Feedback on plans for beginner whetstones

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Kirk.S

Kirk.S

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Hi folks. I bought a Richmond Artifex tall gyuto a few years back and have practiced sharpening it a few times on one of those cheap amazon SharpPebble combo stones. Well, this week I decided to plunge in and buy a Tanaka Ginsan Nashiji, and I'd like better stones to go with it. Was hoping to keep it under $150ish. I'm thinking Shapton glass 500 and Shapton Pro 2k. Two thumbs up for this plan for a beginner (home cook) sharpener? Any other 1 or 2 stone alternatives you think might suit better? Also, should I look into any accessories? An angle guide, a stone holder, something to deburr with, a diamond plate?
 
That's a good stone combination. No need for an angle guide, they are a waste of time and tend to scratch the sides of the blade. A diamond plate is nice, but optional. You can use the 500 to flatten the 2000, and some 240-grit sandpaper on a flat surface to flatten the 500. ('The 500 probably won't need flattening for quite some time anyway.)
 
Nothing wrong w your picks but I'd at least suggest that there is no real thing as a beginner's stone. They last a very long time... I'd suggest a diamond plate and one really nice stone (not that yours aren't nice but i wouldn't rule out anything). Where are you located? Isn't there a which stone thread?
 
I'm in Oregon, USA. I looked through many "which stone" threads, but for beginners I kept seeing King combo recommended by some and then negative comments about it by some others, and the best I could figure it seemed Shapton was the next step up. Also I never found any tips on beginner sharpening accessories. I'm sure that info is in this forum somewhere, but after a bit of searching I decided to just start a new thread.
 
Very solid picks.
Just as an alternative, I always recommend the Chosera 800 and 3k, which can be found on Amazon. Not sure of cost package, but if more than $150, it would not be by much at all.
 
Thanks for the recommendation! I'll take a look at them. Why might one choose Chosera vs Shapton?
 
Oh and far as something to deburr with, my favorite and cheap thing is wine corks. Draw the edge through it after forming the Burr and deburring on the stone. Then strop on stone or move up to next grit.
 
Kirk Stonick said:
Thanks for the recommendation! I'll take a look at them. Why might one choose Chosera vs Shapton?
Click to expand...

Both are among the highest quality stones and with strong reputation.
For me, I find 500 to be unnecessarily coarse for regular edge work. As such, I think 800 to 1k is all the home cook needs as a primary sharpening stone.

Also, the amount of stone on Shapton Glass is rather small. Not a deal breaker by any means, as I have a lot of SG stones, but for a beginner, I think Chosera, which offers a built in base and more stone for the buck, is a slightly better choice. By all means, nothing bad to say about SG 500 -- it's a TOP stone. I use it primarily for thinning/polishing. Edge work, I have never needed to dip below 800.
 
Thanks for the insight Elliot. Do you think a Shapton Pro 2k would work okay as a standalone for regular edge work, or is it important to have both a medium and a fine grit?
 
Kirk Stonick said:
Thanks for the insight Elliot. Do you think a Shapton Pro 2k would work okay as a standalone for regular edge work, or is it important to have both a medium and a fine grit?
Click to expand...

Overall, as long as you don't let the knives dull too much, you'd probably be fine with that.
I, would, however, recommend, in that case, a 1k stone to ensure you're getting a nice edge. You could use leather or even balsa wood, to strop/polish/refine.

Ideal or high end? No. But it will get you some sharp knives.
 
I'd suggest taking a look at the Gesshin stones. The 2k is a near perfect one stone solution...well that and a diamond plate
 
It does esnt sound like you need the 500. You're not going to be thinning for a while. If sufgsdt a 1k Shap Pro and then the 5k Shap Pro or glass for finishing. About the same investment, but IMHO a better setup for somebody at home who takes good care of their knives.
 
I wouldn’t hesitate to get a SG 500. Every knife I sharpen, I start with a coarse stone and I often grab the SG500. You can easily adjust pressure as appropriate to get what you need (a burr) out of this stone. If I lived in the States I’d buy every Gesshin stone I could get my hands on. The Shapton Pro 1,000 and 2,000 are great choices. Don’t neglect a flattening plan, it’s important. Ignore the folks who say flattening is unnecessary, that’s wrong and those thoughts should not be entertained.
 
