Are You Using the Right Grit? Ultimate Sharpening Stone Guide

Are You Using the Right Grit to Sharpen Your Knife? Ultimate Whetstone Guide
Which whetstone grit is the best for sharpening your kitchen knives? Naoto is Knifewear's head sharpener, and he's here to guide you through the world of sharpening stones. He'll walk you through every single sharpening stone grit explained in detail, and recommend the best sharpening setup for you to have at home.
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0:00 Introduction
1:05 Sharpening Grits Explained
3:09 Sharpening Stone Brands
4:58 Coarse Grit Stones
7:39 Medium Grit Stones
10:31 Fine Grit Stones
13:48 Super Fine Stones
17:11 Naoto's Ultimate Stone Setup
18:40 Closing Thoughts

[@normalisoverrated]

Awesome work, Bro. Thank-You.

[@Raikiri-dono]

Thank for this video. There isn't many videos about grit stone. This was very useful.

[@KnifewearKnives]

Happy to hear it!

[@ratiounkn3210]

Great break down. I just started learning to sharpen and I have couple spyderco stones, a shapton 8k grit, but not the glass, and a couple ultrasharp diamond stones. I want to get more whetstones now. Thanks for all he info. Subbed right away.

[@KnifewearKnives]

Thank you, happy to hear it!

[@paulpugh2480]

Good information, thank you.

[@jeffreylopez9448]

Very informative 👏🏼

[@mfreeman313]

Nice overview-you get through a lot of stones in 20 minutes. Of course there's also stropping, other types of stones, lots of other aspects but these are the stones most folks will use to sharpen most knives. Bravo. Honestly you folks are doing video as well as anyone out there-lots of good information with an upbeat mood, good technical skills, and not too much fooling around and attempts to do schtick. I do it for money and I know how hard it is.

[@KnifewearKnives]

Hey, thank you so much it means a lot! We'll have a lot more videos coming up with sharpening knowledge soon.

[@scottpratico1315]

Good overview. Helps me understand the applications of specific stones

[@KnifewearKnives]

Glad to hear it!

[@DouglasK]

Greatly appreciated. I may have to find a class one of these days to improve my minimal skills. Many thanks as this helps even with "cheap and cheerful" stones.

[@KnifewearKnives]

I'm glad to hear it! If you're in Canada, we run weekly classes knifewear.com/products/knife-sharpening-classes

[@DouglasK]

@@KnifewearKnives Thanks much ... I'm actually in Ottawa, got to know your shop there owing to the lovely straight razors and other shave products. I'll look it up.

[@davesmith5656]

So right about the rabbit hole ... and the practical functionality of kitchen knives! After two years of exploring, I can get almost any knife to below 100 BESS, but the problem is that the edge is then so delicate I am afraid to use it for ordinary kitchen work. I recently put about a dozen tiny chips in an HRC 63 knife. By contrast, an HRC 56 I used to slice beef off a t-bone didn't show any chips at all. (USB microscope, 200X.) I thought I had been careful with the HRC 63 knife, but now, heck ... I'm not sure what to do with it except slice onions and potatoes. And the softer steel is much easier to resharpen (a butcher's steel will do it).

[@KnifewearKnives]

That can definitely be the case with really hard steels, you might consider increasing the angle to strengthen the edge, or polish on a lower grit stone. I hope that helps!

[@DmitriMironov]

Simply amazing video. Thank you sir!

[@WaschyNumber1]

Nice video 🖖

[@matthiasmtl3122]

Cool video! But tbh: for me the Knifewear 220 is the worst stone for thinning. We both don’t have a connection. But for repairs it’s nice! I changed to a Suntiger 220. Wears a lot, but I like that bad boy!

[@GmojaCreative]

I di not hear one that best fits hair clippers which grits?

