Finished all the kitchen knives! ..now on to gardening blades? Coarse stone hunting.

My current setup/situation:

To start out sharpening knives a couple years ago, I picked up a basic setup of the budget corundum stones you see all over Amazon -
a $20 combo 1k/4k, and a single 8k for finishing (flat granite kitchen counter with newspaper and/or my good leather belt for stropping on).

The 1k/4k combo has had about 80% of its material worn away since (still usable though), so I picked up a King KDS as its replacement. It's interesting that the 6k KDS can put a nice near-mirror polish on edges, and the so-called 8k corundum can't. The 8k hasn't worn much, it's still a good stone to have around for refining certain edges, and it's great for clearing load-up off the KDS 6k side.
Quick note: The cheaper 1k feels more coarse than the KDS 1k and cuts noticeably faster than the KDS 1k as well.
With a very dull blade, I'll usually start it on the thin remnants of the faster cutting cheap 1k stone, then move onto the new KDS 1k.

So far for edge damage repair, to save money I've simply used an old metal file, along with a fairly flat cement surface (with water), which I found atop a raised garden siding in the backyard (which I've also used for flattening my 1k whetstones. I use water + fine sandpaper ontop my flat granite kitchen counter to flatten my higher grit stones). I haven't tried the drywall screen + water method, is it any good? I'll try it, maybe it won't wear out as fast as sandpaper does when flattening whetstones.
(I've improved a lot in the past years - utilizing most of the stone's surface area to minimize dishing, but I recognize the benefit of flattening after prolonged heavy usage)

I've helped out lots of family/friends/neighbours sharpening their knives, and some have recently requested I do some of their gardening and camping blades: Hedge trimmers/pruning shears, hatchets, lawnmower blades, etc. For the bulky/rusty items, I've simply used my metal file/backyard cement surface, then finished with my cheap 1k, and so far they've turned out surprisingly well. That old 1k is really wearing out super fast with this abuse though.
For some bulky items (mower blades/edgers, etc) nothing more than a rough metal filing job is really needed, but cleaning up that roughly filed edge with a proper coarse stone would make a big difference and give that extra bite. My question though is for the more refined items that would really benefit from a precision edge (pruners, small shears, even axe heads, etc) that come to me damaged/rusty.

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My question / TLDR:

I've barely squeezed by so far without a proper coarse whetstone by using metal files, flat cement surfaces, and because my cheap 1k is actually pretty rough itself. However, now that my cheap 1k is fading away into oblivion, its time for a proper coarse stone. I'm looking for one that will not only prepare dull/damaged kitchen knives for my primary King KDS whetstone but will also hold up during harsh use on old rusty gardening tools.
I've done a lot of searching and reading here to come up with some options, however, can you guys recommend some good/better ones given my situation?
$80 USD ($100 Canadian) is my limit, but would prefer less if possible.

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So far I've been considering: (note - I currently have a credit on Amazon.CA, so it'll help if I purchase there.)

My leading choice so far:
Atoma 400
Pros- Durable plate, should hold up well to both hard kitchen knives as well as gardening blade metal. Multi-use: Coarse stone, plus a flattening plate for my King KDS (and 8k corundum + whats left of my 1k/4k stone).
Cons- very expensive pushing the limit of my budget at $101.53 up here on Canadian Amazon!
Looking into the American Amazon shipping options to Canada, I don't have prime, but may still get it cheaper this way. Also considering better places to buy (heard about metal master here but his stock is dry on eBay).
Is this worth the extra money? Maybe it is, considering its potential longevity and multi-use, but its gonna sting the budget. I'd love to hear your opinions on this for my described situation and consider cheaper options.

secondary options:

Shapton KUROMAKU 320
Pros- good price/quality, good for the first stage on dull/damaged kitchen knives
Cons- unsure if I'd want to use it on gardening blades though since it seems thin, and question whether I should abuse it with heavier garden blades, assuming this stone is purely meant for kitchen knives.
Unlike the Atoma, this option will need a flattener itself and will leave me without a real flattener for my KDS (but I still have makeshift cheap flattening methods!)

Chosera super ceramic 400
Pros- High quality, fast cutting
Cons- a little on the pricey side (but probably worth it).
Unlike the Atoma, this option will need its own flattener, also leaves me without a real flattener for my KDS (but still have home-made cheap flattening methods!)

King PB-05 Japanese Combination Whetstone Sharpener 220/800 Grit
Pros- affordable, 2 options with 220 + 800 combo, could use 220 for rusty/chipped blades, and 800 to prepare for my 1k King KDS
Cons- ? I assume it will wear fast but I'm not sure, have never used this one.

What about more affordable diamond or DMT plates that could double as coarse stone + flattener?

Any other suggestions would be great, thanks

Sounds like a small belt grinder could do you good actually. I like the king300. Dont go with the atoma, wears very fast if used on knfe repairs.

You should put up a want to buy in the bst for broken low grit stones. Small pieces are good for this because you can shape them. Shears and sicsors come with a curve as the blades make contact so a flat stone is not your friend. You have to be able to run a slight curve against a slight curve. You want to put your effort into the face of blade and remove the burr from the back face (much like single bevel knife sharpening) with a very slight micro bevel for shearing power. The diamond stone can help shaping stones but so can a belt grinder.. if you use a belt for garden tools use it on the face not the back. Believe me I have japanese shears that are like two yanigibas with a pivot... boxwood it’s your time right now!!

