Which Water Stones?

[Its_Raw]

Well... I might give some water stones another go. Which stones (or set) would a guy need?

Thank you!

 

[SmokinEdge]

What type of edge are you shooting for?

 

[Its_Raw]

I like sharp, but I also do not like to spend 45-minutes on each stone.

 

[SmokinEdge]

I grew up on stones. Used all kinds of them but honestly the belt system is so much faster and easier. If you are familiar with sharpening on stones then the belt system has a short learning curve. Check out this link. Game changer

https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/ken-onion-grinder-attachment.325147/

This is a new offering and not the original Ken Onion addition.

 

[Its_Raw]

Interesting upgrade as I was not too keen on the original design as it appeared that with too much pressure on the belt, you could easily round-over the edge. I wonder if WS will come out with a plate like overly expensive, 3-D printed one? They did with the WS3000, which I do own for woodworking tools. How easy it is to overheat an edge?

 

[Its_Raw]

Let’s say I get fancy and get some water stones. Any suggestions on which ones to invest in?

 

[charlieL]

From my other hobbies, wood workiing, and collecting and using straight razors, I have used many brands of water stones.

My favorite waterstones for kitchen knives are the Naniwa chosera line. I like the green 1000 grit and the blue 600 grit for kitchen work. The Shapton glass stones would be my second choice.

I keep diamond hones in the kitchen all of the time, those are my daily drivers. I prefer the Atoma line. pretty much any brand of diamond stones will work, once they are broken in. DMT and even the cheap Aliexpress diamond hones work just fine.

 

[Its_Raw]

Charlie - have you given the stone holder that goes above/across the sink a try?

 

[charlieL]

I have used an over sink holder, but have not used one in years. I prefer to set stone on damp wash cloth on the counter or hand hold the stone.

When I use water stones, I set the initial bevel/edge with a diamond hone then polish the edge with the water stones.

 

[Its_Raw]

Which two grits would be best to try first?

 

[charlieL]

I do not go very high on the grits on my kitchen knives. I do not like a highly polished edge for vegetables or meat.

For two water stones I would say a 600 and a 1000. A diamond hone will take a lot of the work and shorten the time needed to establish the primary edge. If I were starting from scratch I would get a 400 grit diamond atoma and a 600 grit waterstone.

 

[Its_Raw]

CharlieL - I have a couple Ninawa Chocera Pro stones on their way.

 

[Culinary Otter]

have you given the stone holder that goes above/across the sink a try?

I use the sink holders. Nice that you can clip them to a bucket or such too if I don't want to sit at the sink.

 

[Its_Raw]

Any thoughts on whether the swarf is bad to put down the sink? My first thought is there would not be enough at any given time to make much difference, but I could be wrong.

 

[Culinary Otter]

Nothing I've ever worried about, it's pretty minimal. If I was on a septic system and not a city line I might be concerned. I just make sure it's on the sink side and not the disposal side, if you have one.