Ceramic Benchstone or Japanese Water Stones?

dsmegst

dsmegst

Joined
Jul 21, 2009
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Hi guys,

I'm thinking about getting back into freehand sharpening, mostly to learn and to be able to maintain the scandi ground Spyderco Bushcraft I have on the way. For all other knives, I've got the Sharpmaker and the paper wheels.

And although I have an old Smith's tri-hone, unskilled use and abuse have given it very uneven surfaces. So I'm considering getting myself a good set of bench stones.

I can get a set of ceramic bench stones from Spyderco or go traditional with Japanese water stones. I'd rather avoid the oily mess I tended to get with the traditional natural stones and treat myself to a quality set that will last me for a long time.

What do you guys think?
 
dsmegst said:
Hi guys,

I'm thinking about getting back into freehand sharpening, mostly to learn and to be able to maintain the scandi ground Spyderco Bushcraft I have on the way. For all other knives, I've got the Sharpmaker and the paper wheels.

And although I have an old Smith's tri-hone, unskilled use and abuse have given it very uneven surfaces. So I'm considering getting myself a good set of bench stones.

I can get a set of ceramic bench stones from Spyderco or go traditional with Japanese water stones. I'd rather avoid the oily mess I tended to get with the traditional natural stones and treat myself to a quality set that will last me for a long time.

What do you guys think?
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I would go with the spyderco ceramics. I don't have any, but I've used their ceramic with the sharpmaker (i freehand with them) and the results are superb. I would also recommend a DMT extra extra coarse or extra coarse for rebevelling. I suggest getting the medium, fine, and ultra fine ceramic bench stones. The ultra fine is great at tightening the scratch pattern and giving a ridiculous edge. Finally you should get yourself a strop loaded with green or white compound to finish it off. You will be very pleased with the results.
 
I have a fairly coarse diamond bench stone for rebevelling so I'm good there and I'm also well stocked with strops and compounds / diamond pastes.

The only thing I'm looking for are the bench stones. I like the traditional appeal that comes with the water stones, but I do have one doubt with them. A lot of my folders have modern stainless steels, including VG-10, 154CM, S30V, S90V, and ZDP-189. I don't know how effective water stones are with these super steels.

The same can be said for ceramic stones but to a lesser degree.

I haven't considered diamond bench stones but I may have to, now that I think about it. I hope make the right choice now and have no regrets later.
 
With those high-tech steels, I think you should consider diamond stones. I like to finish with my Spyderco Doublestuff, fine and coarse 1" x 4" stones bonded back-to-back.
 
154CM will work fine with a water stone, and I do my D2 on water stones as well. Water stones can leave just as much of a mess as oil stones too. Once you get your slurry built up it has to go somewhere. I couldn't believe the sluge in my sink after shapening all my kitchen knives:o
 
Norton's SiC will sharpen S30V and S60V as well as Spyderco's med. and fine ceramic stones . You can get a diamond stone if you think you have too . DM
 
yeah don't worry about the water stones and the newer stainless steels. They work just fine. I have a Norton combo 4000/8000 and it polishes the harder steels just fine. Personally I don't really care for the water stones as much as the ceramics. I like the feel of ceramic and useing them dry they are almost mess free.
 
db said:
Personally I don't really care for the water stones as much as the ceramics. I like the feel of ceramic and useing them dry they are almost mess free.
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I agree about preferring the feel of ceramic and their tendency to be less messy. What I don't like about them (or at least in the form of Sharpmaker rods) is that the nice feeling and feedback diminishes very quickly as the surface gets loaded with steel. Very, very quickly. I find that the ceramic rods, if they are to be as effective as they can and should be, need to be scrubbed and washed off with abrasive powder cleanser and a scrubby after every sharpening session, and sometimes even in the middle of one if the knife requires enough steel removal. The eraser method of cleaning them works just okay if I want a quick little boost of effectiveness mid-session, but water, powder and some sort of scrubby are what's needed to bring the ceramic back to its true potential.

So, yeah, ceramics are great, if kept very clean. For me anyways.:)
 
Thanks for the advice guys, I ended up ordering a set of Spyderco Med, Fine and EFine ceramic bench stones and a 4000/8000 Norton combo waterstone to try it out. I don't think I'll ever give up my paper wheels for quick and easy sharpening, but I always feel like I'm missing something essential by not learning to freehand. I hope to remedy that soon.
 
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