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Rubix3

Rubix3

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I am looking to purchase my first set of stones and learn how to hand sharpen my kitchen knives.
I just purchased a Sakai Takayuki Ginsanko Gyuto as my new workhorse.
My older knives consist of Wusthof and Shun chef knives, and petty knives which I will use to practice my sharpening on.

Thanks for your suggestions,
Eric
 
Do you have a budget in mind? Any prior experience sharpening on stones?

I would say that the bare minimum would be
1k grit stone
4-6k grit stone
Flattening plate.

Your budget will determine where you go from there. There is always more you can add, and with 1000 as your lowest grit you won't be the fastest but those 3 items will get you started.

In my opinion it is best to start with fewer items and purchase additional ones based on your preferences as you go. It's easy to end up with things you don't like or use if you try and buy a "complete" set of grits from the outset. Also if you know anyone with stones consider asking if you can try your knife on their stones before you purchase. Having a frame of reference will help you to decide what you want with regard to speed, dishing, and edge refinement among other factors.

Good luck!
 
Completely depends on your budget.

My choice is (for everything): DMT Coarse (325) (for coarse work, nicks etc., and flattening of the stones, and maybe rubbing a slurry on naturals), Naniwa Chosera/Pro 1k, Chosera 5k (for touchups), Okudo Suita.

You can go with King combo Stone like 1k/6k and some cheap coarse diamond plate as well....

Greets Sebastian.
 
I was in your shoes not so long ago. One thing I agree on, don't overdo it to start. I bought a Shapton Pro kit with 320, 1000 and 5000. I had some pretty sorry knives in my drawer which is why I opted for the three piece set with the 320. Now that all the knives are sharp the 320 just rests in the drawer waiting. I later bought an Atoma 140 Diamond Plate to keep the stones flat, so far a good investment. I had also purchased a balsa and leather strop, I think a good investment but many times I just strop on newsprint so you could save some money there for a while or even forever unless they quit making newsprint.

If I had it to do over I might not go with the Shaptons but on advice of many others go with the Bester 1200 and the Suehiro Rika 5000. The Chosera get good reviews also but 2-3 times the price. Maybe after I wear out my first set of stones and have greatly improved my sharpening skills. I have gone so far from somewhat sharp to now I can shave off chips of garlic you can see through with no tearing or juicing whatsoever, so the Shapton Pros seem to be working for me so far.

20160813_164926.jpg
 
Thanks for the suggestions. I've read about the Chosera being very nice, but I've decided to spring for a less expensive set to begin with.
CKTG has a decent one for under 200.
 
I would get a 1k Matukusuyama and an Atoma plate at JNS for starters. Fast stone, splash and go, doesn't dish too fast. The Atoma plate is not a necessity, but it can make your life easier. For a higher grit stone, the Takenoko 8k. Although it says 8k, the edge doesn't feel that polished for an 8k stone, but actually a bit toothy, more than enough for tomato skins, for instance.
 
I notice that a few of you suggested an Atoma plate. Any suggestion on the grit?
 
Thanks.

I've got an Atoma 140, Bester 1200, and Suehiro Rika 5k on the way.

Looking forward to learning. I've watched countless videos this week lol!
 
That's probably a much better starting set than many have had...should be great, now time to practice:)
 
A cheap and nasty coarse diamond plate will probably leave fingernail-trapping scratches in a king 1k/6k, especially in the softer home version. For soft stones like that, asian-grocer-special hard carborundum whetstones will make good flatteners.

For hard stones? Err just a piece of advice I learned the hard way: get flattening supplies now and start using them, a 3mm or so curve is a b..... to grind out of a hard stone, even with 40 grit drywall mesh.
 
A word about flattening -- plenty of water and light pressure, you want the diamond grit to cut away the stone but stay put. Heavy pressure will rip the diamonds off the plate (to the best of my knowledge they are held in place with nickel plating on all available diamond plates) and it is fairly easy to roll them off if you get heavy handed.

Don't wait until you can see that the stone is out of flat before you fix it, as noted. Better to flatten every time you use it with a few swipes than wear out your plate. The plate will wear much faster on the coarser stones, too....

As far a stones go, I'm still using my Bester 1200 and King 6000 after nearly 20 years. Have acquired plenty more stones, but at the moment those are the two that do most of my knives. Have a Suehiro Rika 5k to play with, but haven't sharpened any knives in a while,

Peter
 
1k, 3k and 5k. Anything beyond 5k is a waste on a kitchen knife since your edge will degrade back to 5k as soon as it touched the board.
 
Vysis said:
1k, 3k and 5k. Anything beyond 5k is a waste on a kitchen knife since your edge will degrade back to 5k as soon as it touched the board.
Click to expand...

You'll likely hit your fifty posts quickly enough but you really should read the entire thread before you contribute...op has already made a selection and imo a solid one at that.
 
Sorry, I'll read the whole thing next time.
 
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