Which stones/ brands benefit from dressing?

[1315]

Besides all of them!
Are there specifics that you've found, especially when new (but to "tune" after new as well)? Columbia Gorge Stoneworks diamonds require it, per the manufacturer who says "The stones should be dressed 2 or 3 times when new to fully break in" and "How new stones are dressed will have a huge effect on how well they perform", so not ready to go out of the box.
Belgians seem to need a dressing, unless direct from Ardennes. Do they dress or surface differently?
What about Shapton Pro? Does that series benefit from some new-prep, or are they literally "splash n go" out of the box?

 

[KasumiJLA]

I usually soak my SP 5 minutes before using them, especially my 1k. It's weird because I bought 6 of them and they all behaves a little bit differently. The one I'm using right now is always thirsty!

For low grit (120 to 400) I always work with a continuous stream of water. This allows the mud to be evacuated so as not to scratch the KU or to have a cleaner shinogi.

Beside that, I only do a little resurfacing with an Atoma 140 plate before using it. I level my stone every 6~10 knives.

 

[JustAnotherJoe]

Belgians seem to need a dressing, unless direct from Ardennes. Do they dress or surface differently?

I have a Belgian blue from them that I really like. I wouldn't say it needs dressing. I use a smaller bbw stone to raise some mud and manage wear, but the surface is pretty much the same as if I shappened without it. However the bbw side to a vintage coticule I have almost wont release mud and can burnish, so that's a different story.

I can confirm Arkansas stones and sintered ceramics (ex: idahone and spyderco) will need dressing eventually and the method of dressing really dictates thier properties. For example you can make a combo stone out of one of those sintered ceramics just by dressing the sides differently.

 

[SwampDonkey]

I have a Belgian blue from them that I really like. I wouldn't say it needs dressing. I use a smaller bbw stone to raise some mud and manage wear, but the surface is pretty much the same as if I shappened without it. However the bbw side to a vintage coticule I have almost wont release mud and can burnish, so that's a different story.

+1 for me. My BBWs from AC have come without the need for dressing while one from another vendor required some diamond diplomacy to get it to behave better. I still hit it all my BBWs with a smaller BBW nagura to raise some mud and texture the surface a bit. Sometimes I use a small coticule to raise a hybrid mud.

I pretty much hit all my stones (natural or synthetic) with a nagura or quick diamond plate when I'm washing them off too. Helps remove steel buildup, keep flat just by doing a few passes every time, and keep surface ~true~. Shapton Pro 320 is the only thing I just put water on and grind away since it releases mud very quickly.

 

[cotedupy]

dressed

When you say 'dressing' do you mean how the surface of the stone is finishined? i.e. whether you use a 140 or 1200 atoma on it &c...

In which case: All stones, natural or synthetic, will behave slightly differently depending on how roughed up the surface is. The difference is more noticeable on harder stones than softer ones.

What about Shapton Pro? Does that series benefit from some new-prep, or are they literally "splash n go" out of the box?

SPs definitely benefit from being rubbbed with something (ideally an atoma) when brand new.

Belgians seem to need a dressing, unless direct from Ardennes. Do they dress or surface differently?

Both blue and yellow coticule aren't (usually) massively hard in the realms of natural stones, so you don't necessarily need to rough the surface, though it can often make quite a difference. It's a complicated subject; trying to make a generalisation about how coticules act is akin to trying to make a generalisation about how all jnats act - there's that much scope and variation, possibly even more.

AC won't be doing anything different to what any vintage coti producer did.

 

[Heckel7302]

I think every new stone should have the top layer taken off with a diamond plate. They often have a "crust" that needs to be taken off before getting the the true nature of the stone.

 

[M1k3]

Shapton Pro 120 likes a little sprinkle of coarse SiC when sharpening.

Venev 100 needs a little resurfacing with 36 grit SiC.

 

[Tekkz]

Shapton Pro 120 likes a little sprinkle of coarse SiC when sharpening.

Venev 100 needs a little resurfacing with 36 grit SiC.

Ah so that's what I was missing. The sp120 was loading up so fast, was kind of a pain to keep resurfacing with a diamond plate every 10 seconds.

 

[M1k3]

Ah so that's what I was missing. The sp120 was loading up so fast, was kind of a pain to keep resurfacing with a diamond plate every 10 seconds.

Don't wash away what little mud you have either. Helps continuously refresh the surface.

Also, using it for grinding spines for tip repairs, creates grooves in the stone. Leave the grooves, they'll help release more abrasives during sharpening.