JNS 800 before Takashima?

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perneto

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Hi Maksim,

I have a Takashima finishing stone from JKI, which I currently use after my Bester 1200 in regular sharpening (not wide-bevels). I'm considering replacing the Bester 1200 with your JNS 800. Do you think that would work, or would it be too big of a jump?

For kasumi finish I also have the Gesshin synthetic Aoto, which I would use in between the two, on wide-bevels only. Does that make sense?
 
not to answer for maxim (and i hope he also does answer), but i feel like that jump is way too big... even 1200 to takashima is a bit of a stretch, but do-able if enough time is spent
 
Not Maxim, and I don't have experience with those 3 stones, but -

I think a lot of it depends on your use/goals/requirements. If you're a professional cook, meaning you have time constraints and are required to sharpen your knives on a weekly basis - I wouldn't recommend that course of action.

I love my JNS 800 but it is relatively slow on putting a fresh edge on my double bevel knives - especially stainless.

For stainless I normally go Gesshin 400, JNS 800, Suehira 5k - depending on the state of the knife.

I'll do my carbons G400, JNS800, JNS 6000 (stupid nice contrast from this stone - just for finish), and then my Hakka.

So as far as the edge goes, I do jump to my natural stone from the 800. Very light action on my JNS 6000 - but I couldn't tell you how my Hakka stands next to your Takashima. Mine is fairly quick cutting and gives me a nice toothy edge- which I like as a professional cook.

So I take it as how much time you're willing to spend. If you're pressed to have a sharp knife - you'll probably want to find a different set up. But if you enjoy sharpening your knives and want to invest some time in them - why not?

I love my JNS 800 FWIW
 
Yes i aslo think it can be way to big of a jump something like aoto or 5k-6 stone will do a job, but i will also recommend to get a coarser stone first.
 
Jon, would you also recommend a 6k stone before the Takashima?

How about your synthetic aoto?

If I do get a 6k, I'd probably end up using that as a finisher for most knives, and use the Takashima mostly for polishing. That seems like a bit of a waste, no?

Maxim, I'm pretty much set on getting your JNS 300 as my first coarse stone, that's why I'm looking into other JNS stones too.
 
I have both those stones and do jump from the 800 to the takashima, but only when I want an edge that is only slightly more refined than the 800 grit edge.

I use this progression for honesuki and a vintage western carbon butchers knife. I like my process knives to be super aggressive, for anything else I put something in between, sometimes a rika 5k, sometimes a naniwa SS 1000 depending on what I'm aiming for.
 
I don't think JNS 800 -> Takashima is a big stretch, unless other Takashima are different than mine. Also I don't agree that the JNS 800 is particularly slow or light either - yeah, unless you just need to get things done immediately.

People are always emphasizing speed. However, if you enjoy using these tools then maybe that shouldn't be so important.

Many choices for stones to go between the Jns 800 and Takashima: Ikarashi, Natsuya, Binsui, Iyo, Aizu, Aoto.... I'd probably use one of those, but wouldn't worry much about a Takashima after the 800 even if it is a jump. No one would arrest you. ;)
 
Jon, would you also recommend a 6k stone before the Takashima?

How about your synthetic aoto?

If I do get a 6k, I'd probably end up using that as a finisher for most knives, and use the Takashima mostly for polishing. That seems like a bit of a waste, no?

Maxim, I'm pretty much set on getting your JNS 300 as my first coarse stone, that's why I'm looking into other JNS stones too.

anything from 3k-6k is nice before the takashima in my opinion. The synthetic aoto works a bit differently, and while you can use it before the takashima, i would still use a different 3-6k stone. The takashima's edge is drastically different from a 6k synthetic edge, so i dont consider it a waste personally. I often use a 6k before the takashima with nice results. In general, when you consider how you want to work with natural finishing stones, it is often nice to go as high (or even higher, but at the very least, close to) the starting grit range of the natural and then work from there in my experience.
 
