sharpening stones ?? - Japanese and German knives

Greetings.

Looking for 3 cost-effective stones. Would welcome recommendations.

I'm thinking something in the 180-500 range, 800-1200 range,
and something in the 3000 to 8000 range, but I'm not certain which.

I'm new at this. Will be sharpening both Japanese (60-http://www.google.com/url?sa=U&star...zM0McE&usg=AFQjCNGWKXX716-oGqV5Ia3hBWj30bLCyQ64 Rockwell) and German (55-57 Rockwell) knives.
Can one set of stones work reasonably effectively for both?

Thanks.

- Richard

If you don't let the edge get too dull, the Spyderco Sharpmaker 204 should work just fine. I've got about 1/2 dozen custom kitchen knives (440c, ATS-34, S30V, etc) and the Sharpmaker is all I've ever needed.

+1 on the sharpmaker. There are diamond rods available for it if the particularly hard blades are too slow on the regular rods.

not sure if your into it but check out convex edge honing.. wicked sharp and simple

If the guys on foodie forums haven't answered yet, you may want to check the Shapton GlassStones. Craftsman Studio has good prices and free shipping-
http://www.craftsmanstudio.com/html_p/Q!0000000.htm

Thanks for the link- that Hattori nakiri is screaming my name!

DS/B MCS said:

If you don't let the edge get too dull, the Spyderco Sharpmaker 204 should work just fine. I've got about 1/2 dozen custom kitchen knives (440c, ATS-34, S30V, etc) and the Sharpmaker is all I've ever needed.

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I really like my sharpmaker - I have the ultra fine rods and will be adding the diamond ones at some point (primarily for doing the initial profiling). I easily get a shaving sharp edge on my knives, including some knives above 60 on the rockwell scale.

I think the sharpmaker is a good sharpening solution for most folks - its not idiot proof, but it's pretty easy to use once you do a couple of knives. However you really need to watch the tip as its easy to blunt it if you're not careful. I still think a good whetstone does a better job in the hands of someone who knows what they're doing, but the sharpmaker is very easy and better than the lansky type systems IMHO.

You use the same stones for all steels, the only difference will be the speed of the sharpening process.

... 60 on the rockwell scale...

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Just a small nit to pick (as an engineer in training (though not officially and EIT)), there is not one rockwell scale, there are seven. The scales most used are HRB (B-scale) and HRC (C-Scale). In the case of knives (these knives anyway), the HRC is the one to which everyone is referring.

Small nit pick over, thank you for your time, as well as your ears (figuratively speaking of course).

PS (to nerds like myself): I'm personally a fan of Vickers hardness number (VHN). It gives a more accurate and repeatable representation of hardness, a value which has little actual engineering significance outside of wear surfaces.

Have you considered a Lansky system. I have used others and I am very happy with mine.

ouch said:

If the guys on foodie forums haven't answered yet, you may want to check the Shapton GlassStones. Craftsman Studio has good prices and free shipping-
http://www.craftsmanstudio.com/html_p/Q!0000000.htm

Thanks for the link- that Hattori nakiri is screaming my name!

Click to expand...

You may wish to look at Koki's Gekko line, and see which nakiri screams louder:
http://www.japanesechefsknife.com/SPECIALS.html