[@Zeus-ly6od]

Thank you very much for sharing all your professional experiences. To me, the Naniwa pro 400 and 600 grid work better on the dull edges than the Shapton Glass 320 and 500. And yes I tried to finish my Sakai Takayuki Aogami 2 mono steel all the way up to a 20000 Suehiro gokumyo. They felt terrible when cutting meat. They were ok when cutting fish fillets but they got dull very fast. Also sharing my experience here. The knife The Imanishi Amakusa Red and White are absolutely deal breakers for German stainless steel knives. They can create nice toothy edges so the knives are greater for cutting beef subprimal into steaks and portions. They work well on my F.Dick, Victorinox Fibrox, and Tojiro Color's work knives. However, they could be challenged on the harder steels. I had tried them on my Takayuki Aogami 2 and Misono Carbon mono-steel knives and they cut very slowly.

[@Mljtyykl]

What are the best stones and grits to cut meat

[@Zeus-ly6od]

@@Mljtyykl To me, 1000 to 2000 is enough to cut beef/lamb/porks' primal/subprimal that with fat and gristles in. The steel of knives doesn't matter much. For boneless chicken or any meat that is well-trimmed, I used the knives that finished with 8000+ or natural Jnat, as long as the steel can take it. At work I used the German breaking/boning knives to do the deboning. trimming and cleaning then I used the Sujihiki to portioned them into retail cuts. The knives with higher grits finished will give the steak a glossy surface and more attractive. But it will get dull fast if you keep cutting into the thick gristle. Normal sharpening steel will also destroy all your works that are finished with a fine grid stone. Shapton pro 320 and 2000. Shapton glass 500/2000/16000, and Suehiro Debado LD 180/1000/4000 were the best store for kitchen knives in my opinion.

[@Mljtyykl]

@@Zeus-ly6od do you think 3000 is to high for a meat processor boning beef

[@Zeus-ly6od]

@@Mljtyykl For my German Steel boning knives more than 2000 are over-killed. 800-2000 should be enough. Boning knives are kinda flexible and I hone them on the steel all the time. As long as you hone, the close to mirror-like edge finished by fine grid stone will be gone. But if you have a Japanese Hankotsu made of hard steel boning knife you can go ahead to finish with 3000 or up. Those steel honing rods won't work on most hard JP steel anyway. The Hankotsu I have can hold the sharpness quite long (like boning 500 lbs of bone-in rib without sharpening). But the knives are really thick so they are not that easy to trim gristles compare with the western boning knives.

[@Mljtyykl]

@@Zeus-ly6od yeah I agree. I like 1000 and have never really gone higher then that . I tried a mirror polish and that just seems to slide of the grissel. Can cut red meat good but when it comes to shanking it’s no good

[@Bl3jD]

Can I ask your opinion of Naniwa super stone S2, 220 grit. I have understood the superstones are popular at higher grits but is also good ar lower grits?

[@GrantHendrick]

Thank you Naoto for a very helpful video. I would love to see your thoughts on following up with stropping. In other videos you mentioned your bride does not like you using your jeans 🤪 What about cork for debuting ? Leather for stropping?

[@KnifewearKnives]

Hahaha, very true! Naoto does have a secret stash of old jeans at the warehouse for this reason 😂 I'll ask Naoto his preferences on tomorrow's show!

[@GrantHendrick]

@@KnifewearKnives I hope his bride doesn’t learn about the secret stash !

[@WormyLeWorm]

Love the chosera 400. I also use it to finish most softer knives, pocket knives, and especially for peoples knives I know are going to see abuse. It works so quickly and leaves such a nice balanced finish that I wouldn't complain about using a chosera 400 edge myself. It handles most of my medium work and I like jumping from it straight to a fine stone. It feels great to use, too. What do you think of it for light thinning as you go, say every few sharpenings? On a side note, there are some steels I use that can technically hold higher grit finishes, but I don't like how soon they seem to lose bite. Ironically, they take such a well-refined edge and sharpen so quickly, that it ends up making a feeling I don't prefer in kitchen knives and find can be troublesome for most tasks. My Yoshikane SKD, for example, I can finish to most any grit, but because of the grain structure and carbides I would assume, it always has an amazing balance of refinement and toothiness that just never goes away. Whereas something like my Ashi in white #2, spending a little too long at anything 3k or higher is easy to do, and while it makes very clean cuts and is technically sharp for a long time, it just doesn't keep as much bite. I find that even when doing things like cutting a stack of carrots for julienne, even then bite is important to not cause things to slide around from having to use more force. It can making touching up between sharpenings a little more complicated or make finishing a task you have to more mindfully balance, depending on steel. My favorite steels are like the SKD at this point.

