Cheap vs Expensive Sharpening Stones - WATCH BEFORE YOU BUY

Cheap vs Expensive Sharpening Stones - WATCH BEFORE YOU BUY
A comparison and pros and cons of cheap to expensive sharpening stones for beginner sharpening.
#knifesharpening #sharpening #sharpeningstone
Everything used and talked about in the video⬇️ (see disclosures below)
Cheap $5-$10 sharpening stones ( I dont recommend)⬇️
amzn.to/3t89DV5
amzn.to/4abpHGf
amzn.to/4agpP78 (one in video but same as above)
These can all be purchased on another site with no branding for around $5
Cheap stone id recommend (s satc stone)⬇️
amzn.to/3GANLof
Shapton Kuromaku 1000 grit stone⬇️
amzn.to/3Rfzz9g
Naniwa resin bonded stone (BEST price)⬇️
amzn.to/46TVrNl
Strops⬇️
amzn.to/3uKx6vN
I used a green chromium oxide strop in this video
Knife in video⬇️
amzn.to/3TivgN6
What I use to film close ups⬇️
amzn.to/48fkxr3
amzn.to/47QVhr5
My main camera⬇️
amzn.to/47TmJES
With this lens⬇️
amzn.to/41jqAbS
These are Amazon affiliated links
As an Amazon associate I earn from qualifying purchases
____________________________________________________________
As an affiliate I may earn a commission on purchases at no additional cost to you. Everything in this video was purchased with my own money. And I am free to link to anything I want.
Chapters:
00:00 INTRO
00:30 Cheap $5 stone and why they are terrible
02:31 CLOSE up of $5 stone knife edge
03:08 $40 Sharpening stone overview
04:15 CLOSE UP of $40 stone knife edge
04:30 $170 sharpening stone overview
06:58 CLOSE UP of $170 stone knife edge
07:59 Who each of these stones is for
09:18 The BEST CHEAP sharpening stone for the money ($20)
11:11 CLOSE up of the best cheap stone
11:30 EXACTLY what I’d buy if I was starting over
Music from Epidemic sound

[@OUTDOORS55]

Some of the links are out of stock heres some alternatives ⬇ Cheap diamond amzn.to/3TgrMdW Check here for shapton 1000 if it's in stock amzn.to/4aiyk1O ⬇ These are amazon affiliated links I earn from qualifying purchases ----------------------------------------------------------- I may earn a commission purchasing through these links at not additional cost to you.

[@ExelArts]

cheap diamon sharpener in your link isnt for sale anymore

[@cornbread08]

both the s satc and other diamond stones are out of stock. any alternatives??

[@trumanhw]

Okay, I'm guessing you have an a7C II Sony Mirrorless Venus Optics Laowa ... But that's the most I could figure out. Curious to know which exactly you're using though. Thanks!

[@BoojayDeeth]

You've done your job so well that the Kuromaku 1000 is out of stock in a lot of retailers (and Amazon) at the moment. As a matter of interest what do you think of it's brother, the 1500 K0707 stone. How does it stack up against the 1000?

[@Tx_0143]

Nice Video. Are there some more. They are all out of stock

[@Cyber_Kriss]

06:32 Man you are THE ONLY ONE who actually explains what that little stone was for. I have this Naniwa stone and to this day, I could never find any piece of advice on how to use this "cleaning" stone. Thank you !

[@tyson6762]

Exactly!!

[@williamw7134]

For more information, it is a nagura stone, or "dressing stone". The one included with the naniwa diamond stone is pretty unique compared to others. Its bar shaped instead of rectangular/square shaped, but it serves the same purpose, cleaning, unclogging and "dressing" the stone. Naguras have another use, thought this could be categorized as another "dressing" stone, and that is to produce slurry. You want to build slurry during sharpening, but harder stones don't form it very quickly. In these cases you would buy a companion stone, that can be rubbed against the stones face to build some mud/slurry Back in the day of Japanese natural stones, it was common for them to be sold in pairs, many stones came with a nagura, of which both were cut from a single mother stone slab. That way both the nagura and stone itself had identical properties

[@tyson6762]

@@williamw7134 Thank you for this great explanation

[@tomlovesdiy]

Santa brought me a cheap Aluminum Oxide sharpening kit. I mean REALLY cheap - $37. It's my first use of whetstones to sharpen knives. Results were great. Edges are razor sharp. To reduce the mess, I made a holder/jig that fits over my sink. I can rinse the stone easily and often to reduce the slurry. I might upgrade some day, but for now this is a good "starter" set. Tom Loves DIY

[@cyan_oxy6734]

I wouldn't call 37$ really cheap.

