Starting to think about sharpening.

[sonar87]

So its been a while since got my first real, non crappy thing my parents had laying around the house knife. while it still cuts well enough for my needs, (My knife use is mostly for small every days stuff, boxes, food like fruit on the go, and other random things), its at the point where I've really started thinking about sharpening. I've done a little searching so far to get a bit of an idea of the process and tools involved so far. A few things I'm wondering:

1. I've seen different types of stone as well as the rod things like the sharpmaker. Is the only thing different (besides, I'd guess that you'd have a slightly more limited selection of materials only using the rods that are made to go with it) that it just takes care of the angle thing, so you can just hold the knife straight, but other then that the process is pretty much the same things you'd have to do/look for/whatever doing it with the stones? Also is this one of the things that you need to use some sort of oil on?

2. As the sharpmaker is a bit up there in price (at least from the places I've found it, cheapest on amazon is $50-70 from when I've looked), how does it compare to the cheaper lansky rods set I've seen? If I was to go with one of these systems instead of the freehand stones, would it be worth saving the extra money, seeing as my knife use is pretty light (though who doesn't want to get as good an edge as possible regardless?), and I'm on a tight budget? What are the differences, and advantages or disadvantages with going with either one? Same question about the oil here too.

3. As far as stones go I was looking at the whetstones, as, like I've said, I use the knife on some food at times, and I was thinking of avoiding the oils and whatever is in them (Or do think that stuff would come off fully with a good washing down that I shouldn't worry?). What if anything is different about using the whetstones? Is this an ok thing to start with?

4. From what I've read you need two different grits of stones at least, a second to polish it a bit after the main sharpening. What ones would be good to go with, based on what I need to knife to be able to do sharpness-wise, and the fact that I'm just starting out? My main knife is a RAT 2, and that's the price range I'll be staying around, maybe a hair higher, with any possible purchases in the foreseeable future, if the quality/type of steel matters for this question at all.

5. What brands of stones would you recommend for if I go that route? I haven't gotten to the full knife nut stage yet, and am just starting to delve in (Ok, some nights I spend a little too long looking at pics, and the little click as my RAT 2 opens has become one of my favorite sounds, and I know more about the steels now then I ever thought I would, but I'm fighting it.), so I don't what to go buying a bunch of a expensive stuff right off the bat. Not any more so then it needs to be anyway. Right now the sharpmaker at the price I said I'd found it at above, is the absolute top of the budget.

6. Oh and... stropping? Can some one give me more information about this? Point? Is it something that has to be done?

7. And finally, though I like the idea of learning to sharpen a knife with just the plain stones, I obviously haven't decided between the two methods yet. So any pros, cons, or arguments for going either way would be appreciated.

Annnd that is it for now. Please help me figure out where to start.

 

[mtangent]

You don't have to strop. It removes a burr & can bring sharpness to the next level. I don't usually strop.
The rod are essentially long skinny stones, & make it easier for beginners to keep an angle.
There are a greater selection of rods available than anybody needs.
Learning to use a hand held or bench stone is satisfying, & not difficult. Mastering it takes years, but can get positive results quickly.

Blade steel has a bearing. What knife & steel are you using?

 

[sonar87]

RAT 2, Aus 8.

 

[mtangent]

AUS8 is easy enough to sharpen.
A knife that small you can use any sized stone. I often choose a pocket stone, 3 or 4 inches long.

With rods, you may do a better job sooner. They are slower in use though, & relatively more expensive.
You can buy some top quality pocket stones for very little.
If you are inclined towards freehanding, buy a pocket stone, is my advice.
I use the Fallkniven, which is excellent.http://www2.knifecenter.com/item/SWEDFNDC4/fallkniven-diamondceramic-whetstone-4-x-1-14-100-x-32-mm
Here are some others. 2 grits is a good idea.
http://www.knifecenter.com/kc_new/s...atarq=dmt&eqKEYWORDdatarq=diafold&series=1618
http://www2.knifecenter.com/item/NOMB14/Norton-India-Bench-Stone-Medium-Grit-4x1x14-inch

I have a sharpmaker, & rarely use it these days. I thought it was good for a while though. There is nothing wrong with taking that path.

