit harder.
 
I understand all of that Ben just don't like the Shapton Glass stones and I don't think I ever will.

You should look at the Suehiro 10 and 20K stones they are very hard stones and will last you an extremely long time,they also put a polish on an edge like no other stone.
The Suehiro stones are often referred to as being under rated,a lot of people feel the 10K is more like 15 and the 20K is more like a 25K.
 
The Suehiro stones are often referred to as being under rated,a lot of people feel the 10K is more like 15 and the 20K is more like a 25K.

There is no Japanese standard above 8000 grit so it is best to avoid statements like this in my opinion.
 
Getting back on track here...

Does anyone have experience with the Shapton Glass stones? I read a review on a website they are sold on and the guy said that the Shapton 500, 2K and 16K were his main go to stones that produced a great mirror finish on all his blades.

Now I take this with a grain of salt, but if that is true that you can go from a 500 to a 2K, then to a 16K and get a nice mirror finish with 3 stones, then I am in!

I'm just wondering if anyone has actual experience anywhere close to that?


Shapton Glass stones are some of the best waterstones money can buy but they are not magic. The 3 stone combo works very well but truthfully the 500 and 2000 is more than enough for most any cutting tool and the 500 plus a strop is about perfect for most edc knives. I've had customers tell me "what a beautiful polish" when I have used no more than the SG2000. These stones polish as you sharpen so the finish always looks better than what the grit rating would suggest.

The SG16K is a special stone and has a very high concentration of abrasive which allows it to work so well after the SG2K. Will it always be a perfect finish? No, but you will have a "mirror edge" that will impress anyone else, even the folks here, in far less time than you ever thought. Probably a more impressive degree of sharpness than you have experienced with stropped edges too.

THAT SAID! I only use the SG16K for straight razors and sushi knives.
 
Shapton Glass stones are some of the best waterstones money can buy but they are not magic. The 3 stone combo works very well but truthfully the 500 and 2000 is more than enough for most any cutting tool and the 500 plus a strop is about perfect for most edc knives. I've had customers tell me "what a beautiful polish" when I have used no more than the SG2000. These stones polish as you sharpen so the finish always looks better than what the grit rating would suggest.

Jason B. Jason B.
Thank you so much for sharing your experience with these stones! Again, coming from the diamond only stone world of the Wicked Edge, I had no idea what any "normal" progression was with water stones. After hearing confirmation from you on these, they will be another purchase if/when I pick up the Edge Pro.

The SG16K is a special stone and has a very high concentration of abrasive which allows it to work so well after the SG2K. Will it always be a perfect finish? No, but you will have a "mirror edge" that will impress anyone else, even the folks here, in far less time than you ever thought. Probably a more impressive degree of sharpness than you have experienced with stropped edges too.

This is some great news, too. It does seem like there is a trade off between polish and actual sharpness, so when you say that there is not only an awesome degree of polish AND an increase in sharpness with just these 3 stones, that is music to my ears!

Quick question on these stones then. If you were going to strop either after the 2K or 16K stone, what level of compound would you use? I have from 4 micron down to 0.25 micron available to me.

Thanks again!
 
Jason B. Jason B.
Thank you so much for sharing your experience with these stones! Again, coming from the diamond only stone world of the Wicked Edge, I had no idea what any "normal" progression was with water stones. After hearing confirmation from you on these, they will be another purchase if/when I pick up the Edge Pro.



This is some great news, too. It does seem like there is a trade off between polish and actual sharpness, so when you say that there is not only an awesome degree of polish AND an increase in sharpness with just these 3 stones, that is music to my ears!

Quick question on these stones then. If you were going to strop either after the 2K or 16K stone, what level of compound would you use? I have from 4 micron down to 0.25 micron available to me.

Thanks again!

A normal progression of waterstones has a lot of variables. Steel hardness alone can can make some stones ineffective and then there is high alloy steels. With the Shapton Glass stones you are getting ceramic abrasive which extends the cutting ability beyond what most waterstones are capable of. I still consider 4% Vanadium to be the tipping point at which diamond abrasives are required but up to that point the Glass Stones have you covered.