[@stpetie7686]

I'm not currently in the market for stones but I always learn something on this channel. The photography on here sets the bar for other, similar channels. It's awesome.

[@NavaOC]

I’m so addicted to watching these videos and chasing those sweet hair whittling edges we all love. Something about making stuff that sharp is soothing to my mind

[@Alpine-Custom-Carpentry]

Always appreciate your videos. Thanks! Been using inexpensive diamond stones for a couple of years now. I finally bought a 6 inch fine / super fine double sided DMT stone based on one of your videos showcasing DMT. Love it!

[@johnmccoy9653]

Based on your recommendation, I now have a growing Kuromaku collection -- 320, 1000, 2000 and 5000. Also have added a couple of diamond stones and a strop. Thanks for your videos!

[@xkarlsonx]

Try the resin bonded stone with oil instead of water, it drastically reduces loading and makes cleaning a breeze. Camelia oil is my favorite since it is food safe, it does not gum up and has the best cleaning properties of all oils I tested so far. But cheap babyoil will do the trick to a lesser degree as well.

[@markparkerjr.9001]

Another great video. Thanks for sharing your knowledge with us. You never disappoint

[@wojciechbrynczka5574]

My favorite place for sharpening advice/content on KZbin

[@VinayVarsani]

The reactions around 8:26 really help clarify your reactions and review of each stone. Completely necessary 😂👍🏾

[@otobotrecords]

Totally 😅

[@shawbros]

Reminds me of Robert De Niro in Taxi Driver, practicing his reactions in front of a mirror, before using them in real life.

[@robertlennie7466]

These are some of the best sharpening videos I have seen on KZbin (and as you know, there’s a lot of of them). Love the images that you’re able to create of the knife edges. Thank you!

[@alessiotraverso9201]

Great Alex Thank you so much to explain the different stones

[@yugbe]

I love how far your channel has come over the years I have been watching. What a fun journey it has been, and can't wait to see just how far you go. You should be proud of what you have done.

[@OUTDOORS55]

Thanks my friend! I definitely appreciate the support 👍😂

[@leaonardland9001]

I agree. I haven't looked at this channel in quite a long time and I like it much better now. Great work!

[@friedrich_k]

I agree. The shapton 1000 is a great stone, I recommend it highly!

[@stephenflowerday4038]

Great Videos ! Thanks for the advice mate. Just Invested in a 1000 Shapton Kuromaku from your link and a strop. Being an idiot I've been using a pull through sharpener for years and wrecked good knives. Looking forward to getting a good edge finally.

[@boowiebear]

I tried those crappy white/blue stones and had no luck. Switched to Sharpal 162N Diamond and after following your guide was able to get great edges. Thanks!

[@OUTDOORS55]

Awesome!

[@joshuajacob6402]

Thank you for the helpful information Alex. I purchased the Shapton Koromaku stones.

[@OUTDOORS55]

Good choice!

[@Dr_V]

Another good instructional video, as I came to expect from you by now. For people who can't afford a nice sharpening stone I'd like add that scythe sharpening stones may be significantly cheaper at the exact same quality and, in my experience, the shape difference doesn't impact knife sharpening technique or results. So you may want to check this out before ordering some soft piece of crap instead.

[@Tsxtasy1]

I got the shapton 1000 during the 3 hours it was back in stock. Thanks!

[@johnkim1043]

your sign off is hilarious! I’m picking up a stone off of your links. Thank you!!!

[@csquared4538]

I sharpened with a Sharpal diamond stone for a long time, from amazon. They definitely wear out, but they worked pretty well in my experience.

[@JoelBergmark]

used namikawa whetstones, horrible lifespan and not cheap, 3 of 4 stones cracked and is useless after 3 years, only 400 grit is alive now. So this time I bought all diamond plated in from 600 to 6000 and I should have done that from the start, much better performance and price and hopefully the steel will never crack...