[@KnifewearKnives]

That's super interesting! I love the chocera 400 as well, it makes a great edge! I use it to finish my pocket knives, and it gives a great robust, yet refined edge. As for thinning, I like the chocera a lot! It's nice and hard so it doesn't dish out quickly, and I find it very abrasive.

[@WormyLeWorm]

@@KnifewearKnives Respect.

[@dimmacommunication]

Chosera 400 is loved by a lot of people

[@HellGatefr2]

For big carbide steels like the SKD you could probably get a pretty refined edge by using high grit diamond abrasives...

[@StgGundumboy]

Looks like I’m going to by more stones haha also what’s that song playing I like it lol

[@KnifewearKnives]

Oh no! Hahaha. Honestly, I'm not sure. We get most of our music from epidemic sound!

[@Cid_1]

Can you make a sharpening video on the Naniwa Hibiki stones? I see a lot of sites recommend the Hibiki #3000 stone (for that grit), but I can't find a single video on the Hibiki stones being used on KZbin. Would be nice to see someone use them and talk a little about them. Thanks for all the awesome videos.

[@KnifewearKnives]

Hey, well definitely work it into some future videos!

[@aussiehardwood6196]

Mmmm the "Green brick of Joy" is one of my favourites. You need to pick the best stones across a number of brands. No single brand makes the best stone in every grit size. But...it's hard to go too wrong buying the in house KnifeWhere stones.

[@KnifewearKnives]

Absolutely, that's one of the reasons we have so many brands, each one has their superstars.

[@bobdobalina8680]

I just used my new green brick yesterday. It was niicceeee

[@dimmacommunication]

@@bobdobalina8680 I don't like soaker/permasoak stones... they smell like swamp after a week 😅

[@Mljtyykl]

What are the best 800 1000 1500 2000 stones

[@Mljtyykl]

What are the best 800 1000 1500 2000 stones

[@adrianmilanesi9143]

Hi great video, I have just purchased a Chinese brand Hezhen knife I want to keep it sharp what grit double sided wetstone should i use? Thanks

[@KnifewearKnives]

220 & 1000 should work great!

[@einundsiebenziger5488]

... whetstone* - from "to whet" = to sharpen

[@AlexLeeNewYorkCity]

Hi, thanks for the info. Do you remove the plastic stands that come with some of the Naniwa stones? If so, why? And how?

[@KnifewearKnives]

Hey! Some people do, I don't if they come with them. They're a great way to raise up the stone, and they prevent you from using both sides and making the stone uneven. Once you get down to the lip of the stand, the stone is thin enough that it would normally crack anyways.

[@AlexLeeNewYorkCity]

@@KnifewearKnives Very helpful. Thank you!

[@kadenshoemaker6669]

How would i sharpen a knife on a knife sharpening stone in the camilus camp pack my grandma got it for my birthday and idk how to use a stone only a pull through

[@KnifewearKnives]

Check out my technique video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/rnjcZZuNhMSlitksi=ZtYtJlBHzqhzxCYi

[@kyleaizondini-ay5144]

Hi Knifewear, I currently dont have access with a truing stone or diamond plate yet. Although, I have a truing stone coming in two months. I want to start using my Whetstones, are there any alternatives I can use or any advice to keep my Whetstones flat? Thanks in advance

[@KnifewearKnives]

Great question! You can use the grits to flatten each other to some extent, although this also wears them more quickly. In a super pinch, though, you can true your 1000 with your 220, your 4000 with your 1000, etc. Make sure to clean them off thoroughly between grits so you're not leaving scratches on your knife. It's a band-aid solution but it'll get the job done alright!

[@catedoge3206]

real!!!

[@georgeyoung4292]

Its definitelly endless pit from witch there is no cure😂 Its expansive but its spiritual meditation at its best and it is worth every cent🙏 You have pretty much what i use (Choseras/Pro, Glass, Kuromaku,Rika/Ouka/Junpaku)

[@dannyclapper8319]

Could you please explain to me what it means for the stone to 'get muddy' like you mention numerous times throughout the video?

