Flatting stones

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Teetertank

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What do people recommend for getting sharpening stones back to flat?

Are there particular diamond plates that are recommended, or is emery paper just as effective?
 
Thanks for this recommendations. Will look into the Atomas. Will one grade work for flatting all grades of stones? And if so, ios there a recommended grade to use?
 
I used some of the crappy cheap ceramic flattening stones in the past, and they were just outrigth crap. Switched to Atoma 140 and it's a million times better.
If you're worried about the finish it leaves you can always rub down your stone with another one.
 
I use JKI's, a bit cheaper than Atomas and same grit / application compared to the 140. Might not be the cheapest solution given you are in the UK.
https://www.japaneseknifeimports.com/products/diamond-flattening-plate
Like Benuser said, I use them on stones #400/500 and up. For coarser stones I use a glass plate + loose coarse SiC. I went through a whole SG220 with my JKI plate and now it cuts noticeably slower.
 
When you say "back to flat" are you trying to recondition already dished stones? If so, what are they and how badly dished?

If just for maintenance then Atoma is definitely a very good option.
 
Benuser said:
I use the 140 with anything from 500 to my finest ones, 8k and more. The coarse surface it leaves with fine stones is no problem.
Click to expand...
I've heard that the coarse surface it leaves would be an issue for razor sharpening.
So for the razor stones I use 1200 atoma after the 140 and then nagura.
I have both Atoma and DMT, and like the Atoma way better.
I've had issues though with elevated corners, and could be fixed with a hammer blow :)
 
I use Atoma 140 for regular maintenance. If the stone is very dished, loose SiC powder (90grit) on a glass works fine.
 
Godinlhi said:
How frequently do you guys tend to flatten your stones?
Click to expand...
I try to keep it flat all the time. I much prefer spending 30 seconds every other time than a 5 minutes long session once in a while.

Overall its up to you personal preference and your tolerance for a dished stones.
 
Thanks for all the recommendations. The recommended plates aren't too expensive but not cheap either. Are they something that lasts nearly indefinitely, or do the diamond flatting plates need to be replaced from time to time?

And could some coarse silicone carbide paper (wet & dry) be used if stuck down to a flat marble or glass slab?

HumbleHomeCook said:
When you say "back to flat" are you trying to recondition already dished stones? If so, what are they and how badly dished?

If just for maintenance then Atoma is definitely a very good option.
Click to expand...

I have some older stones that are quite badly dished (cheapish dual sided #1000/6000 and a 400ish/??) the higest grit side is still reasonable shape but the coarse is not so good. But more recently got some King S (#6000) and G(#8000) grit stones that are still pretty flat, but don't want them to get out of shape.

So my intention is ideally to flatten the dished stones and maintain the newer stones that are still in reasonable shape.
 
Teetertank said:
Thanks for all the recommendations. The recommended plates aren't too expensive but not cheap either. Are they something that lasts nearly indefinitely, or do the diamond flatting plates need to be replaced from time to time?

And could some coarse silicone carbide paper (wet & dry) be used if stuck down to a flat marble or glass slab?



I have some older stones that are quite badly dished (cheapish dual sided #1000/6000 and a 400ish/??) the higest grit side is still reasonable shape but the coarse is not so good. But more recently got some King S (#6000) and G(#8000) grit stones that are still pretty flat, but don't want them to get out of shape.

So my intention is ideally to flatten the dished stones and maintain the newer stones that are still in reasonable shape.
Click to expand...

For trying to recondition dished stones, especially coarser ones, I wouldn't use a diamond plate. You'll just use up the plate too fast. I'd go with loose SiC powder/water on a piece of glass, tile, etc. Something like 60 or 80 grit. Or get a couple super cheap diamond blocks from Harbor Freight or the like, to get the bulk work done maybe.

Use the diamond plates for maintenance flattening.
 
Ok, this is sounds like good advice. And the coarser stones are cheap anyway so I may be better off discarding them as by the time they're flat there won't be a huge amount of material left. Or can try the cheaper diamond plates for them as suggested.
 
When I need to do a lot of flattening, I use the three stone method with two stones and my sidewalk. I flatten a coarse silicon carbide flattening stone against the sidewalk, then flatten the stone I want to use against the sidewalk, then flatten them together. To smooth the surface, I use my atoma plate or another less coarse whetstone
 
shawcrow said:
I flatten a coarse silicon carbide flattening stone against the sidewalk, then flatten the stone I want to use against the sidewalk, then flatten them together.
Click to expand...
Another good suggestion - especially for the cheap coarse stones!

Maybe a stupid question, but what's the advantage in using stones over diamond plate for sharpening in the first instance?
Would it be better to sharpen knives directly on the diamond stones, that way seems like there wouldn't be a need for any flattening?

Maybe they don't come in fine enough grades. I have a little tub of super fine diamond paste for stropping so presumably you can get plates with that grade embedded on the substrate.
 
Fineness and grit control is one issue. The other is that diamond plates wear out quite a bit when used for sharpening, particularly with some alloyed steels.
 
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