[@ggarciacota]

Thank you for sharing your knowledge

[@Musicpins]

Nice, I like the resin bonded diamond, thanks for giving an introduction to the different kind of stones. I started with such a stone that needs to soak 10 minutes before use, but... they are a total mess, interrupts my workflow and often need flattening due to being soft. I personally use Naniwa prof. stones series I think they are 60-70 dollars a pop. up to about 3000 then they start to take off in price. perhaps comparable to the Shapton ceramic stones (also marketed as splash and go). I think it really depend what you do, I work mostly with vintage tools, so I don't need the super top diamond stones that can do magnacut steels/super steels and carbides,.

[@Zorro9713]

Hey Alex, I believe that you carry the knife sharpening realm on youtube. It might not be in popularity but when it comes to quality content, you never seem to disappoint. This video though, might be your best work on how to get into sharpening stones right from the beginning. Thank you so much for all you do!

[@OUTDOORS55]

Thanks, I appreciate the kind words🙏👊

[@tombrown4683]

Zorro9713 , I'm in agreement 100%.

[@markparkerjr.9001]

I couldn’t agree more. That sums it up nicely

[@Tim145Tim145]

You come to the same conclusion as me. I have one 600 grids diamond stone and one 1000 and 6000 grids double side king water stone. They covered all my need for knife sharping.

[@RedBeard_KNT]

Another great video. Thank you!

[@otobotrecords]

You're a funny guy, man 😅. And your observations around sharpening stones resonate 100% with mine.

[@RazorSharpMuenchen]

Love your videos! Learned a lot from you over the years! Thank you brother!! Started my own sharpening channel :)

[@Sazeracz]

Just subscribed. As a reggae and knife enthusiast, I approve this message!

[@The_Loathsome]

I’m a Chosera man (with a few Shapton’s I’ve got while on sale). Probably overkill for my kitchen knives but they feel absolutely amazing to use.

[@TobyFireandSteel]

Another awesome video cheers dude

[@OUTDOORS55]

👊👊

[@miker5502]

Loved the infomercial smile section…made me laugh out loud…Cheers MikeR.

[@bankuei]

I really appreciate your beginner level stuff and being mindful of budget. Also your expressions when you're pantomiming are awesome. Thank you for these great videos.

[@Hutkarian]

Remember 🎉🎉🎉 means i like you video! Great content and you are really easy to watch and learn from!

[@willdelange1503]

Appreciate your time and effort with these videos.

[@brandontaylor3023]

Awesome as always! Could you do a dive into rods for sharpening knives for skinning? Like deep bellies and recurves… Thanks

[@Maolo92]

Non-sponsored reviews are the best my boy

[@facemash]

I got a small set of Shapton stones for Christmas after failing to get good results for years with that crappy Amazon stone. I was scared to screw up my Takamura that I got a few months ago and I'm happy to report that the Shaptons deliver on the hype. It was by far the easiest, quickest, and most effective sharpening I've ever done. I'm definitely not getting much out of the 8000 (came in a pack with the 1000) right now but the 320 and 1000 did more than enough to restore that knife's laser status. Not a sharp as out of the box of course but I doubt I would ever be able to match the masters.

[@Prosecute-fauci]

I’m a shapton (ceramic) and Trend (diamond) kind of guy. I have some other medium quality stones, but those are my go to brands

[@Pmedic605]

Outstanding!

[@patrickwaga9249]

If you have loading issues with stones but nogm nagura stone, you can use water and baking soda or fine table salt, does the trick really well

[@saigahons]

I wonder why you keep putting so much effort in this topic. I bought, as of your recommendation, the only sharpening stone you need in your life. The dmt dia-sharp fine. And i had to get stitches 3 times since purchase, so just recommend that and show why. That did the trick for me. Good job! And good luck!

