Medium-grit, splash & go stone for touch-ups: shapton?

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Kitchen-Samurai

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Hello everyone,

Christmas is coming, and I am strongly considering surprising myself with a nice new medium-grit sharpening stone, preferably splash & go, around 2000 grit (Jis). The stone would be used as a touch up stone for German-steel kitchen knives, and, potentially, as a step-up stone to finer grit levels for carbon or higher-end stainless steel knives.

Tactile feel is quite important to me, and this is where I am a little unsure. I really enjoy sharpening on the Chosera 800 or the Gesshin 6000 soaker (even though they don’t feel the same). Both are by no means soft and muddy stones, but they don’t feel overly hard. They have a creamy feeling to them, and a very nice feedback. Most unlike, e.g., the Spyderco Fine ceramic stone which I did not enjoy too much.

I have been mainly considering the Shapton Pro 2k and the Shapton Glass 2k. The Pro comes with its own stone holder, nice for quick touch ups. On the other hand, I do have a SG 220, and thought of building myself a relatively compact traveling kit with the glass stones at some point. That’s why I thought the SG 2k might be a nice pick.

I would be most interested in some first-hand comparisons of both stones, especially in terms of tactile feel and feedback, or alternative suggestions for a nice mid-grit, splash & go stone for touch-ups.

Thanks for any input,
KS
 
If the grit of the Shapton Pro 2k works for you, then go for it. Otherwise Shapton Glass would beba great choice too (ideally with the standard Shapton holder which works really great).
 
Do you have experience with both stones? If so, what are the differences in terms of feel?
 
Hello everyone,

Christmas is coming, and I am strongly considering surprising myself with a nice new medium-grit sharpening stone, preferably splash & go, around 2000 grit (Jis). The stone would be used as a touch up stone for German-steel kitchen knives, and, potentially, as a step-up stone to finer grit levels for carbon or higher-end stainless steel knives.

Tactile feel is quite important to me, and this is where I am a little unsure. I really enjoy sharpening on the Chosera 800 or the Gesshin 6000 soaker (even though they don’t feel the same). Both are by no means soft and muddy stones, but they don’t feel overly hard. They have a creamy feeling to them, and a very nice feedback. Most unlike, e.g., the Spyderco Fine ceramic stone which I did not enjoy too much.

I have been mainly considering the Shapton Pro 2k and the Shapton Glass 2k. The Pro comes with its own stone holder, nice for quick touch ups. On the other hand, I do have a SG 220, and thought of building myself a relatively compact traveling kit with the glass stones at some point. That’s why I thought the SG 2k might be a nice pick.

I would be most interested in some first-hand comparisons of both stones, especially in terms of tactile feel and feedback, or alternative suggestions for a nice mid-grit, splash & go stone for touch-ups.

Thanks for any input,
KS

I have had the glas and pro 2k for several years. for all practical purposes they are very similar. i have a feeling the glass will stay flatter longer. gives about the same finish, same speed.
both feel very good imo. but this is 100% personal.

the pro 1 and 2k i think are the best stones in their grit ranges, but so are the glass.
 
Do you have experience with both stones? If so, what are the differences in terms of feel?

they are both very hard stones. not like spydercos/missarkas though, but as hard as you can get with water stones. but they both give a very good feel. you know what you are doing on these and you feel whats going on.
but you may or may not like the feel anyway. i like it.
 
Yes, but rather briefly. The 2k Pro felt like a finer version of the 1k, rather than coarser version of the 5k. I have recently got a full set of Glass stones (mainly for razors though). My impression is that the Glass 2k might be softer and faster, but both are great stones
 
i jumped on the bandwagon with the shaptons many years ago when the glass stones were new and exotic. and everybody thought/said it was a night and day difference with the pros and glass. but in my opinion its extremely minute differences in actual use and feel. like 2 different shades of gray next to each other on the scale.

i think the glass are thinner because they wear slower (the pros still wear very very slow), i feel the glass might be faster too. by maybe 10% in general.
they both dry extremely fast. most glass stones can be put away in like 10 minutes, the pros are not far behind if any.
They both keep water on the stone about similar in time imo. so you dont have to reapply water every 10 seconds. maybe the glass are just a little better here i dont know.

for me: get the ones that you can find cheapest where you are. for high wear stones like a 1k and to a lesser degree a 2k will be, the thicker the stone the longer it will last.
HOWEVER. a 1k pro is 15mm and a 1k glass it like 6-7mm. i think the pro will outlive the glass here. but if you haven't glued it to something solid it will probably crack at the 3-4mm mark. and then there is a real possibility they will last just as long. same with the 2k's. i have a feeling though that i will not be able to wear out any of my 2k's in this life. :)

with the high grits 5k+ i'd say just get the cheapest ones.
with the 1-2k's get the cheapest ones.

i also have the 220ies both in glass and in pro and here i actually notice a difference.

the glass wears slower and stays flatter, and is faster.
ther pro slurries more and benefits from a bit more initial water than the glass.
I have a feeling they will both last just as long. but one is only half as thick.

i have not tried the 120ies yet, but soon will.

personally i have the 12 and 8k as pros, because those i could get locally the same day downtown.
6k is glass since i could have it in my hand the next day.
4k glass. same here.
3k glass. same here
2k glass and pro. i use the pro at work because i can abuse it more since its thicker and i dont care.
1k glass and pro. see above.
500 glass (no pro version of this one)
220 both glass and pro. i got the glass first. and understood i needed more of this grit for hobby knife production and got 2 pros from germany.

a naniwa pro 2k would also be a nice stone but they can crack. more of an aquired taste i'd say. the shaptons are pure abrasive performance.
 
