What Is Your Go-To Coarse Stone For Heavy Lifting?

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Right now, Debado 180

It used to be SG220, but I found my Debado to be faster. Downside is that it’s also a bit softer, so it masks low spots and shinogi isn’t super crisp. Maybe I got a softie, IDK.

Once most of the low spots are gone I switch to SG220 for more precision.

Haven’t used anything below 180 yet. Heard SP120 is great for stainless cladding.
 
Of stones currently available, my answer is Suehiro Debado LD 180. ("Nubatama Black 180" would not have been a helpful answer as it's no longer available.)

EricEricEric said:
Was using Gritomatic 120 before, faster and more consistent than Debado, switched to NSK for the win
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What's NSK, and how do you flatten the Gritomatic 120?
 
Debado 180/200 is pretty good. Makes reprofiling and chip repair a cinch. Drawbacks are that it is very friable, so it makes a lot of mess and requires frequent flattening. Really extreme low spots, especially on stainless, seem to stump the debado just like they do most stones.
 
I used to love Atoma 140 for their speed, but they wear out really fast and are quite expensive. Switched to Venev 200/160 micron (which is roughly 80-100 grit) and haven't looked back since then. In my experience Venev leaves MUCH smoother surface compared to Atoma 140.

I think diamond stones can't be beaten when it comes to coarse stones. They don't need soaking, they rarely need flattening, their speed is amazing. Just choose a brand that suit you best.
 
Oh, I also really enjoyed using my Norton india coarse, but apparently while testing usage with oil, I contaminated a stone holder that spread it to some stones... so if you give that a try, be careful not to cross contaminate. It also came needing to be flattened, which was a bear.
 
rgar4012 said:
Oh, I also really enjoyed using my Norton india coarse, but apparently while testing usage with oil, I contaminated a stone holder that spread it to some stones... so if you give that a try, be careful not to cross contaminate. It also came needing to be flattened, which was a bear.
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Thank you. I have many years with Crystolon's, India's, and Arkansas. I'm very diligent about cleanliness and segregation. It's good to make sure folks know that!

It's one of the reasons I'm kicking around a new water-based stone.
 
I'm doing some serious thinning, and when I decided progress wasn't quite fast enough for my liking, I pulled out a 120 grit SiC stone I got from Gritomatic. It seems to be doing a job, nice metal removal without much pressure. Scratches are formidable, though, and it's so thirsty that my spray bottle is getting constant use. Guess I should seal it.

Problem is I don't do thinning often enough to do a decent job at comparing stones.
 
Rangen said:
I'm doing some serious thinning, and when I decided progress wasn't quite fast enough for my liking, I pulled out a 120 grit SiC stone I got from Gritomatic. It seems to be doing a job, nice metal removal without much pressure. Scratches are formidable, though, and it's so thirsty that my spray bottle is getting constant use. Guess I should seal it.

Problem is I don't do thinning often enough to do a decent job at comparing stones.
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Yeah scratches can be a *****. I was an early adopter of Ben's Manticore but that stone can leave some serious scratches. I have an 80 grit diamond plate that does the same. They both get rid of metal but the scratches can really be a problem afterward. I don't polish but still...

I've done a little belt grinding as @deltaplex mentioned. Enough to not be as against it as I once was but I still like a stone option. I've also used sandpaper a number of times and while it definitely works, even for the occasional jobs it can get wasteful in a hurry when you want to hog off some metal.

Routine to medium thinning is not a big deal. My SP220 can handle most of that and if needed I can drop to a Crystolon to get started and then the 220. But when more is required, it gets more challenging.

All of the options have pros and cons obviously.

Good inputs all. Thanks you. 👍
 
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Bingo! Try soaking the stone well first, and try the manticore to flatten it👍🏻

Rangen said:
I'm doing some serious thinning, and when I decided progress wasn't quite fast enough for my liking, I pulled out a 120 grit SiC stone I got from Gritomatic. It seems to be doing a job, nice metal removal without much pressure. Scratches are formidable, though, and it's so thirsty that my spray bottle is getting constant use. Guess I should seal it.

Problem is I don't do thinning often enough to do a decent job at comparing stones.
Click to expand...
 
HumbleHomeCook said:
Thank you. I have many years with Crystolon's, India's, and Arkansas. I'm very diligent about cleanliness and segregation. It's good to make sure folks know that!

It's one of the reasons I'm kicking around a new water-based stone.
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Can you use the Nortons with water at all?
 
Yeah unfortunately the worst thing about oilstones is the risk of cross contamination. Im quite OCD about that as I don't want to get oil on my waterstone collection. Usually a sharpening session is a water session or a oil session. I have seperate stone holders and elevation bricks. You can use oilstones with water but Norton stones are embedded with oils and there's always residues on the stone or holder which can potentially transfer.
 
Can you soak a brand new Norton in degreaser and turn it into a water stone? Or would that ruin it?
 
I've read a few people doing such a thing. It does work but afaik changes the feel of the stone. I've never tried it myself, at that point I would just use one of my water stones. I actually do prefer Norton stones with oil rather than with water.
 
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