[@michaell397]

A few hopefully hints here. First, I use a lot of diamond matrix stones. Veneve, Columbia Gorge, naniwa, and soon the new offering from Hapstone for the fixed angle sharpening systems. 1. Yes the diamond matrix stones do load (with the Columbia Gorge being the worst in this regard), but it is avoidable. Use a real sharpening fluid made for diamond stones. Notice I did not say oil! No oil!!! Trend makes a diamond stone fluid that is superb for diamond matrix stones. When the stone starts to look loaded, simply put a few drops of the fluid on the stone and rub it with your finger. The loading will disappear immediately. No need for a cleaning stone. I only use the cleaning stone for refreshing the surface when it becomes too slick form much use. 2. Use diamond martic stones for high Vanadium or very high HRc blades. Soft blades damage both diamond plates and matrix stones by causing the soft steel to imbed the diamonds in it's own matrix. (The matrix of the steel itself). which pulls diamonds out of the surface of the stone. 3. Lastly, different steels want different grits for best performance. If you are using high vanadium carbide steels try a corser grit such as the Naniwa 600 or the 400F from Venev (which is actually by our grit standards a 800 grit). It helps to know how different manufactures grade the grit size. Best chart I've seen to compare is on the Grit O Matic site. High Vanadium, due to the nature of the carbides is the most aggressive and hold the edge the longest sharpened with these lower grits due to the vanadium carbides being exposed more on the edge. Very lightly strop the edge with only one or two passes with a 3 down to 1 micron diamond emulsion or saste on the strop. Ann more destroys the very nature of the protruding carbides. Now here is a trick that really supercharges the performance of High Vanadium Carbide Steels. Sharpen one side of the blade with a coarse diamond stone. Say 250 to 400. The other side, I prefer the face side for looks, with a high grit. I usually use a Veneve 800f grit which by our standards is actually in the realm of a 2000 grit. This can double the cutting longevity of the edge and is unreal in aggressiveness. to the point that care must be used around the edge. Simply accidently brushing bast in to the bench will instantly bite deeply. Again, finish with only one to two passes on a good strop this time with 1 micron. This only removes any final burr. Do NOT polish the edge. It will destroy what the edge is capable of. The only thing that irks me about the naniwa diamond matrix stones is that they come with a cleaning stone made of very coarse and loosely bonded silicon carbide. However, ho supplier can find how to get the exact grit stone with the same loose bonding for replacement! GRRRRR!!!!!i KnifeMaker/Retired after 47 years in the shop.

[@CNYKnifeNut]

This comment serves as a great representation of the KZbin comments section, as a whole. It contains information that varies from wildly untrue, to excellent. Also, using "our" in this context on the internet is really dumb. Who, exactly, are "we?"

[@michaell397]

@@CNYKnifeNut the most used grit rating are JIS grit charts,Japanese and P for European and to day now used in the U.S. Hence "the our" as they are the most used internationally for knife professional users/sharpeners. The most accurate is Micron. Grit O Matic has a conversion chart showing the different companies variances in grit nomenclature. Hope you find this a little less stupid! ;

[@TheGuidedSharpeningGuide]

Great informative video. I use venev diamond stones and in-between Lapping i use a magic eraser and alcohol to get the black streaks off the stones. It works great.

[@EDCandLace]

Bar keepers friend is magic for resin bonded diamond or cbn stone load up. Little bar keepers friends and water and your venevs will be as load up free as they are after a fresh lapping. Takes about 10 seconds to clean my dragon stones of all loadup.

[@TheGuidedSharpeningGuide]

@@EDCandLace ill be giving it a try. Thanks for the info.

[@jrk1666]

Hi from Brazil, I love your channel

[@OUTDOORS55]

Thanks so much 🙏👍

[@samistarii]

For those of us with aluminium oxid stones a video for how to get the best sharpness would be brilliant

[@balsalmalberto8086]

Yea.. the slurry is mocking my sharpening skills.

[@jimihenrik11]

I personally do a lot of stone sharpening. It is mostly a hobby, but I am looking forward to one time earning some money on the side with it. What I want from a stone: fast cutting, even scratch pattern, doesn't dish too fast, doesn't burnish too fast, easy to flatten. And I very much prefer splash and go over soaking. And as good as diamond plates appear on paper, I have not been impressed with any, that I was able to test. After testing way to many stones I eventually settled with the shapton Pro (or kuromaku) stones and got myself a 4-pice set (120, 320, 1500, 5000). The 1500 is the best stone I ever used. Cuts extremly fast, almost no burnishing or dishing, very nice scratch pattern. I love it and for my ktichen knives I only use this one stone. The 120 cuts extremly fast, but burnishes very fast too, the 320 dishes very fast and need long flattening all the time. I do a lot of knife repairs or geometry changes, that why these two stones see so much use.

