Japanese Waterstones Question

[alpha_centaur]

I'm finally taking the plunge and investing in a set of japanese Waterstones:

I'm thinking of getting them from Axminster and of buying the 1000/6000 combo stone along with a nagura stone. Or is there somewhere else thats better to buy them from?

Also Is it worth also buying the Non-skid holder or is that just an unnecessary expense?

[Mesquite]

I'm finally taking the plunge and investing in a set of japanese Waterstones:

I'm thinking of getting them from Axminster and of buying the 1000/6000 combo stone along with a nagura stone. Or is there somewhere else thats better to buy them from?

Also Is it worth also buying the Non-skid holder or is that just an unnecessary expense?

Axminster do a good price on them. As for the none slip mat... get a mouse mat

[Leonidas]

If you can stretch to a holder it will make a difference.
One of the combi stones Axminster supplied used to include a holder...

Tom

[Shewie]

If you can stretch to a holder it will make a difference.
One of the combi stones Axminster supplied used to include a holder...

Tom

They do the Ice Bear set with a holder and nag stone but it's nearly fifty notes. I've been looking at these for a while and have decided I'm treating myself to one for chrimbo.

http://www.axminster.co.uk/recno/2/p...-Kit-23188.htm

[MikeE]

I've got one of these sets and they are very good (bought mine a while ago so not so expensive). The holder raises the stones above the work-surface and give clearance for the hand holding the knife. I'm thinking of getting a combination stone to enhance this but am not sure which to get.

[pteron]

yeah hi why dont you try a very good friend of mine "calsterman" go on ebay and put in world of survival he is a great bloke very good prices or ring him direct 01382 807143
tell him jason told you to get in contact he might give you a discount
cheers shropshireman

Mmmm, £9.75 from Axeminster, £17.95 from calsterman.....

[oetzi]

My basic sharpening is done with a aprox 300grid waterstone and then the 800/1000 finishes it off.
i dont use any finet stone no more, instead its a strop.
a piece of wood, with twp pieces of rubber from an old car tube glued on both sides is a cheap and good working holder.

[Dave Budd]

personally I wouldn't bother with the fine combination stone unless you are sharpening carving tools. For most other knives 1000 is fine enough.

as for the other bits, if you actually need them, then I have been doing something very wrong for a long time!

I hold my stones in a support made from a length of roofing batton (3.4x2" crappy wood, surplus from building project) and bakedbean can. Cut a piece 8" long and two bits 2" long. Screw the short lengths to the ends of teh long length and the stone will fit between them. I cut a couple of strips of tin and nailed them to the sides of the batton so that the stone won't slide sideways. This is then screwed to a table, clamped in a vice, nailed to a fence post, etc depending on where I am suing the stone

I've never found the need for the basin either. I store my stones drya dn soak before use ina bucket of water. I have an old washingup bottle with clean watewr in it to irrigate the stone as I go.

Also never found the need for the nag stone. It's purpose is to produce a finer polish than the stone's grit size would dictate. Since I am stropping with a polishing compound on it, there is no need for the extra consumable

just my humble, tight fisted, thoughts

[Amon81]

I got this last year:

http://www.axminster.co.uk/recno/2/p...-Kit-23188.htm

It's 800/6000 with the mount. I also got the 1200 and am intending to get the 250 for reprofiling. They are great stones and would recommend them to anyone. gets everything I've used them for razor sharp with out much effort.

Worth every penny, plus as they are from axminster its next day postage.

[slowworm]

I'm not sure this is any use to people but I've just noticed the "Axminster Stone Pond with 3 Waterstones" (220, 2,000 & 4,000 grits) is on offer at £39.95 from over £50. Could be very tempted myself, anyone here used that system?

http://www.axminster.co.uk/sessionID...nes-783413.htm

[Shewie]

I'm not sure this is any use to people but I've just noticed the "Axminster Stone Pond with 3 Waterstones" (220, 2,000 & 4,000 grits) is on offer at £39.95 from over £50. Could be very tempted myself, anyone here used that system?

http://www.axminster.co.uk/sessionID...nes-783413.htm

Should be a nice set if you add a little Nag stone to it.

[alpha_centaur]

I eventually plumped for a 1000/6000 combo stone and a nagura stone, and a mouse mat to stop it slipping all over the place

And I can honestly say my knives have never been less blunt Still cant get hair popping sharp but that'll require practise.

[VirusKiller]

The Axminster non-skid holder is excellent. As is the 1200/6000 combi stone.

[slowworm]

Should be a nice set if you add a little Nag stone to it.

Thanks for that, ordered the set and the nag stone and it's arrived safely.

Only slight gripe is that it says read the instructions before use and there's none provided. I assume there's plenty of instructions and tips online?

[Shewie]

Thanks for that, ordered the set and the nag stone and it's arrived safely.

Only slight gripe is that it says read the instructions before use and there's none provided. I assume there's plenty of instructions and tips online?