 

[HeavyHanded]

So its been a while since got my first real, non crappy thing my parents had laying around the house knife. while it still cuts well enough for my needs, (My knife use is mostly for small every days stuff, boxes, food like fruit on the go, and other random things), its at the point where I've really started thinking about sharpening. I've done a little searching so far to get a bit of an idea of the process and tools involved so far. A few things I'm wondering:

1. I've seen different types of stone as well as the rod things like the sharpmaker. Is the only thing different (besides, I'd guess that you'd have a slightly more limited selection of materials only using the rods that are made to go with it) that it just takes care of the angle thing, so you can just hold the knife straight, but other then that the process is pretty much the same things you'd have to do/look for/whatever doing it with the stones? Also is this one of the things that you need to use some sort of oil on?

Generally ceramics are used without oil

2. As the sharpmaker is a bit up there in price (at least from the places I've found it, cheapest on amazon is $50-70 from when I've looked), how does it compare to the cheaper lansky rods set I've seen? If I was to go with one of these systems instead of the freehand stones, would it be worth saving the extra money, seeing as my knife use is pretty light (though who doesn't want to get as good an edge as possible regardless?), and I'm on a tight budget? What are the differences, and advantages or disadvantages with going with either one? Same question about the oil here too.

You probably wouldn't notice any difference

3. As far as stones go I was looking at the whetstones, as, like I've said, I use the knife on some food at times, and I was thinking of avoiding the oils and whatever is in them (Or do think that stuff would come off fully with a good washing down that I shouldn't worry?). What if anything is different about using the whetstones? Is this an ok thing to start with?

Most honing oil is mineral oil based, the same stuff you can drink as a laxative. In fact you can simply use the pharmacy grade oil for honing oil and it works well for keeping wood cutting boards conditioned too.

4. From what I've read you need two different grits of stones at least, a second to polish it a bit after the main sharpening. What ones would be good to go with, based on what I need to knife to be able to do sharpness-wise, and the fact that I'm just starting out? My main knife is a RAT 2, and that's the price range I'll be staying around, maybe a hair higher, with any possible purchases in the foreseeable future, if the quality/type of steel matters for this question at all.

Most combination stones from the hardware store will give you a coarse and medium grit finish, a third finer stone is nice to have around or can be improvised by stropping on a hard backing. You should have three grit finishes available, coarse for repair work and modification, medium for working edges and as a bridge to a finer finish, the fine is for carving shaving chopping.

5. What brands of stones would you recommend for if I go that route? I haven't gotten to the full knife nut stage yet, and am just starting to delve in (Ok, some nights I spend a little too long looking at pics, and the little click as my RAT 2 opens has become one of my favorite sounds, and I know more about the steels now then I ever thought I would, but I'm fighting it.), so I don't what to go buying a bunch of a expensive stuff right off the bat. Not any more so then it needs to be anyway. Right now the sharpmaker at the price I said I'd found it at above, is the absolute top of the budget.

Generally the Norton combination silicon carbide (Crystalon) or Norton India are considered very good starter stones. I also sell a sharpening block through the link in my signature below that is a full service tool. The sale thread has video content and links to the user's manual that will be helpful even if you don't opt to purchase one - applicable to many types of freehand sharpening.

6. Oh and... stropping? Can some one give me more information about this? Point? Is it something that has to be done?

It comes in real handy for maintenance if done properly, saves a lot of time and can make a nice improvement in edge finish. Is not necessary.

7. And finally, though I like the idea of learning to sharpen a knife with just the plain stones, I obviously haven't decided between the two methods yet. So any pros, cons, or arguments for going either way would be appreciated.

Freehand is ultimately the way to go - more versatile and generally a lot faster than other methods. Once learned you can go from an axe to a grass sickle to a pocket knife without missing a beat.

Annnd that is it for now. Please help me figure out where to start.

You've come to the right place, you'll be getting plenty of other responses here.

 

[Krav]

I started with the sharp maker, then the wicked edge and strops, too shapton pro waterstones and strops. All have a learning curve, that curve may be different from person to person. I still use all these systems, but free hand, I seem to get the most enjoyment, and bond with my knife.

 

[sonar87]

Thanks for all the info guys!

Most combination stones from the hardware store will give you a coarse and medium grit finish, a third finer stone is nice to have around or can be improvised by stropping on a hard backing. You should have three grit finishes available, coarse for repair work and modification, medium for working edges and as a bridge to a finer finish, the fine is for carving shaving chopping.

I've seen a vary large range of grits out there, and even a few variations on what some sites have called 'fine' and 'medium'. Can you give me an idea of what range of numbers I should even be looking at here for each one?