[@KnifewearKnives]

Basically, the stone grinds down and builds up a 'slurry' of stone and steel, often used for polishing. Some do so slowly, some make this slurry quite fast!

[@erickzhou5314]

Hi I have a question: is the more polish, more sharp the knife? Like, if I have a AS gyuto, and I have all the progression up to 30 000, would it be better if I finish it on 30k or just 4k?

[@KnifewearKnives]

That's a great question! The knife can have a finer edge, but it will be much more delicate. The 4,000 is better for finishing a multipurpose knife, as it will leave some tooth that is great for getting into veggies and working against a cutting board. You could use your ultrafine stones for a yanagiba if you're slicing sashimi, and they're great for straight razors!

[@erickzhou5314]

@@KnifewearKnives Thanks!!!!! I have this progression to 30k + a progression to 150 000 with CBN.... but I don't even have a yanagiba or straight razor... I always thought that the most polish, the better(sharper and have a more durable edge), so I've made this entire progression with every single knife(even wusthof) and now, I'm feeling like a idiot because I've spent 3x more in sharpening tool than in knives 😭 But still, the finer the edge, the sharper? For exemple: to cut a single tomato, do you think it would be better using a 4000 polish or a 150k polish? Btw, im loving the AS Yu Kurosaki I've bought from you

[@fabledreamor]

@@erickzhou5314 Aogami Super steel is not easy to sharpen. Most people, including myself, underestimate the time it takes to sharpen an AS steel knife. Here is how I brought my Masakage Koishi AS to razor sharpness. 320 grit (15-20 minutes for thinning the edge) 800 grit (10-15 minutes for making the edge) 2000 grit (3-5 minutes first stage of polish) 6000 grit (3-5 minutes second stage of polish) 10000 grit (3-5 minutes final stage of polish) Note: Rember to flatten your stones before sharpening your AS knife. I use the Atoma 140 plate to flatten my 320 and 800 grit stones and Atoma 1200 plate for all the stones above 1000 grits. Good Luck!

[@yg3165]

Hey guys I am new to sharpening knives and want to buy my very first pair of Japanese knives. Which stones do you guys recommend I get would appreciate the help.

[@KnifewearKnives]

Hey! For a basic reliable set, I would get the Knifewear 220 and 1,000, and add the 4,000 if you want an extra smooth edge! knifewear.com/collections/knifewear-stones-and-accessories

[@regenerativeliberty7915]

Hi to all, hopefully someone can help with my question. I have 20 or so stones from course to fine out of various materials. I want to sharpen my own tools, but do not want to mess up any tools by using the wrong grits. These stones were inherited from my grandfather & father, are unmarked; other than by feel is there any way to determine what grit they are? Will I need diamond stones to make the other ones flat? Thanks in advance for any help with my sharpening.

[@binobones]

One way to check is slowly work your tools on different stones in series and try to make notes as you go which one has more bite/smoother and work it out by elimination. You probably won't ruin your tools if you're careful. IDK how much of a caveman you are though.

[@warava9780]

hey im looking in getting wetstone do you recommend the shapton ceramic stones? looking to get 1000 + 5000

[@KnifewearKnives]

Absolutely, they work super well and stay very flat!

[@warava9780]

@@KnifewearKnives thank you so much for the answer! Getting my first 2 japanese knifes 1 blue steel and 1 vg10

[@einundsiebenziger5488]

... whetstones - from "to whet" = to sharpen

[@TheSM4ster]

Arashiyama 6000 grit or Knifewear 4000 grit if you had to choose one for Kasumi finish?

[@KnifewearKnives]

Definitely Arashiyama, it's a softer stone!

[@TheSM4ster]

@@KnifewearKnives Thanks for the info, now I have to also do some edge sharpening (I just made an order to get equipped with Knifewear 220, 1000 and Arashiyama 6000). Can I still use Arashiyama or should I switch it for Knifewear 4000 to be more flexible (Kasumi + Edge Sharpening)?