Thanks for all the replies. Could you tell me more on why it's good to bring up a synthetic finish to a high level before switching to a natural finishing stone?
 
Thanks for all the replies. Could you tell me more on why it's good to bring up a synthetic finish to a high level before switching to a natural finishing stone?

Yeah... It's like having a nice blank canvas... Better to get the results from the natural stone's abrasive patterns and polish and save some time (synthetic are faster most of the time)
 
Less money, less time -> synthetics. More money, more time, more fun -> naturals.

I think JBroida's point is that to save time he'd use synthetics up to the fineness of edge he'd like, which is around what your natural finisher is - your Takashima - and then switch to the natural to draw the benefits from using that. Can't blame him as I imagine he sharpens rather a lot of knives each day. You could easily use a coarser natural between your 800 and Takashima, though.
 
May i enter? I'm not sure that the real matter is the progression or the stone type or the grit of the whetstone. Every steel ( stainless or high-carbon) reacts differently on same whetstone ( whether synthetic or natural), so why not to ask what knife has to be sharp? Yeh - one can achieve the required edge on many abrasives - but if to go that far (diff. Jnats etc) , why not to take into consideration the type of the steel used in the knife? The softer steel can be sharpened even on the opposite side of the tea pot :) , doesn't it?
57-59 R is not the same sharpening as 62-64R. The progression is different, the invested time etc. Stainless knife ( not the PM knives) are easier to resharpen as high-carbons. I have a good range of synthetics - and some high-quality 8000 grit synthetics - sometimes they are faster on some knives, but they never give me that sence and that feeling of the edge that the good Jnats does. I agree - this is about the time to invest , if we talk about a jump from 800 or some other coarse stone to a good Jnat. Earlier or later you will get your cutting edge in the desired condition, this is the question of time. One medium grit stone in-between would speed up the process.
 
May i enter? I'm not sure that the real matter is the progression or the stone type or the grit of the whetstone. Every steel ( stainless or high-carbon) reacts differently on same whetstone ( whether synthetic or natural), so why not to ask what knife has to be sharp? Yeh - one can achieve the required edge on many abrasives - but if to go that far (diff. Jnats etc) , why not to take into consideration the type of the steel used in the knife? The softer steel can be sharpened even on the opposite side of the tea pot :) , doesn't it?
57-59 R is not the same sharpening as 62-64R. The progression is different, the invested time etc. Stainless knife ( not the PM knives) are easier to resharpen as high-carbons. I have a good range of synthetics - and some high-quality 8000 grit synthetics - sometimes they are faster on some knives, but they never give me that sence and that feeling of the edge that the good Jnats does. I agree - this is about the time to invest , if we talk about a jump from 800 or some other coarse stone to a good Jnat. Earlier or later you will get your cutting edge in the desired condition, this is the question of time. One medium grit stone in-between would speed up the process.
Yes, i know, normally the people say: the high-carbon knives are easier to resharpen then the stainless steel knives, but: i have 12 different stainless steel knives ( all in hight quality, the lowest range is- Arcos Top Line ( full metall- bought 15+ years ago), some Wuesthoff Master, some good japanese VG-10 like Hattori or Yaxell, also in different PM steels ) and 12+ good high-carbon knives- all Aogamis/Shirogamis, swedish steel /Shigefusa etc - so the range is just not so small to charge the difference - and the Tennen Toishi collection consists not from 1 or 2 stones- also some way to get some experience.
Just 2 images- same stone- 2 knives - the black slurry comes from a simple Swiss Army Knife ( Wenger), a greenish one- from Yaxell GOU101 ( microcarbide powdered steel)- the difference is to see..
1557679_643434225715703_1415646791_n.jpg

1622780_640859759306483_2135073963_n.jpg

when i sharpen the stainless steel knife- i stop just when it gets the keen edge- when i take the high-carbons- i can't stop.. So that's what i mean saying easier or not to resharpen...!
 
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