I much appreciate all the input, thanks a lot!
I see a tendency toward the SP 2k, but the SG 2k seems to be a good and not too different alternative. I am a bit hesitant about the Chosera 2k, even though I like the 800/3k. The reason is that they do soak up some water and have the cracking issue...
The Morihei 3k sounds interesting as well. Searching for it, I saw some more info on the other stones in that range, and they seem to produce a nice contrast for synthetics.... maybe a line-up worth testing at some point.
 
I was told by the vendor to grab morihei 3k for edge sharpening or the 4K if you wanted prepolisher/ polisher. Pretty sure the 4K is fine for the edge too, but if you’re primary concern is the edge then supposedly the 3k is the way to go.
 
(ideally with the standard Shapton holder which works really great).

Is the holder that I see referred to the box that it comes in and doubles as a holder or is it something else altogether.

I'll be using my SG500 for the first time 2morrow. Beat hell out of my Wat suji Sat, sliced about 20 brisket flats for an event.
 
Is the holder that I see referred to the box that it comes in and doubles as a holder or is it something else altogether.

I'll be using my SG500 for the first time 2morrow. Beat hell out of my Wat suji Sat, sliced about 20 brisket flats for an event.

The holder comes with the Pro/Kuromaku line. And it works decently with a stone or lapping plate inside.
 
Is the holder that I see referred to the box that it comes in and doubles as a holder or is it something else altogether.

I'll be using my SG500 for the first time 2morrow. Beat hell out of my Wat suji Sat, sliced about 20 brisket flats for an event.

I mean this holder: https://www.dictum.com/en/shapton-ead/shapton-sharpening-stone-holder-without-stone-711610

You can either get it separately, or with a 3-stone bundle (I did as the price made a lot of sense). It is real solid, does slide around and can hold 3 stones for transport or storage. The wonky plastic boxes that Shapton Pro stones come with can be used as a sorta emergency holders, but are just that - wonky plastic boxes with rubber feet.
 
Thanks Matus. I've got all the Shaptons I need / want, found the holder on Amazon for 100 bucks. Damn this site is costly.
 
The Shapton Pro 2k arrived, an here's a quick first impressions for anyone who might be interested.
The stone looks nice, feels very hard, I like the case/stone holder combination it comes with, makes it an easy recommendation for beginners with a limited budget. The surface seems quite hydrophobic at first, repels water and you end up with a couple of drops of water. However, after using it the first time, this behavior disappears, so not an issue at all.
Cutting speed seems very good, not on the Gesshin 2k level but still good. Honestly, I don't really care if it is 10% slower or quicker than the next stone. Much more important to me is the finish and the edge it leaves, and the feedback and tactile feel. Starting with the finish and the edge it leaves: Just what I was looking for. From my very first impressions, that's the kind of edge refinement level I was looking for, great for regular stainless knives. In terms of feedback and tactile feel: feedback is not as great as, say, the Chosera 800 or 3k, but hey, that was to be expected. Still good enough for me though. Tactile feel was my biggest concern - and I am glad that I like it. Yes, it is a hard stone, but feel surprisingly good while sharpening. Better than some other hard stones I have tested. Also, it holds the water well and its possible to quickly build up some slurry, and the stone seems to benefit from that.
So, I am happy with the purchase, but, again, just a first impressions with two cheap stainless steel knives, so take it with a grain of salt.
Thanks again for the recommendation!
 
Which synthetic options best mimic a Jnat edge. Is that even possible? I just love the bitey refined edge Jnats offer but it would be nice to have an alternative option for touchups without having to breakout the stones.
 
Which synthetic options best mimic a Jnat edge. Is that even possible? I just love the bitey refined edge Jnats offer but it would be nice to have an alternative option for touchups without having to breakout the stones.
I don't know, Jnats are just as convenient as a splash and go. Then again I have all my stones in the drawer, so it makes reaching for them easy
 
I don't know, Jnats are just as convenient as a splash and go. Then again I have all my stones in the drawer, so it makes reaching for them easy
I'm thinking more when traveling. Holiday homes etc
 
Which synthetic options best mimic a Jnat edge. Is that even possible? I just love the bitey refined edge Jnats offer but it would be nice to have an alternative option for touchups without having to breakout the stones.

Synthetic Natural from JKI? Or the synthetic Aoto's from JNS?
 
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