[@jeffhicks8428]

awesome video man

[@OUTDOORS55]

Appreciate it! Thanks for watching 👊

[@joshuagibson2520]

Great video and info. Do you have any videos about sharpening longer blades vs shorter ones?

[@Mainsail1975au]

Thanks. I usually turn to guided stones like the Lansky or angled like my Spiderco sharpener. I think I'll try your two recommended. At the moment all my knives need some work. What do you recommend for axes though?

[@beenabarna1403]

Thank you

[@axlaguilar5289]

I really like your videos. That Kuromaku looks really good. Can you make a comparisson with the Naniwa 1000 stone please ?

[@Kceam]

Got one of the cheap crappy ones, and honestly it is fine for my purposes, my kitchen knives are sharper and way less scratched than with a pull through knife sharpener. But is a little annoying to work with, so when that one is worked through i will consider the other ones mentioned in your video

[@godu1111]

Please do a video on honing rods including close ups

[@OUTDOORS55]

Video coming soon😉👍

[@TobyFireandSteel]

@@OUTDOORS55 those ceramic ones would deffo be interesting to see 👍🏼

[@godu1111]

@@OUTDOORS55 thank you sir!

[@YannMetalhead]

Good video!

[@DroneShotFPV]

My choice. and what I have it Shapton Glass and Shapton Kuromaku Pro line. As far as the Glass series, I have a 500, 1000, 3000, 8000, 30,000. The pro line I have 1000, 5000, 8000, 12000. Then I have some other decent stones in between those grits, and they are King Deluxe sires 300, 800, 1200, King KDS (not the lesser KW65 model, which is still decent) 1000/6000 combo which are actually amazing, the S-45P 4000 as well. All good stuff. My strop is a 0.5 Micron Jende Nanocloth with the diamond paste @ 0.5 Micron.

[@ml3141]

Also, a package several grit sandpaper on a block of wood or glass. Cheapest and easy to use. Will get an excellent result.

[@asherrose6594]

Love the videos!!!

[@sahhull]

Ive got some cheap water stones, they were not expensive. They do the job. I dont constantly sharpen knives or do it as a job or hobby so the price fits the need. The set came with a levelling/cleaning stones too. Then I finish the blade with some green on a strop.

[@bockskarr6626]

How can you not love this guy an😢 appreciate him?? I'm so glad I found your channel!! What do you suggest for a katana? I have 2 both sharp but I'd like to get a much better edge on em. And they're entry level. I might grab a one under a hundo to get some technique but I think going the stone way is best for a katana. I'm still flirting with the WS ken onion with attachment for it 🤷🏼‍♀️🤷🏼‍♀️🤷🏼‍♀️ idk appreciate your input and advice 🙏🏻

[@mikafoxx2717]

Get a diamond stone it you don't want it to take forever..

[@TheYoutubeUser69]

really appreciate your cander and lack of selling out! also, my mom is a prof chef and swears on the horl rolling sharpener, any chance we can get a video on this one?

[@truman1379]

Learned some things watching. Thanks. How do you clean a strop that has diamond paste? Thank you

[@jordanlawson4239]

I've been using one of those cheap stones since I started sharpening about two years ago. I could always get a decent edge on my knives up until the last few months. Can't wait to see what happens with my new shapton

[@kyuushin84]

that's just another level, you'll see how easy and fast it will become besides becoming much more sharper, i was sharpening with cheap ones too and now I have a king, which is a good whetstone but not so great as shaptons

[@7784000]

I think it is always the same issue when digging into new hobbies and areas. People don't want to spend too much money in the beginning, so they buy th crappy stuff, they realize it does not work out as expected, then they quit without ever getting in contact with the good stuff. I've seen this throughout many different hobbies.

[@kyuushin84]

@@7784000 I actually didn't know much about sharpening and i was really bad at it so I bought some cheap whetstones then only later i Learnt about it

[@balsalmalberto8086]

@@7784000 I wasn't aware of the expensive ones didn't create a slurry that mocks your sharpening skills.

