Sharpening stones

After 45-years of knife sharpening, I havE forsaken natural stones and now use exclusively diamond plates. They can be used dry or with water. They simply need to be scrubbed with a bursh and water to unclog them. They cut faster and so not wear unevenly. They are just as good with high carbon as with various stainless steels. Ragnar at ragweedforge has a number of choicesl. They will serve you well.

yours truly,
the outlaw
 
THG said:
The Norton combo stone IS the $5 stone at Home Depot; I've been considering getting it :D
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This Norton India stone is 100 grit,coarse and 320 grit on the fine side . The older ones went much finer . It cuts alittle slower than the Norton crystolon but wears much slower, very hard to dish . Wow, thats a good price . What size is it ? THe 2x8" is 20$ delievered . That and a strop and your well set up for under 40$ . Whereas a twin grit diamond stone runs 60$ and I don't think they last like these . But the diamond does cut quick . DM
 
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I dont think that's the same one I'm talking about. Here is a link to a pic.
http://www.knifecenter.com/kc_new/store_detail.html?s=NOIB8

The Fine India is orange, and the Coarse India is gray. I don't know the grits or the relative coarsness to the $5 stones at Lowe's and HD. I think the $5 stones are made by Norton, but they are not the India Coarse/Fine combo stones I am thinking of, unless I missed something, in which case I'm going to Lowe's RIGHT NOW.
 
David Martin said:
This Norton India stone is 100 grit,coarse and 320 grit on the fine side . The older ones went much finer . It cuts alittle slower than the Norton crystolon but wears much slower, very hard to dish . Wow, thats a good price . What size is it ? THe 2x8" is 20$ delievered . That and a strop and your well set up for under 40$ . Whereas a twin grit diamond stone runs 100$ and I don't think last like these . But the diamond does cut quick . DM
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It was 2x6, but if it's the one in the link that me2 posted, then it's not the same. The one at Home Depot is a 2x6 Norton stone called "Coarse and Fine," but the colors were light and dark gray.
 
me2 said:
I dont think that's the same one I'm talking about. Here is a link to a pic.
http://www.knifecenter.com/kc_new/store_detail.html?s=NOIB8

The Fine India is orange, and the Coarse India is gray. I don't know the grits or the relative coarsness to the $5 stones at Lowe's and HD. I think the $5 stones are made by Norton, but they are not the India Coarse/Fine combo stones I am thinking of, unless I missed something, in which case I'm going to Lowe's RIGHT NOW.
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You are linked to the right one! I have them both, and the $5.00 one from HD is NOT the same. Spend a few extra bucks and get the one you are linked to.
BTW, I followed David Martins advice when I got started; got the India Combo, a Spyderco Fine Ceramic, and a strop. Works well! It's all you need. Maybe even skip the Spyderco for now.
 
I just looked at two of mine and the colors are tan for the fine and grey for the coarse .
But these are older stones and the colors could have changed . Norton's fine India on my Tri-hone is more reddish orange and is from 2009 . I bought a friend one of Norton's IB-8 a 8" coarse/fine India as a gift back in 2008 and it was grey for coarse and reddish orange for the fine . So, it could be the same . ?? DM
Thanks Coyote . The one I'm speaking of is the one like you have .
 
I usually sharpen knives on oilstones but squeegee the excess oil off the stones with a rubber spatula to lessen the mess. I also made jigs to hold the stones at the desired angle, so the stones need to be relatively dry to avoid jig fouling.
 
jyearly, I use mine dry . Then to clean it I spray it with break-free or WD-40 and wipe . All swarf comes right off . So, really the only oil on my stones is residual . DM
 
THG, Those your describing sound like carborundum stones . ie. light grey and dark . DM
 
I start with DMT coarse, then Spyderco medium, fine and ultra fine ceramics. They all cut nicely. No oil, just rinse with dish soap and water when done, and let dry. I also built a jig at 12 degrees for a 24 degree inclusive, but will be building a 15 degree also, because the 12 sometimes is too acute, now that I have used that angle.
 
The $5 stone at lows and HD is alu oxide, works OK for softer steels but good luck with something like S30V.
 
David Martin said:
THG, Those your describing sound like carborundum stones . ie. light grey and dark . DM
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Is it any good?

knifenut1013 said:
The $5 stone at lows and HD is alu oxide, works OK for softer steels but good luck with something like S30V.
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I was about to buy it when I was at HD yesterday, but then I thought about steels like ZDP-189... And I said forget it. I'll end up buying a DMT stone for some $20, so might as well wait to get that rather than buy this, get the DMT, toss the Norton, and then end up virtually paying extra for the DMT.
 
Natural-Outlaw said:
After 45-years of knife sharpening, I havE forsaken natural stones and now use exclusively diamond plates. They can be used dry or with water. They simply need to be scrubbed with a bursh and water to unclog them. They cut faster and so not wear unevenly. They are just as good with high carbon as with various stainless steels. Ragnar at ragweedforge has a number of choicesl. They will serve you well.

yours truly,
the outlaw
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:thumbup:
That's the truth right there. I don't really use a lot of natural stones any more, although some times for touch up. Diamond plate is really the way to go. I have one of Ragnar's diamond plates.
Diamond in my opinion has a lot of advantages over stones.

God Bless
 
I prefer Japanese synthetic waterstones. They simply give a much keener edge than diamonds do.

The edge provided by the finest Diasharp plate (8000 MESH) pales in comparison to edges made by any JIS#3000 or higher grit waterstone. The diamond plates just bite too deeply to give a truly refined edge.
 
Why no love for ceramic stones??? They don't really dish, last forever, and can put an extremely sharp edge on just about anything. No mess either.
 
Marvin8 said:
Why no love for ceramic stones??? They don't really dish, last forever, and can put an extremely sharp edge on just about anything. No mess either.
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They're very good for touchups, but not so good for serious work. They clog easily and cut very slowly, even compared to oilstones.

I do carry a Spyderco doublestuff pocket sharpener in my EDC bag.
 
If I get the combo india stone, and have a fine sypderco stone, do you think I need the soft/hard arkansas stone or will the spyderco do in place of?
 
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