Best overa all 2 stones + strop?

For simpler stainless kitchen knives, an 8" diamond hone in a Fine grit can do a lot. These steels grind & sharpen easily, and even inexpensive kitchen knives aren't awfully thick-bladed, therefore not needing lots of metal removal. So, a Coarse diamond hone isn't absolutely necessary as a maintenance hone on such knives. The main advantage is the length of the hone, as longer, sweeping passes will really speed up the work. The 600 (Fine) DMT will leave a finish very similar to the Fine India anyway (and it might even be coarser), as the diamond is that much more aggressive in metal removal and will cut much more deeply for the rated grit size. And for a novice in sharpening, the feedback from a Fine/EF will be less intimidating than with a coarser diamond hone, from which the heavy, ugly scratches produced can be a confidence-killer to someone trying to learn.

With simple stainless on a diamond hone, I'd recommend it be used with some lubrication (water, water + dish soap, mineral oil, etc) to keep the hone from getting clogged. Softer stainless can do that pretty quickly, on a diamond hone.
 
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Ok, I see what you're saying. When you get them use them a while and see what you think. DM
 
David Martin said:
Ok, I see what you're saying. When you get them use them a while and see what you think. DM
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I think it's intended as a gift for his friends who are inexperienced when it comes to sharpening.
 
It is actually for my younger brother but I do plan on doing using it on ocassion. He kinda knows what he is doing but its varies wildly at times. I think it is easier to learn on diamonds since you need way less strokes and therefore have less opportunities to make a mistake.
 
asterik216 said:
It is actually for my younger brother but I do plan on doing using it on ocassion. He kinda knows what he is doing but its varies wildly at times. I think it is easier to learn on diamonds since you need way less strokes and therefore have less opportunities to make a mistake.
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That's a nice gift. I do, however, agree with David M and others who are recommending a coarse stone. I could type a bunch of stuff about it, but it turns out I already did. I call it secret #7:

https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/the-seven-secrets-of-sharpening.1353408/page-2#post-15571248

Brian.
 
bgentry said:
That's a nice gift. I do, however, agree with David M and others who are recommending a coarse stone. I could type a bunch of stuff about it, but it turns out I already did. I call it secret #7:

https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/the-seven-secrets-of-sharpening.1353408/page-2#post-15571248

Brian.
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I do agree you need to have a course stone so I don't know if it seemed like I don't think they are needed. Your not doing your self any favors by not using one when the job calls for it and would be ridiculously inefficient. I have coarse stones and use them plenty but they don't get used as much as something like stones in the 400 and 1000 range as that is something you might use every time on typical sharpening or touch up. You probably also can get away with a fairly cheap coarse stone it will just take longer to cut. He can go out and buy one himself anyways. I was just being nice and thought I would surprise him with something. If worse comes to worse I have a crappy 8" smiths combination stone that I don't use. If I remember that stone is supposed to be something really low like like like 120 and 260 but I don't think that's right as one side isn't really coarse at all.
 
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