[@Pablo668]

I remember many years back when I could only afford a very cheap stone. It was not very good. I eventually got my hands on a Norton two grit stone. That one from memory seemed pretty good. I had a partner back then who was a chef and I'd often do her knives for her. Ummm, I'd often use a steel to finish and edge off, even with my non kitchen knives. That doesn't seem to be the done thing though. It did get them sharp though.

[@michaell397]

the reason it is not now a done thing is that on higher end higher hardness knives, all a steel can do is align the burr. When properly sharpened, there is NO Burr. Sadly, a Steel will develop a burr quickly and feel sharper. Sadly the burr is removed in use almost immediately. It works for traditional butcher knives used by actual butchers for a few reasons. The burr is not quickly removed by meat which is a very soft substance and secondly, a working butcher does not have the time to do a proper sharpening while actually working and a quick burr will suffice for them as the blade still acts as a sharp blade in the soft meat substrate. Traditional butcher knives are relatively soft by today's standards. On purpose to be able to be steeled quickly. Modern steels, particurallyhigh HRc and or high Vanadium steels will destroy a butchers steel in shorty order. I once made a high vanadium content blade for a local butcher and he was livid. The high HRc + Vanadium blade chopped gouges out of his steel that had been passed down from his Grandfather-Father, and to him. It was ruined! KnifeMaker

[@mikafoxx2717]

​@@michaell397Damn though, you have to admit that chopping through the steel is impressive though.

[@petrsidlo7614]

About those naniwa stones - there is plane maker on youtube and he uses them (video showing them is something like "my sharpening methods"). He doesnt use any water, and gets rid of the steel with regular pencil eraser. I am happy with my messy waterstones, but if you think about buying more of those expensive grits, his videos might help you.

[@grouchisk3783]

This dude is awesome I learned how to sharpen on a king Stone needless to say I can sharpen pretty well now learning the hard way😅

[@Rootori4]

On 1000 or tge bigger King Deluxe 1200 :D? I learned on the 1200 :D

[@SeacryBlastsAloT]

Nice touch with the intro.

[@KebunH]

I’ve always had one of these pull through sharpeners, and I had a gut feeling it was making my knife worse but I never really knew it was really just a shitty sharpener. Somehow I got recommended your vid where you go in detail about these and confirmed my suspicions. Just ordered the shapton kuromago 1000, thanks to you, never thought I’d say something like this but I’m really looking forward to sharpening my knife 😂

[@motokokoto]

yeah man one of those cheapskate stones was my first whetstone. 400/1000 Still use it. I hate it. But it does the job of repairing or starting an rough edge... Never got a sharp edge off of it ever. Always had to take the edge to the pocket spyderco ceramics.. Which clogs up quickly. Recently got diamond plates up to 1200 and some naniwa.. the cheap whetstone fits in the diamond set somewhere and serves as a stand for the plates... I tend to use the cheap 400/1000 and go to the diamond 1200 and get a pretty toothy edge. Now I have a naniwa 2000/5000 I will be learning to use. Hopefully not as miserable as the amazone whetstone. Def look forward to replacing it one day.

[@sunbl0ck]

Kinda irrelevant question, but maybe an idea for a video (?): Can you / should you sharpen regular table knives?

[@jeffallen3382]

Could you show close ups from what the Lansky sharpening set up looks like?

[@ThirdLawPair]

Can you review a few top brands of rolling sharpeners? Some are better than others. Are there any around $100 that are worth using?

[@steveeber2324]

I have the Shapton which is a nice stone but I no longer use it. Instead I have gone to ceramic stones which need no water and can be cleaned with a rubber abrasive eraser. Good ones are very consistent and last forever. Plus they are cheap if you look around so a full set from 600 to 20,000 grit is not a killer.

[@Snarlacc]

I wonder, are all these cheaper double sided stones the same? All just rebranded and one sold for 10, the other for 20 bucks?

[@debbieshaw9976]

Hi Adam, I use a pull through sharpener on my kitchen knives, and having watched your video comparison between stone vs pull through effectiveness I see that my pull through sharpener should be in the bin! I have an oil stone somewhere in my garage (don't know what grit size it is) Is an oilstone as good as a whetstone?