[@WaschyNumber1]

Are glass stones similar to Dimond stones ? 🤔 And what size number of grit would be good from New profiling to mirror edge sharpening? 🤔

[@KnifewearKnives]

Hey, the class stones are a bit different. Theyre a regular Whetstones, and the glass back helps keep the stone stable and flat. For reprofiling or re-grinding the bevel, I like 220 or 400. For mirror polish, you can get reasonable results on 8,000 grit, but some folks go even finer!

[@WaschyNumber1]

@@KnifewearKnives Thank You very much. 🤗

[@pasl.9424]

I have literally just been wondering which upgrade I should get next to my 4,000 grid stone! Just got a Yoshikane 210 Gyuto and need to get it laser sharp

[@dimmacommunication]

I love my shapton 12000 if you need to go that high grit.

[@KnifewearKnives]

Nice, that's a great option! I love 6,000 too.

[@michael_the_chef]

4000 plus leather strop is fine, or maybe go up to a shapton pro 8k

[@dimmacommunication]

@@michael_the_chef Leather strop is key to every sharpening process 👍😃

[@e30Birdy]

@@dimmacommunication that depends.. most prefer bass wood or jeans strops now because with leather it is quite easy to roll the edge

[@chadrudolph1596]

Knifewear stones infomercial.

[@e30Birdy]

Shapton Pro series I find to be a lot better finisher for western knives compare to the glass. It just leaves a lot toothier edge I find.

[@dimmacommunication]

I love the toothier edge :)

[@mfreeman313]

@@dimmacommunication Me too! At the end of the day your beautifully finished edge ought to be able to cut a damn tomato, since cutting food is mostly what the knives are for. I've never sat down to a meal of finely cut paper and I hope I never do.

[@dimmacommunication]

@@mfreeman313 If I polish my knife with a 12k i can glide trough paper but doesn't cut food 😂😂. Best combo is a grit 600 to 1200 and strop.

[@mfreeman313]

@@dimmacommunication I've seen a lot of back and forth on this but to my mind a refined but slightly toothy edge works well. And I think maybe the ultimate technique goal isn't so much screaming sharpness or scary sharpness as works-the-way-you-want-it-to sharpness.

[@dimmacommunication]

@@mfreeman313 Actually they did a series of test and 600 grit lasts the longest. The key is to apex as good as possible then strop. Stropping or super high grit will not substitute for a poorly done edge.

[@leonardpearlman4017]

"Rabbit Hole!". I have said that myself! You know what really kills me lately is when someone says something like "Oh, you just really need one stone"! I had more than that when I was born! And new ones come out... I loved the picture of a table just covered with sharpening stuff.... I haven't watched the video yet, I'm hoping we don't hear "you don't need any of this"....

[@KnifewearKnives]

I agree, you definitely need lots of stones!

[@kamakirinoko]

I have a Kasumi 10" Chef's knife, and I have a 6,000-grit noname stone, but I just bought a Naniwa Superstone 10,000-grit . . . is that overkill? I just felt that the 6,000 was just not, um, cutting it.

[@KnifewearKnives]

It depends! 10,000 will give you a crazy smooth edge, especially for delicate ingredients. If you're giving the knife a workout on your board, 10,000 grit may dull to quickly. If you're not getting a super smooth edge off of 6,000, I would try spending more time polishing on that stone or stropping the knife afterward!

[@kamakirinoko]

@@KnifewearKnives 返信いただきありがとうございます！ 試してみるのがお楽しみにしています！。 その様子をお知らせします！

[@einundsiebenziger5488]

Maybe the 6,000 grit is already too fine and your knife works better with a toothier, coarser edge. Anything beyond 3,000 grit is for aesthetics only, and does not really serve a practical purpose.

[@nazrulmondol5056]

How to bay in Saudi Arabia please answer

[@KnifewearKnives]

Hey, you can order on knifewear.com, we ship worldwide!

