Best stones to learn to freehand sharpen with?

Kalsu

Kalsu

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I currently use a Wicked Edge sharpener to sharpen all my knives. It works great and is easy for me to use and I can get some pretty scary sharp edges on my knives with it.

With that being said recently I have been wanting to learn how to free hand sharpen knives. The Wicked Edge is awesome I just want to develop my skills at free hand sharpening. I have been looking at stones and honestly don't know where to start. There are Diamond stones, Arkansas stones, waterstones (you all get what I am saying). I have been taking the rods from my Spyderco Sharpmaker and using them in the holder on the back of the case which effectively turns it into a benchtone. Its just time to trade into something else now.

So my question to you is what stones do you suggest starting out on? I realize this is probably a pretty vague question, but I am looking for a good place to start. :thumbup:
 
Recommend start out with:
DMT XC - for massive metal removal & flatten stones
Beston 500 - smoothout dmt xc scratches
Red Brick 1K - inflection point from rought to refine edge
Arashiyama 6K - polish (add a 3K stone if you have high rc blades)
Strops - loaded & plain

Once knuttized -> add high end stones!
 
bluntcut said:
Recommend start out with:
DMT XC - for massive metal removal & flatten stones
Beston 500 - smoothout dmt xc scratches
Red Brick 1K - inflection point from rought to refine edge
Arashiyama 6K - polish (add a 3K stone if you have high rc blades)
Strops - loaded & plain

Once knuttized -> add high end stones!
Click to expand...

Thanks for the suggestions. It looks like you prefer waterstones? What do you think about DMT's finer grit stones?
 
Waterstones will let you know when you mess up and reward you when you do not. A good method of learning freehand.

I would recommend the 1k & 6k arashiyama stones, they pair up perfectly and with a WE at hand there is no need for a full set.... yet.
 
knifenut1013 said:
Waterstones will let you know when you mess up and reward you when you do not. A good method of learning freehand.

I would recommend the 1k & 6k arashiyama stones, they pair up perfectly and with a WE at hand there is no need for a full set.... yet.
Click to expand...

I like that. I could totally see myself not using the WE much when I learn to free hand sharpen proficiently. It is always something I have wanted to learn and a pretty cool (and useful) skill set to have IMHO.
 
Where is the best place to buy these stones? I am finding them at a few places on line just wondering where you guys get them?

Edit: Found some at chefknivestogo.com.
 
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I buy from sellers that: knowledgable, carries high end stones and lot of customer comments. Low price but not the cheapest.

Water stones (alumina is the common abrasive) - abrade steel matrix and soft carbide. Cuts more shallow thus smooth surface.

Diamont stones - VERY aggressively adbrade steel & shear high MOHS carbide (e.g. V carbide clump in D2). Cut deep trenches, so grit for grit is not the same between alumina & diamond. Per my other posts about DMT stones - I destroyed these guys quickly... maybe I somehow attain patience when time to acquire a new set of dmt stones.
 
bluntcut said:
I buy from sellers that: knowledgable, carries high end stones and lot of customer comments. Low price but not the cheapest.

Water stones (alumina is the common abrasive) - abrade steel matrix and soft carbide. Cuts more shallow thus smooth surface.

Diamont stones - VERY aggressively adbrade steel & shear high MOHS carbide (e.g. V carbide clump in D2). Cut deep trenches, so grit for grit is not the same between alumina & diamond. Per my other posts about DMT stones - I destroyed these guys quickly... maybe I somehow attain patience when time to acquire a new set of dmt stones.
Click to expand...


I see. I never really thought much about the different cutting mediums between diamond and water stones. It makes sense though.

I am leaning towards the 1k & 6k arashiyama stones. Maybe a coarser stone later. Is there a need for any stones between the 1k and 6k?
 
No, they are made to work with each other.
 
knifenut1013 said:
No, they are made to work with each other.
Click to expand...

Cool. Thanks.

This is going to be all sorts of fun learning. Don't be surprised though if you see some "What the heck am I doing wrong I can't get my knife sharp" threads. Still going to be fun. I am really looking forward to learning this skill.
 
I am very happy with my 11"x3" utility stone and a full set of Spyderco ceramic benchstones. I would skip the higher grit stuff for the first little while, in the past I've wasted a ton of time polishing an edge that wasn't ground down enough on the lowest grit.
For utility use a dual grit stone is usually more than enough.
 
So what stones would be good for initial sharpening/edge setting? 500 grit or lower?

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
 
Suggest to get stones that gives you the feedback (sound, slurry, grind pattern) like suggested above. Once the skill is acquired, any abrasive medium can do ;)

Find a cheap knife that you're willing to be messed up. That way you won't hesitate to make mistake and learn from it. Good luck!
 
Dunno but Spyderco Sharpmaker is probably the best system to put your knife extremely sharp.
 
My advice is to get an 8" Norton combination silicon carbide (Crystalon) stone, some mineral oil, and a couple of cheap knives. The waterstones are a great way to go, but you might be better served learning to feel the edge and hold an angle with a more simple process. These stones are cheap, fast, have good feedback, and always come in handy for larger grinding jobs, lapping other stones, and sharpening rough-use tools.

And get a Sharpie...
 
I gotta second the DMT. I have all four of the grits XC/C and F/XF. The thing about the diamond stones is the quick feedback loop. Just a few strokes and you can tell were you're removing metal...and adjust accordingly. You learn the right way and you learn it quicker. Never used waterstones. I think even for a free-hander, there is a place for the Sharpmaker. Reprofile your factory edges to like 27 or 37 degrees inclusive and then you can retouch frequently with the Sharpmaker at 30 or 40 respectively. Good system for keeping a microbevel sharp. I give all my Moras a go on the Sharpmaker at 30 and then once the micro gets less than micro, I go to the DMTs and bring the scandi back to full zero. Moras and even Roselli scandis must be about 25 inclusive. The Sharpmaker works great on my Roselli Hunter too...at 30.
 
I wouldn't get any ol' hardware-store stones, because they often don't work so well. Obviously any stone will work, but if you get a really good set of stones from the beginning you'll never look back. Personally, I use Naniwa Super Stones, but will get Chosera (also Naniwa), once they wear out (in 100 year?!).
 
I just ordered the 1k & 6k arashiyama stones. I am still thinking that I need something a little coarser (500 or so). I will have to hunt around for something.

Just playing around today with my Spyderco Sharpmaker (using it as a bench stone) and I put an okay (will shave arm hair) edge on an old sodbuster I had laying around the house. The knife would barely cut paper before.

I can't wait to see what the arashiyama stones will do.
 
I think that one of the reasons I am looking forward to learning how to free hand sharpen is because I have always liked the Spyderco knives but it seems the ones I really liked have all been a full flat grind. I know you can sharpen a FFG on the Wicked Edge but I never had any luck with it at all. I watched the videos, but never seemed to figure it out. It was very inconsistent for me.

Hopefully now that will change. I have really been wanting a Sage 2 for a while.
 
Kalsu said:
I just ordered the 1k & 6k arashiyama stones. I am still thinking that I need something a little coarser (500 or so). I will have to hunt around for something.

Just playing around today with my Spyderco Sharpmaker (using it as a bench stone) and I put an okay (will shave arm hair) edge on an old sodbuster I had laying around the house. The knife would barely cut paper before.

I can't wait to see what the arashiyama stones will do.
Click to expand...

Let us know when you find something around the 500 or so grit as I too am interested in free hand sharpening and always reading/following threads for ideas. Also, if you can let us know where you got the 1k and 6k stones with prices if possible. Thanks,
 
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