 

[mtangent]

Opinions will vary on grit, to some extent it is a matter of taste.
Grit numbers mean different things to different manufacturers.

I use something like 250, 600, 1000, then a finer ceramic.
The finer grades get used the most, for touch ups.
The coarse grades are only used for new blades, or repairing damage.

The Fallkniven stone I mentioned above would be the 2 finer grades. I often touch up my EDC using just the ceramic side.

 

[HeavyHanded]

Thanks for all the info guys!



I've seen a vary large range of grits out there, and even a few variations on what some sites have called 'fine' and 'medium'. Can you give me an idea of what range of numbers I should even be looking at here for each one?

Sure, the numbers I'm using are from the "Grand Unified Grit Chart" at the top of the main MT&E page, ANSI specs and you can cross compare with other specs to get a feel for what a given grinding/polishing media is going to do for you.

120-220 grit would be for repair work or if you wanted to make an edge more acute or reshape a blade - situations where you'll be removing a lot of stock. This range also works well for real hard use tools that will be dulled rapidly performing dirty work. The edge will have a lot of irregularities that will catch and continue to cut when used with a drawing motion, though they will be poor performers for chopping, carving etc as there's too much friction along the edge. The low end of this range is what the coarse side of most hardware store combination stones will be.

320-800 would qualify as a medium finish. This is a real broad range and will be effected a lot by the specific type of abrasive etc. This is going to give you a good everyday edge that can still draw through materials with some edge irregularities, but will also be uniform enough to chop, shave, and carve OK. Generally this is the sweet spot for cutting efficiency and longevity, is about where a lot of tools come from the factory, and is in the range of what the fine side of the hardware store combination stone can produce - though most will be in the low end of this span. Is also where you are bridging from the lower grit values to the more refined ones, or touching up an already somewhat sharp edge - it isn't practical to try working a very irregular or dull edge with the finer abrasives in most cases - it will take a long time and the results are liable to be underperforming if the edge angles aren't held very well.

1000 and up. Is also a very broad range but generally speaking. Now you're getting into an area where the edge is going to be a lot more refined and will shave, chop, carve with noticeably less friction. It will also have less grab in some respects when drawn across a cut, though the edge will have a lot less friction and surface area when pressed into a cut. They tend to need more periodic maintenance but in many applications will cut more than well enough to justify the added attention. This is the area where you will need to have a finer polishing stone, a smooth meatpacker's steel, and/or very hard backed strop to create and maintain the edge. There are many ways to get the added refinement, but without getting too confusing we'll leave it at that.

A real simple progression would be to use a hardware store combination stone for coarse and medium, and wrap a sheet of paper around the stone, apply some stropping compound, and use that surface to make the fine edge. The sky is the limit on the upper end of polishing right up to particles in the nano range, though most finishing compounds run from low single digit to just under 1 micron. One can get more abrasive stropping compounds that run up to about 30 micron, above which you're probably better off using a stone.

The block I sell uses as a progression - 320 grit, 600 grit, and a honing compound that runs in the 1500-2000 ANSI range or 4k-6k JIS.

The above all represent a real general approach, but helps a lot to clarify things into those three ranges when getting into it, and then identify where in those ranges a specific abrasive falls.

 

[rutcrazed]

Sure, the numbers I'm using are from the "Grand Unified Grit Chart" at the top of the main MT&E page, ANSI specs and you can cross compare with other specs to get a feel for what a given grinding/polishing media is going to do for you.

120-220 grit would be for repair work or if you wanted to make an edge more acute or reshape a blade - situations where you'll be removing a lot of stock. This range also works well for real hard use tools that will be dulled rapidly performing dirty work. The edge will have a lot of irregularities that will catch and continue to cut when used with a drawing motion, though they will be poor performers for chopping, carving etc as there's too much friction along the edge. The low end of this range is what the coarse side of most hardware store combination stones will be.

320-800 would qualify as a medium finish. This is a real broad range and will be effected a lot by the specific type of abrasive etc. This is going to give you a good everyday edge that can still draw through materials with some edge irregularities, but will also be uniform enough to chop, shave, and carve OK. Generally this is the sweet spot for cutting efficiency and longevity, is about where a lot of tools come from the factory, and is in the range of what the fine side of the hardware store combination stone can produce - though most will be in the low end of this span. Is also where you are bridging from the lower grit values to the more refined ones, or touching up an already somewhat sharp edge - it isn't practical to try working a very irregular or dull edge with the finer abrasives in most cases - it will take a long time and the results are liable to be underperforming if the edge angles aren't held very well.