[@zenrazor659]

I learnt to use a progression for straight razor from a professional and he jumps from 8000 shapton glass hr directly to 16000k to finish on 30000k To me the edge is not very sharp and also not very smooth. It would be correct do a 10 strokes on 10000 shapton glass before to go to the 16000k or there is the risk to break the cutting edge when I will pass to the 16000k? Steel is c 135 , 63 hrc rockwell of Thiers Issard

[@KnifewearKnives]

Hey! How many passes do you make on your 8k and 16k? I don't think that would be an issue, but there's not harm in doing some work on the 10K first. I've done that to my Thiers issard with no issues, but I usually do more.like 100 strokes. Another issue could be stropping. You want to ensure your angle is flat and your pressure very light, I find stropping after honing very helpful to remove any burr that could leave your edge feeling rough.

[@TheRAMBO9191]

@community 1.75 speed is helpful or 1.5

[@dimmacommunication]

Personally I think a lot of people on YT are pushing on the grit thing just to sell stones or make views,without saying that for example 700 to 1200 grit works wonders on almost every task, and that removing the burr is key , much more than grit.

[@aussiehardwood6196]

Hmmmm...your not into sharpening straight razors or Japanese knives are you. 700 to 1200 may be just fine for a pocket knife. Grit is very important despite many stones being sold are not an honest representation of advertised grit size.

[@dimmacommunication]

@@aussiehardwood6196 I never wanted straight razors cause they look a bit tricky to dial in. I have japanese knives and 12k stones etc... I've started collecting knives ans stones since 2005 and I can tell you that when you a grit over 2000 you start loosing edge " teeth".

[@dzsedy]

Agree. I have the feeling that people try to get better by spending money and buying higher and higher grit stones, instead of making their technique better. After experimenting, I finish my japanese knives on the naniwa pro 2k, the european knives on naniwa pro 600. I have used my suehiro rika 5k in the beginning, but quickly realized that the edge has a lot less bite than what I would prefer. If the burr is properly removed, and the apex is nice and crisp, even a 300 grit edge will easily shave arm hair, and bite into absolutely anything in the kitchen. Good technique > higher grits (for knives at least, straight razors are a different topic).

[@dimmacommunication]

@@dzsedy 100% , but still no matter the tecnique a 600-700 grit minimum is advisable. BBB is a master in this subject ( sharpening ) , a naniwa 400 grit is perfect if you wanna buy a " do it all " stone, cuts like a 400 but finishes higher, so finer than a standard 400 as a end result. Also leather strop is almost essential imho. Cheap and gives a crazy end result. Like wax on a good car paintjob .

[@dzsedy]

@@dimmacommunication The minimum grit necessary really depends on the task, but 600-1200 is a good general range. For some applications I would go lower, for others higher, but at the end there's no huge difference, mainly just personal preference. I fell in love with basswood strops, it's really amazing. Leather is just not my favorite for kitchen knives, either wood or nothing. And BBB is really good :)

[@jeiwaru]

Oh....I thought we were talking about Southern breakfast food. Ah well, I'll stay for the knife sharpening 🤷‍♀️🔪

[@KnifewearKnives]

We'll do that next week 😂

[@user-mb4xy2cz3t]

Coarse stones are not only for repairs, they are actually for sharpening also, anything above 400 grit - is different forms of polishing. Good luck raising a burr on with a 800 grit stone on a knife that wasn't relatively sharp already.

[@fabledreamor]

True. Most people start out with the King 1000/6000 combination stone like I did. And they wonder why their new knives are not as sharp as razors. They need to go with 300 or 400 grit first. I don't even have a 1000-grit stone in my collections yet. I have 320, 800, 2000, 6000, and 10,000 grit stones. I spend a lot of time making edges for new knives with the 320 and 800 grits. After that, it's just polishing. For knives that cut meat, I stop at 2000 grits. But I go all the way to 6000 or 10000 grits for vegetable knives.

[@shiroyt4185]

I find it hard listening to this guy as his pauses of sentences are weird and he kept staring into my soul like I've done something wrong.

[@The_Racist_Stoner]

He does but that’s kind of messed up not everyone can speak as well as some. English might not even be his native language, it could be Spanish for all i know but it shouldn’t matter treat people equally.

[@AntwonDaBusiness]

This doesn’t need to be 20 minutes long at all.

[@Louis-qb8tr]

Just tell us you’ve got no attention span

[@jordanjohnson7266]

This comment doesn’t need to be here at all

[@Senorfrito713]

Pipe down lil boy