RDalman said:

Sounds like a small belt grinder could do you good actually. I like the king300. Dont go with the atoma, wears very fast if used on knfe repairs.

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Wow, the atoma 400 wears fast on knife repairs? I thought the exact opposite after some initial research on it. I figured: solid aluminum plate base, with the hardest substance on earth as it's medium, gotta be the best bet. I'm really glad I asked about it here first! It does seem like most people say it's the best of all diamond/dmt plate options though... would you say that consensus is just referring to it's flattening purpose, not knife repair?

A belt sander would be really nice to speed things up, but a decent one looks a little above my budget, plus I've never used one, and I'm much more confident with whetstones at this point. However, I assume I could just do some research and watch some instructional vids on them to remedy that, they seem pretty simple to use... ?
The jobs I'm doing aren't usually very time sensitive, so although the time saved by using one would be sweet, it may not be worth it for me at this point.

How long do grinding belts last on these? Depending on this, the price of replacement sanding belts must be taken into consideration over time too, vs the huge durability/longevity of a stone like the King 300 deluxe.

I did some research on the King 300 Deluxe, great reviews on Amazon (but I value recommendations/reviews from people here a more than Amazon consumers, no offence to them). It seems well piced/good value with it's thickness for longevity (especially vs the shapton options), definitely considering it, it might be the perfect addition to compliment my KDS for kitchen knives. Apparently is a decently quick cutting, splash n'go, very hard stone, wondering if it will be durable enough to stand up to garden blades over time. There's only 1 English youtube vid featuring it sadly, does anyone else here have experience with the King 300? What about using side-1 of it for most of my work, keeping side-2 flatter, and using that (side-2) to flatten my king KDS 1k and/or 6k now and then?

niwaki-boy said:

You should put up a want to buy in the bst for broken low grit stones. Small pieces are good for this because you can shape them. Shears and sicsors come with a curve as the blades make contact so a flat stone is not your friend. You have to be able to run a slight curve against a slight curve.

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Maybe I just need to suck it up and save for a belt grinder after all, since the flexibility of the belts will come into play with curved shears/pruners.
Niwaki-boy, thanks, I'll definitely be looking into discounted broken coarse stones. If I can save some money and make one of those work, I'll be all set

Thanks again for any further help guys!

I was thinking like a 1x30 cheapest kind of belt grinder. running 60-120 grit ceramic belts preferrably, good economy.. finish the edges on the stones still but use the 120 belt a couple of swipes to raise burr. Rather easy to learn, just gotta be mindful of heat, you need to do like swipes, and dip in water. steel can not change color at all, then you're risking affecting the heat treatment of the steel.

King 300 use [video=youtube;pLBauNzudZY]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLBauNzudZY[/video]
I refresh it often on the granite plate with sic loose grit 60.

RDalman said:

I was thinking like a 1x30 cheapest kind of belt grinder. running 60-120 grit ceramic belts preferrably, good economy.. finish the edges on the stones still but use the 120 belt a couple of swipes to raise burr. Rather easy to learn, just gotta be mindful of heat, you need to do like swipes, and dip in water. steel can not change color at all, then you're risking affecting the heat treatment of the steel.

King 300 use [video=youtube;pLBauNzudZY]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLBauNzudZY[/video]
I refresh it often on the granite plate with sic loose grit 60.

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I liked the video. I actually really enjoy watching other people sharpen--lol.

A belt sander is the best solution for this type of work although I'd use a bench grinder on lawn mover blades, those things destroy even a 36x ceramic belt. Don't forget to balance the mower blade after sharpening.

From your selection, I would definitelly take the shapton 320, atoma plates arent really well suited for abusive use in my experience (thinned few knives on the 400, its more less dead now). If you want faster material removal grab shapton 120. I usually flatten these with SiC powder on glass and I havent had any issues so far.

Foltest said:

From your selection, I would definitelly take the shapton 320, atoma plates arent really well suited for abusive use in my experience (thinned few knives on the 400, its more less dead now). If you want faster material removal grab shapton 120. I usually flatten these with SiC powder on glass and I havent had any issues so far.

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Thanks, no expensive Atoma needed after all I'm glad to be corrected here - I was totally under the assumption that a #400 atoma would be super durable and last longer than a ceramic whetstone for grinding/reprofiling (plus flattening work for whestones). Silly me! I'm going with a coarse ceramic stone for now.

I'm still looking into belt grinder options. Honestly, I've had success using a simple 10" coarse/medium metal file on bulky gardening metal without having to put too much effort in. Finishing off those filed edges with a few passes from a coarse stone does trick. A belt grinder will be better/faster though, the hunt for that continues...

I also decided to skip the Atoma for flattening my kitchen whetstones - I picked up some 150 grit drywall sanding screen (to use ontop flat granite) and its actually perfect for flattening for super cheap - It's far more durable/long lasting than regular waterproof sandpaper, and perfect since the mesh serves to collect the material below (unlike sandpaper).

To be honest, if you flatten often (I usually flatten every time I sharpen), atoma 140 is the most comfortable solution imo. I am just too lazy to mess up with sandpaper when flattening whetstones. On cheap/crappy/damaged stones, cinderblock or 60 grit SiC powder works very well for rough work, after that I usually do few passes with 140 and its good to go.