1000 and up. Is also a very broad range but generally speaking. Now you're getting into an area where the edge is going to be a lot more refined and will shave, chop, carve with noticeably less friction. It will also have less grab in some respects when drawn across a cut, though the edge will have a lot less friction and surface area when pressed into a cut. They tend to need more periodic maintenance but in many applications will cut more than well enough to justify the added attention. This is the area where you will need to have a finer polishing stone, a smooth meatpacker's steel, and/or very hard backed strop to create and maintain the edge. There are many ways to get the added refinement, but without getting too confusing we'll leave it at that.

A real simple progression would be to use a hardware store combination stone for coarse and medium, and wrap a sheet of paper around the stone, apply some stropping compound, and use that surface to make the fine edge. The sky is the limit on the upper end of polishing right up to particles in the nano range, though most finishing compounds run from low single digit to just under 1 micron. One can get more abrasive stropping compounds that run up to about 30 micron, above which you're probably better off using a stone.

The block I sell uses as a progression - 320 grit, 600 grit, and a honing compound that runs in the 1500-2000 ANSI range or 4k-6k JIS.

The above all represent a real general approach, but helps a lot to clarify things into those three ranges when getting into it, and then identify where in those ranges a specific abrasive falls.

Very nice definition H.H

 

[Bob6794]

There is a lot of information, too much out there that your probably having an information overload and your head is spinning. If it is not, your a better than me by far when it comes to absorbing information when I first started around 5-6months ago.

Since it sounded like your consider the sharpmaker a bit high in price lets me try to reccommend something cheap that will get the job done. You can pick up a silicon carbide combo stone for $5-10 generally. I use a norton economy stone picked up at home depot for $6 that is 6x2 and is grey and dark grey most of the time and it works pretty good once you flatten it, which can be done on a flat part of the sidewalk.

For a strop you can use a piece of paper with come compound wrapped around the stone or just the paper by itself. The more brightly colored pieces of paper like magazine covers have clay in them to my understanding and will be a bit more abrasive due to that. Flat pieces of cardboard can also be used if you don't want to use paper. For compounds you can use some green compound which you can pick up cheaply at a lot of hardware stores, or you can just spend $10-15 and buy the higher end stuff that last you a life time whether it be that or some other type of compound (I use flexcut gold right now with good results). There are several options for this if you want a compound just ask and we'll try to help with narrowing down the selection for you.

I highly recommend getting an old mousepad (or buy one), a drawl liner or something to help hold the stone in place while your sharpening. The first two options I mentioned have the benefit of being dirt cheap as you can easily find them for $1-3.

I would also suggest picking up the DMT Aligner clamp (clamp alone) to use with the benchstone as it set you back another $10-15 but allow you to set the bevels on your knives easier and forces you to mimic the proper motion for sharpening. Even if you want to go 100% freehand I would still recommend this as you are going to screw up and mess up your bevel while learning and practicing and having something to help you put a good bevel back on the knife would be extremely helpful.

If you don't have some cheap kitchen knives your willing to use to practice on I would suggest picking one up. Preferably a kitchen paring knife to learn on as they tend to be thin and have an easy blade shape to work with and learn on, not to mention cheap to buy. Basic idea behind this is that your going to screw up a lot before you get it right so mine as well have a dedicated knife to do that to, and so you don't feel bad about experimenting on. Even going a bit higher end and buying quality paring knives for this purpose will set you back $10 (opinel, old hickory come to mind first), though I be honest I spent $3 or so on a cheap victorinox paring knife to practice on which gets the job done of being a practice knife (only reason why I don't consider that a quality blade was because mine was defective but too cheap in my opinion to be worth the hassle to return).

After all that if your still hungry for a sharper blade and more equipment I would say pick up a 10x loupe. I just picked up a triplet 10x jewelers loupe for around $10 and it was money well spent. It allows you to see the blade in more detail so you know what you are doing and can spot errors more easily. One of the first times using it I was able to get my knife a bit sharper as I had that much more information I was working off of. You just have to have a good light source to go with it to make it easier. In my case I setup a flashlight on some blocks and when I wanted to examine the blade I held it in the light and examined the blade though a desk lamp would work quite a bit better.