Just leave them to soak in a bowl of cold water for about 5 - 10 minutes or until they stop "fizzing".
Or do you mean how to actually sharpen with them ?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=We1-CDNaSFs

[slowworm]

Just leave them to soak in a bowl of cold water for about 5 - 10 minutes or until they stop "fizzing".
Or do you mean how to actually sharpen with them ?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=We1-CDNaSFs

It was mainly the initial soaking I wasn't sure about but thanks for the video that's very useful.

[Amon81]

I assume there's plenty of instructions and tips online?

Yes there are. Google and youtube are your friend.

Also if you have Ray Mears Bushcraft dvd then he pretty much does the text book version in the extras section.

Edit: I just followed the link posted in the above post and thats the one off the dvd.

[slowworm]

Yep, I watched the Ray Mears video and the stones seem very easy to use and worked well. I did have to spend a few hours removing the secondary bevel on my knife, it needed doing though as I just couldn't get it that sharp before, now it's much better.

[Amon81]

The 800 grit stone is a great stone for removing unwanted bevels and I use it to remove the sanding marks made when the bevel is made on the blade, gives all my knifes a nice mirror finish (with 6000 grit and strop).

I've reprofiled a couple of old cheaper knifes that wouldn't really hold a decent edge, now they are scary sharp.

A perfect example is my CRKT Ryan Plan B I bought back in about 2000, I could never really get it sharp, 10 minutes with my stones and its Fantastic! I've used it to gut a couple of fish since and it cut though them like they are made of paper.



The top of the blade isn't sharpened it's just thinner as it cuts better. With its current edge it would cut your thumb to the bone with less force then the weight of the blade. Yes its not the best looking shapening job in the world BUT its amazing just how good a job Japanese stones do!

Oh yes, one last thing I found that NOT using my 6000 girt after my 1200 grit gets stainless blades much sharper, unlike everything else the 6000 seems to dull them. By doing this I found I could get my 12 year old Buck copy which cost a whopping £5 about as sharp as a new Stanley knife blade.

[ToneWood]

...Oh yes, one last thing I found that NOT using my 6000 girt after my 1200 grit gets stainless blades much sharper, unlike everything else the 6000 seems to dull them. By doing this I found I could get my 12 year old Buck copy which cost a whopping £5 about as sharp as a new Stanley knife blade.

Really, are you sure? Sometimes micro-serrations work better than a very sharp blade, they can act like a saw (e.g. for slicing tomatoes or cutting rope). The 6000 will likely flatten and reduce the micro-serrations but the result should be sharper. (However, I know the feeling.)

[Matt_1992]

Just reading this thread as I'm also considering the 1000/6000 water stones with the nag stone, is this set actually capable of making a high carbon tool steel scandi grind knife hair cutting sharp with using a belt as a strop (as Ray Mears demonstrated) with practice of course?, or do i need the 800/1200/6000 set-up as Ray Mears uses?

Any replies would be highly appreciated.

[sasquatch]

A 1K stone will achieve shaving sharp on it's own if you strop after. The 1K/6K combo will work but you'd get away with just the 1K if you want to save money. 6K on a knife is only necessary to polish the bevels to a mirrored finish if you want that. It's the stropping that sorts any edge to perfection after setting a decent bevel on a stone.

If you're repairing badly chipped bevels you might want a 225 grit stone to speed the process up then clean it up on the 1K. It all depends on what you want to do with them really. If you want to be able to see up your nostrils in the bevel go for the 1K/6K combo as you really can get some stunning results if you put the time in.

[Matt_1992]

Oh, thank you for the reply Sasquatch, much appreciated! In regards to stropping, is it as simple as Ray shows in his video where he simply slides the knife back and fourth to 'clean up' the cutting edge on the scandi grind, effectively getting rid of the micro shavings of metal as he put it?

[spandit]

Make sure you lift the blade clear before turning it, otherwise you'll roll & blunt the edge.

Stropping basically polishes the edge & removes the "wire edge"

[robevs73]

The 1000grit ice bear is good enough to put a decent edge on any knife but if you need to take chips or do a lot of sharpening you will need a rougher stone . From personal experience stay away front 400 grit ice bear its soft as you know what. I always go to 6000 personally then strop on a flat leather board with starkie blue paste then strop on another strop with Autosol, this leaves q mirror polish which I think stays sharp longer, I know many will think this is over kill and it probably is but that's the way I do it.

[Matt_1992]

Alright, thanks guys for answering my questions. Looking forward to getting my Scandi knife & water-stones, should be the start of something sharp

[velvetmonkey]

Great advice from everybody

I'm going to take the plunge too and get a set of stones but wanted to know.......

Is all the advice given below transferrable to axes as well?

I have a Mora Clipper and a Gransfors Bruks Wildlife axe.
Will the combo sets mentioned do the job for both?

[robin wood]

These work for axes too. I personally don't use holding clamps I use them Japanese style sat on top of a piece of 6"x6" softwood.

[velvetmonkey]

Hi all,

Ordered a set through EdenWebShops.
Seem to have kindly enough reviews.

Anyway - went for two combination stones and the Nagura stone
250/800
2000/5000 + Nagura Stone

Happy enough so far - I'll let y'all know how badly I do at my first attempt at sharpening

Thanks again