[@Will7981]

I like the new studio improvements. They look sharp,😉LOL

[@lmPencil]

I’m curious if you have any recommendations on sharpening a hawkbill knife. I use one for work every day for stripping jacketed wire. I carry a speedy sharp in my lunch box to quickly and easily sharpen while at work but have never found a good way to properly sharpen these knives.

[@Yupppi]

I'm kinda really happy that we don't have Amazon nationally here, and that retailed sharpening stones even with general retailer are usually japanese brands, even the combo stones (general retailers might have KAI, Samura). Then there's specialty retailers that have all the Naniwa, Shapton and other brands (Morihei, Suehiro, Imanishi, Haidu, Ken-Syou, Shin-Nagura, Atoma). You basically don't run into very very cheap nameless rebrand items. And this applies often to other products too. If there's a very cheap chinese whatever product, it's mentioned. Basically what you often find here is that the price reflects what you're buying. Even though the specialty retailer's stones are still mostly 40-120 euros if they're not diamond stones, even the professional category. Which is super nice. Knowing that basically having a 1000 grit stone gets you going well, 400 is nice for badly worn blades and 2000 is fancy if you have more than kitchen reasons. You really don't get poor from buying a decent sharpening beginner or more advanced set. Naguras and those fixing stones aren't expensive either. Personally I was the silly person when I decided to get into it, even though I did look up some info. Got one of those ok combo stones of 400/1000 that have slurry and need to be sunk in water for 10 minutes. Then got 3000/8000 stone too because "gotta have the option to get polished finish, that's important for daily kitchen knife". Got nagura and straightening stone. And realized I should've just got something like Naniwa or Shapton 1000 stone and nothing else until I felt like it doesn't do the job completely. Like I don't think they even cost more than an ok 400/1000 combo stone and you don't have to sink them.

[@muhammedk470]

Hi. Thanks for your tests. Please do one on steel honing rods.

[@OUTDOORS55]

Video incoming 👍

[@gedfi]

​​@@OUTDOORS55What about fine ceramic rods? I use one to touch up the edges between uses - but the ceramic does load, so I wonder if I'm actually damaging the apex. With the rod, I always tend to use a slightly larger angle than what I sharpen at...

[@jacobwann2280]

I ended up ordering the Shapton 1000 grit but I was curious if you’ve tried out the shapton 320 grit as well??

[@HyakuJuu01300]

Hey, can you make a thorough video about breaking-in diamond plates? Is it really that important? If so, what should it be done with? A chisel? A cleaver? Or just a knife? Should it be done wet or dry? If wet, with what? After the plate is broken-in, should you continue to use it wet or dry? All sorts of questions.

[@BackCountryRunaway]

Tips for drilling through already hardened steel? I have a knife thay was made from a vintage cross cut saw. The apoxy wore out on the scales and they popped off. Id like to do new scales with pins. But cant drill through the steel. I dont have a drill press. Just a standard dewalt drill

[@_BLANK_BLANK]

Coming back to this video. Im surr someone probably must have brought these up in the comments already. But the venev stones are really worth a try. You get a resin bonded diamond stone, for about the price of a normal japanese water stone. Since they are 2 sided. Its basically $50 per stone. The only caveat imo is its not worth getting the 1 micron/f2000 stone since it has issues giving an actual 1 micron polish. But f1200 and below are great stones for the price.

[@osbaldohernandez9174]

I do have one of those cheap stones and he is completely correct on the your hands will be cold for a very long time because I sharpen outside since it is messy I just use them on my moras because I’m new to this and well I ruined 2 moras on diamond

[@OUTDOORS55]

How to you ruin them?

[@codywelborn7800]

Do you sharpen on the side with the logo and grit printed on it or the “bottom” when using the Shapton 1000 grit? I’ve been using the side with the logo but don’t know if it matters. Thanks!