The difference in sharpness you will experience will come from NOT stropping. The rounding from stropping and the difference of a compound VS a solid abrasive will make a big difference in the feel of the final edge. You can cleanly come off the 2k and 16k stone without the need to strop. If you want more polish then a 1 micron compound would be my recommendation.
 
Steel hardness alone can can make some stones ineffective and then there is high alloy steels. With the Shapton Glass stones you are getting ceramic abrasive which extends the cutting ability beyond what most waterstones are capable of. I still consider 4% Vanadium to be the tipping point at which diamond abrasives are required but up to that point the Glass Stones have you covered.

So if I remember correctly, something like S90V/S110V is around 9% Vanadium. Are you saying that I would need diamonds exclusively for those steels, or could I set the bevel with diamonds first, then use the Shaptons for the final finish/polish?

Also, I don't know the specific formula for M390 (or where to find it), but would the Shapton's work on that steel?

Thanks again sir!
 
Thanks, Jason. Glad you saw the
644aed5700ef032be0a4e20ea39f9ef9.jpg
 
So if I remember correctly, something like S90V/S110V is around 9% Vanadium. Are you saying that I would need diamonds exclusively for those steels, or could I set the bevel with diamonds first, then use the Shaptons for the final finish/polish?

Also, I don't know the specific formula for M390 (or where to find it), but would the Shapton's work on that steel?

Thanks again sir!

Diamonds to both and actually, the higher the grit the worse the issues of abrasion get. At coarse levels the abrasive is larger than the carbide so the interaction is small. As the abrasive gets closer to the carbide size it becomes increasingly difficult for the abrasive to cut through the carbides. This is when the stone starts to glaze and coarse grits start to polish the edge. When your 1k starts acting like a 4k you know there is a problem. So, sharpen some 1095 or VG10 on the shapton stones then sharpen some S30V, get a feel for what happens with different levels of steels and it will start to make more sense.

Thanks, Jason. Glad you saw the
644aed5700ef032be0a4e20ea39f9ef9.jpg

Happy to help!
 
So if I remember correctly, something like S90V/S110V is around 9% Vanadium. Are you saying that I would need diamonds exclusively for those steels, or could I set the bevel with diamonds first, then use the Shaptons for the final finish/polish?

Also, I don't know the specific formula for M390 (or where to find it), but would the Shapton's work on that steel?

Thanks again sir!

The Z Knives site is very cool. There's a phone app too.

http://zknives.com/knives/steels/m390.shtml
 
Getting closer to pulling the trigger on the Edge Pro.

Thanks to all who have chimed in so far. Please keep the comments coming!
 
OK guys, after much deliberation (and procrastination) on my part, I pulled the trigger on my Edge Pro order!

I got the Professional model with the full set of Diamond Matrix stones, both the Slide Guide and Small Knife Attachment, and the leveling kit with both the 240 alox and 60 grit sic powder. In 2019 the Pro systems came standard with the removable magnets already built into the base, so that's another plus!

The system should be here by Wednesday or Thursday, and I'll be sure and post some thoughts and comparisons.

This is should be interesting, as I've used the WE for years. I know it will take some getting used to the new system, but I'm looking forward to trying something new.

Thanks again for all who posted here, and please feel free to share any other tips you guys come up with!
 
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Y'know... Edge Pro now makes a magnet attachment for their Apex sharpeners. I use a Professional, so it's not an option, but I don't really care. I've never used a Wicked Edge, so I can't comment on the original question.

I have an Edge Pro Professional model and you can get a magnet for the Pro Model. All you have to do is send your original blade table and Ben/Cody will upgrade your blade table for a magnet. I really like the magnet for helping set up the angle cube and holding a blade to sharpen.

Go to the Blog section of the Edge Pro website and read about the magnets for the various models.
 
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