Lastly use a sharpie to mark up to bevels to make sure your hitting it when you sharpen. There is a lot of little bits of advice you we can give you but I figure I try to give you an idea of a setup that's decently cheap and lets you learn quite a bit on. I am also giving you a link to a lot of video playlists on youtube of people who have some excellent knife sharpening video's so you can learn from them. And you should look read the instructions to the washboard at the very least and preferably watch a few of the video's as you will learn something even if your not going to be using the washboard. In fact I am linking Heavyhanded's video playlist. (I have heard great things about the washboard so if that interests you don't hesitate on picking one up.)

https://www.youtube.com/user/MrEdgy81/videos

https://www.youtube.com/user/Neuman2010/videos

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLB95E1C271CE6654B

 

[Chris "Anagarika"]

For the information overload part, I'd suggest to peruse all the stickies on this sub forum. To get overloaded I mean . Lots of good info, sometimes contradicting each other until you try it out and got what works for you.

And welcome to the calming & relaxing world of sharpening!

 

[Bob6794]

It's only calming & relaxing once it "clicks" and you know what your doing. Until than it's a lot of studying and practicing if you want to go the OCD "I wonder if I can get my swiss army knife sharp enough to split an atom..." route.

Have fun though it's an interesting hobby, just be smart about it and don't let everyone know how sharp you can get a knife or you may end up with lots of friends and family expecting you to sharpen their knives for nothing in return and most likely it be blunt, chipped blade, broken off tips, etc. I figured that one out the hard way when I became a computer geek .

 

[Chris "Anagarika"]

Sharpening for free actually gives chance to learn as Magnanimous shared sometime back. Be careful with the liabilities & better be clear upfront (possible scratches, as practicing sharpener might be, too sharp a knife as people might get surprised, etc.)

 

[sonar87]

No, I'm good. It is a lot of information, but that's how I like it. I'd rather have a ton of information. Even if there was no reason at all for me to know all of this stuff, I'd probably end up still learning it out of curiosity. If I'm going to do/use something, I can't help but want to know all the 'low level' details to things, that's why I started learning programming and as much about computers as I could (So I know exactly how you feel with the family there, Bob. I found out the hard way as well...). On that note I'm probably going to get the loupe right from the start. Knowing me, not being able to see what's happening on that level would probably drive me nuts. That's actually something I've had in mind to get for a little while now. Same with cheap knives to practice on. I actually did consider the Opinel paring knives for practice. I mean, I if I'm really going to practice with it, its got to loose sharpness at some point. If its for food prep, then at least I know it will get enough use to get to that point - I mean there's only so much random stuff around here I can cut just for the sake of making my practice knife need sharpening. I guess I'll decided on that and/or even cheaper test subjects after I figure out exactly what else I'm getting and see what that takes me up to in price.

I use a norton economy stone picked up at home depot for $6 that is 6x2 and is grey and dark grey most of the time and it works pretty good once you flatten it, which can be done on a flat part of the sidewalk.

You mean like the newer, off-white -or sometimes tan-, smoother then normal, type of side walk? Or just any flat as you can expect sidewalk?

I highly recommend getting an old mousepad (or buy one), [...] to help hold the stone in place while your sharpening.

:thumbup: Good idea.

I would also suggest picking up the DMT Aligner clamp (clamp alone) to use with the benchstone as it set you back another $10-15 but allow you to set the bevels on your knives easier and forces you to mimic the proper motion for sharpening. Even if you want to go 100% freehand I would still recommend this as you are going to screw up and mess up your bevel while learning and practicing and having something to help you put a good bevel back on the knife would be extremely helpful.

Was looking at other similar things along those lines already. Thanks for the suggestion of a specific thing, helps a lot, and up there on the list of considered things.

Lastly use a sharpie to mark up to bevels to make sure your hitting it when you sharpen.

Another good idea. At least for practice knives anyway, for the same reason I questioned using the oil.

----------

Thank you, HeavyHanded, for all the info on the grits!

A real simple progression would be to use a hardware store combination stone for coarse and medium, and wrap a sheet of paper around the stone, apply some stropping compound, and use that surface to make the fine edge. The sky is the limit on the upper end of polishing right up to particles in the nano range, though most finishing compounds run from low single digit to just under 1 micron.

Well certainly keep that in mind, and look up more about that stuff.