[@Koraxe]

Great video as always. I just wanted to know, would you be willing to do a video on the "Scary Sharp" sharpening system, with the different adhesive back lapping films? I know its stepping away from traditional freehand stones and whatnot, but as a relatively cheap alternative, I would love to see your take on it and see what type of ridiculous edge you will be able to get using it. I suppose my favorite thing about them, is that I have an Edge Pro Apex, so I can cut the film to fit the different blanks that I have for that system. I'm not good enough freehand yet to get the edges like I can on the Apex, so I've found the lapping films can be a cheap, disposable, benefit. I'd really appreciate if you could make a video about your thoughts on them, and what not.

[@michaell397]

The films are inexpensive and work in the short term, however over a period of time end up being much more expensive than proper stones. KnifeMaker

[@thundercell13]

Have you tried mouse trap honing contraption? Would this replace a strop in the process or function as a super fine grit stone and then do a strop

[@PaleeCML]

Hi, at first many thanks for Your videos. I'm sharpening the knives with angle sharpeners but I want to definitely begin with sharpening on the stones. It's about time really. After Your reviews I will go with Shapton Kuromaku set 1000, 2000, 5000 but I have a question for the PRO who knows what he is doing like You. I watched Your video about flattening the stones but in case after some amount of knifes maybe 200 like You mentioned that these ceramic Kuromaku stones are really good and not wear out quickly but after some time yes. So my question is how to flatten these ceramic Kuromaku stones in case that they will wear out. Thank You.

[@KyleRempel]

Do you use more pressure when pushing the apex towards the stone or when pulling it along the stone? its hard to tell when watching.

[@jonkoh9010]

nice

[@John-mc8sh]

I would love to see u sharpen and show up close how to handle the tip that's often a bit rounded off but I keep my wrist stiffened like u sharpen but struggle with what to do when leaving the stone by lifted up and follow the curve or not. Love your videos and love to sharpen to relax. Watching a good video is a good second to the real thing, thanks for your videos

[@EDCandLace]

If your rounding the tip they you are either dragging the tip off the stone or your lifting you elbow to much. This usually happens when your using to much pressure and can't feel the curvature of the blade ending in lifting to much at the very tip trying to make sure you get it. If it's lifting to much that will usually be accompanied with a facet in the edge right around the center of the belly of the knife.i teach a lot of sharpening and how I teach people to not round over tip is to place their finger at the tip of the knife so they can feel when the knife tip is touching the stone, this let's them get a feel for how far they need to raise the elbow or shoulder to catch the tip without raising up to far and rounding over or not enough and missing it. It's all in the feel, if your using to much pressure you loose that feel and it really makes it harder then it needs to be. Most beginner sharpeners use WAY to much pressure and it totally kills the feel of what the edge bevel and stone are doing contact wise. Lighten up on the pressure so that you can feel the contact the edge bevel to the stone, this will allow you to feel your way sweep of the blade and after some time feeling and listening to the stone and blade you will be able to know exactly what's happening between the edge bevel and the stone just based off of feel and sound.

[@John-mc8sh]

Thanks so much, going at it tomorrow. 👍

[@user-ru2ze3yo4i]

What do you recommend for sharpening serrated pocket knives?

[@haramcho]

Can you please review the sharpal buddy guard?

[@trq3000]

I hope you can help me with this problem I am having with this 1pitty knife from ikea . I don't have this issue with other knives. I sharpen it and strop it on the stone nicely and it feels great but when I strop it on leather and compound the. The cutting edge keeps going back and forth but never stays perfect in the middle at least so slightly when I am so careful 😅

[@jimnisbet1969]

Smokin’! 😂👍🏻👍🏻

[@stevep8363]

I would love to see your thoughts on the SHARPAL 162N Double-sided Diamond Sharpening Stone. Sharpal seems to be a good brand and it seems to be a good value with the 320 grit and 1200 grit sides coming with a carrier case that doubles as a stone holder with an included angle guide and a 3 year warranty. It's priced pretty close to the single DMT 220 grit diamond plate I recently ordered after watching your videos.

[@kyuushin84]

I have a sharpal honing rod 1200 grit diamond and it sharpens much better than those cheap whetstones, but japanese whetstones are even better

[@Tmanaz480]

I know its not your usual baliwick, and its a bit of a detour, but I'd love to see your take on honing straight razors.

[@modificationnation73]

Have you used wet dry diamond sandpaper? You could wrap it on a piece of steel or aluminum.