which whetstones should i buy to sharpen my carter 240 gyuto?

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stevenn21

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which whetstones should i buy to sharpen my carter 240 gyuto?
im buying this knife:

zdlgKlV.jpg

Length: 241mm
Width: 55mm
Thickness: 2mm
Weight: 219g
Handle is Cocobolo, Ironwood and Ebony

Price $796.88

but i dont know which whetstones to buy. I live in the uk so would like to buy here to save on shipping and import duty

i am new to whetstones and would like some suggestions on which to buy

a, are cheap stones as effective as expensive ones?
b, what grit? i have a 400/1000 combo at the moment

i know people say learn to sharpen on a cheap knife at first and i have some i can practice on.
to put things into perspective:
i own a boker straight razor and was unable to get that sharp on a norton 4000/8000 (i dont have the norton anymore)
so im useless at the moment at sharpening:sad0:

any suggestions on stones and grits?
 
Do you sharpen the straight razor on something else now? Whats the budget for the stones?
To be honest, it seems kind of silly to me to be spending +£500 on a knife, when you aren't able to sharpen at all yet, but thats just me..
 
Definitely get a less expensive knife for practice.

Jon Broida at Japanese Knife Imports has some good sharpening videos on youtube. Murray has sharpening techniques available for a reasonable cost for streaming (haven't seen these specifically, but on some other videos he seems like a good teacher). If you want to get the most out of your investment, you'll want to keep it sharp.
 
There used to be a discount coupon(?) that would make it a mere 600 and change. :cool:

Suggest contact Maxim at JNS for specific stone advice. He'll have what you need at your door before you hang up. JCK also has good rep for European shipping.
 
Pretty sure Carter himself uses, sells and suggests King stones. Can't get much more affordable, and his ootb edge is the best in the biz.
 
which whetstones should i buy to sharpen my carter 240 gyuto?
im buying this knife:

zdlgKlV.jpg

Length: 241mm
Width: 55mm
Thickness: 2mm
Weight: 219g
Handle is Cocobolo, Ironwood and Ebony

Price $796.88

but i dont know which whetstones to buy. I live in the uk so would like to buy here to save on shipping and import duty

i am new to whetstones and would like some suggestions on which to buy

a, are cheap stones as effective as expensive ones?
b, what grit? i have a 400/1000 combo at the moment

i know people say learn to sharpen on a cheap knife at first and i have some i can practice on.
to put things into perspective:
i own a boker straight razor and was unable to get that sharp on a norton 4000/8000 (i dont have the norton anymore)
so im useless at the moment at sharpening:sad0:

any suggestions on stones and grits?

Beautiful knife Steven.Since you have such a fine blade recomm. getting your freehand skills up to snuff.The Martell stones with DVD you cannot lose.Esp. for beginning sharpeners in English language covers alot of ground in the DVD set.

AS mentioned Jon Broida-knifesharpingplaylist-is another excellent freehand tutoral.Since you got a Carter you can check out some of his videos.You are in good company with all of these guys.

Practice on your cheaper knives first & check your bevels,sharpness etc.I don't think you need to use a coarse stone on the Carter a good medium stone like the 1200 Bester is a good place to start.And do not put it to the stones until you feel comfortable with your tech.:)
 
i have some ziganof knives to practice on
they came with a 400/1000 stone:eyebrow:

u4nOK.jpg

FVc3u.jpg

they cost alot but i think i made a bad choice my friend has some and swears by them they were expensive cost me £350 for a cleaver and a 3 peice set they are a lot more expensive on the website i got them at a trade fair in my local area there were two well known tv chefs promoting them (they were at the fair)
i got quite a lot of stick from the members of another knife forum for buying these but you learn from your mistakes thats why im buying a carter:lol2:
 
Nice Carter, big fan of mine, they're cutting machines.

A king 1k/6k would be a good starting point, lots of places in the UK.

Different stones have different feedback and cut at different speeds, so personal preference comes into play.

Where in the uk are you, there may be a member nearby who could show you the ropes.

Eu sources for stones are Eden webshops, dieter Schmidt, dictum and jns in no particular order.
 
Made from Damascus steel, these chefs’ knives have been crafted to the same exacting standards that were used to create the Samurai swords of old. Each knife takes up to two days to manufacture and is sharpened for the first time for over 10 hours by a blade expert.

Haha, sorry had to post Ziganof's spiel, 10 hours of sharpening per knife?!?!?!
They must have left the production line in a sorry state.


Also wondering why, with the recommendations you've asked for over the past 2 years, you ended up with those knives?
 
Watch Carters sharpening videos and you should be able to use a concrete cinder block and a grocery bag. (joke)
 
I'd just strop that thing all day as psychotherapy and stress reduction. :) No stones. Hahaha.
 
Yeah I'd just get a King 1/6k until you're more proficient at sharpening then upgrade. I'd say yes more expensive stones are better but if you're starting off the King ones should do fine
 
looks like that carter has a high spot near the heel.... 800 bucks is pretty insane for that kind of stuff
 
Looking at the profile of that Ziganof gyuto it looks an awful lot like an 8' Zhen "damascus" gyuto.
 
They remind me of shuns.big production promotion VG-10 core damascus.And overpriced for what they are.Like shun carry their own combo stone.Alot of hype about production.Questionable blade geometry.

They are not junk knives.I find VG-10 pretty easy to sharpen & you can get a fine edge.Good knives to practice on.I am sure you can find good use for that cleaver.:)
 
Start with the King Stones if budget is of importance. Otherwise, contact Jon or Maksim (Maksim might be better for you, since you're in UK).

And as far as your knife choice goes - I guarantee you're going to love the Carter. It's a great looking knife, and Murray knows a thing or two about making a knife that performs. Congrats on the new knife.
 
i am not trying to bag on carter obviously. i love my carter sujihiki. but this one looks like a strange high spot in the heel area from the photo. only problem i have with my carter is I have to sharpen it religiously. it doesnt hold an edge very well. I have two of the H stamped carter blades. they get insanely sharp and i take them to around 6000, but they fade very fast. and need touch ups during service!

congrats on the gyuto!
 
Diagnosing issues on a knife you haven't held across the internet, based on a Wide-Angle shot? Just speculating or is that a fact, Brad?
 
The photo suggests the heel area to be a tad thicker and the bevel a little wider. Even if this were real, it has nothing to do with an overgrind.
 
it appears that the bevel is raised a little at the heel. and sticker price is what it is because people are willing to pay it. i would definitely practice sharpening on something alot cheaper maybe a tojiro shirogami,before attempting to sharpen that carter. maybe you could just purchase a strop and try and maintain the edge that way for a while.
 
Nice thing about Carter's white #1 is that its very easy to sharpen and you dont have to remive much metal or make many passes.

You already have a coarse med stone, so IMO all you really need is a nice finisher in the 6-8k range. As others have mentioned, jns is a great so ce if you want to try jnat.

You can get by just stopping on a high grit stone for a long time until youre more confident.

Also, dont take Brad too seriously.
 
It's very common to see a wide bevel at the heal on the left side of Murray's knives, been noticing this for years. It's not a problem though, it'll sharpen right out, it's just a result of the way Murray sharpens is all.
 
Dave, that's actually pretty cool. It's almost like how you can tell a person's writing (someone commented on how I do my A's) just by looking at it. We're all human and our own little nuances can be found all over what we do.

Oh, and again - Murray's knives are ridiculous performers (not to mention, I really like the handle on the one the OP got).
 
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