----------

For the information overload part, I'd suggest to peruse all the stickies on this sub forum. To get overloaded I mean . Lots of good info, sometimes contradicting each other until you try it out and got what works for you.

And welcome to the calming & relaxing world of sharpening!

Noted, and thanks. Calm is good... But I get bored easy. So I'll probably end up mixing the activity with a nice long dose of Kalmah. Not sure if you can still get much 'calm' with their stuff. I mean Hollo and Sacramentum are a bit more laid back and slow but...

----------

Well, now that I have quite a huge post... I'm glad I was smart enough to start thinking about this stuff ahead of time (Or at least somewhat so, maybe I should have done this part a month or two ago... XD). Thank you very much, everyone, for the long detailed replies, giving me plenty of options to get started without breaking the bank, video links, and everything. I feel like I'm forgetting something above but... eh...

 

[sonar87]

So, the Fallkniven stone mtangent mentioned with something lower grit in the middle range of of HeavyHanded's description seem like an ok start? Our hardware stores around here are small and crap so even going the really cheap hw store stone route would still leave me ordering online, though still free shipping to store so that's at least good. Found some Smith's stones on the Lowes website that were 400, 600, and 1000, (and I think one even lower) and in the $5-10 range, so getting one to fill in the lower grit range will be cheap and easy.

One site I was on I seen I could get an edge pro 600 grit and a smith's 1000 grit both for around $25. That's caught my attention because they're 6'' and having something that isn't so tiny to work with would be nice.

Thoughts?

Also, haven't come across this in what I've gotten to watching/reading yet, so while I'm posting... How hard do you even press the knife to the stone while sharpening? I guess this isn't exactly an easy thing to describe, and likely depends on the stone type, but important to know so...

 

[mtangent]

So, the Fallkniven stone mtangent mentioned with something lower grit in the middle range of of HeavyHanded's description seem like an ok start? Our hardware stores around here are small and crap so even going the really cheap hw store stone route would still leave me ordering online, though still free shipping to store so that's at least good. Found some Smith's stones on the Lowes website that were 400, 600, and 1000, (and I think one even lower) and in the $5-10 range, so getting one to fill in the lower grit range will be cheap and easy.

One site I was on I seen I could get an edge pro 600 grit and a smith's 1000 grit both for around $25. That's caught my attention because they're 6'' and having something that isn't so tiny to work with would be nice.

Thoughts?

Also, haven't come across this in what I've gotten to watching/reading yet, so while I'm posting... How hard do you even press the knife to the stone while sharpening? I guess this isn't exactly an easy thing to describe, and likely depends on the stone type, but important to know so...

If you get the Fallkniven, you could do without the 1000grit.
Press hardly at all when sharpening.
There are sticky's at the top of this forum index about sharpening, have a read. Then you will have experienced information overload.

IMO, the 2 most important things when you're starting is: press gently & keep a consistant angle.

 

[Bob6794]

Honestly your better off getting a full size benchstone it's significantly easier to learn on. The norton india and crystolon combo benchstones would be a good start, either will get the job done and looks to be what your willing to spend cash wise. Don't get too caught up in the course/medium/fine grit ranges things can get complicated fast. Either one of those stones will serve you well and last you a lifetime.

In fact I would actually recommend just sticking to one of those combo stones for now for another reason besides the quality of the stone and that is because your working with less grit levels. And because of that you will be more focused on getting the knife as sharp as possible at the given grit instead of progressing to a finer grit before your done. You should be able to push cut newspaper and shave your arm coming off of the fine on either the india or cystolon if you sharpen it correctly. When you start adding in more steps you start making things more complicated and creating more room to screw up.

The fine india is quite capable so don't worry about that being a limiting factor for awhile. The economy version that I have allows to to barely start tree topping some of my arm hair after I strop my knife and I still haven't perfected my technique and there is a lot of room to improve on my technique. Can't comment on the economy silicon carbide (crystolon) as I haven't tested that one yet as that is a new mile stone for me.

 

[mtangent]

Bob gives decent advice. Keep it simple. You can complicate it as you feel the urge.

 

[pmeisel]

lots of good thoughts here.

I recently (couple years ago) had to replace my stones as the old ones were lost in a move. I bought more than I needed. A Norton fine India stone will do a lot, and a soft Arkansas will do the rest for most folks. I also have a hard Arkansas, and a medium/fine combination Spyderco. I've thought about more, but what I have will do everything I really need.