Atoma 140 (diamond flattening plate) + Shapton 1k + Shapton 2k = $150 (+/- $10) on amazon.

As Sailor said before, do NOT neglect flattening. The atoma will take care of that, it also helps raise slurry which makes the hard shapton stones a bit easier to use. They also help unclog the surface to give you a fresh surface to sharpen on (efficiency). If you are on a shoestring budget the King 1/6k will work
 
The 1k or 2k seems awful close if you're only buying the three. It would seem that a 1k then 5k or even 2k to 5,6k would make more sense to me but the thing that really bears repetition is that there isn't really a right and wrong answer.

For a stone holder you can buy them from any number of places though I've been really happy with a hotel pan and 2x4 cut to friction fit in it. I put some cabinet liner non skid stuff on the 2x4. For that set up I'm less than 20 bucks into it.
 
i went with a super budget stone holding setup: A silicone baking mat and the plastic case that came with the shapton, I soak in a bucket and have some water in an old food container. If I need height I'll go buy a brick and a small rubber/silicone piece to fit the brick. I was deburring with some small cuts of soft pine but I might find an alternative soon.
 
dsk said:
i went with a super budget stone holding setup: A silicone baking mat and the plastic case that came with the shapton, I soak in a bucket and have some water in an old food container. If I need height I'll go buy a brick and a small rubber/silicone piece to fit the brick. I was deburring with some small cuts of soft pine but I might find an alternative soon.
Click to expand...

I like wine corks, but, it's probably because I get them for free from work.
 
M1k3 said:
I like wine corks, but, it's probably because I get them for free from work.
Click to expand...
I don't really drink so I lack an abundant source of cork, but I did have random scrap lumber. I'll probably get some recycled cork for my next sharpening.
 
For cheap strop, old leather (belts, sleeve of jacket, etc), wine cork, old jeans, old sweaters, old newspaper all work in one way or another depending on your technique.

Silicon baking sheet works really well for me but only for applications that need small amouts of water (S&G stones, Jnats), otherwise the Tub + sinkbridge always works.

The SP1k is actually a bit coarser than its rating compared to other stones rated at 1000 that Ive tried, its the stone I use after 220 or 300 and then I follow with the SP2k
 
You’ve gone for some nice stones to start albeit a bit close together on the grit progression. I love the Shapton 1k and I agree it cuts like an 800, I’m probably one of the few who prefers it to the chosera 800, but I just love it’s feedback. I personally would have ditched one of these for a higher mid polisher. The Naniwa Superstones are awesome value, especially the 5k.

Well done on taking the flattening advice and incorporating that into your budget off the bat. As previously said, it’s super important.

Without a shadow of a doubt, you will be wanting a higher finishing stone at some stage. There’s loads of info on here for the higher grits. But maybe for now after using the 2k, finish up on a loaded strop which is as inexpensive as it comes.

Then like me and others here, you might be lucky enough to fine yourself staring hard at a large shelf that previously held a DVD collection, now housing a vast array of stones.

When the bug bites so to speak.

 
Last edited:
Kirk Stonick said:
Hi folks. I bought a Richmond Artifex tall gyuto a few years back and have practiced sharpening it a few times on one of those cheap amazon SharpPebble combo stones. Well, this week I decided to plunge in and buy a Tanaka Ginsan Nashiji, and I'd like better stones to go with it. Was hoping to keep it under $150ish. I'm thinking Shapton glass 500 and Shapton Pro 2k. Two thumbs up for this plan for a beginner (home cook) sharpener? Any other 1 or 2 stone alternatives you think might suit better? Also, should I look into any accessories? An angle guide, a stone holder, something to deburr with, a diamond plate?
Click to expand...

the shapton pro 1k and the 2k is a good combo actually. i actually glued those 2 together because they are so good together.
also pro/glass 1k with either the 3 or 4k glass is super combo imo.
 
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