Derek Cohen (in Perth, Australia)
Well, I used Pro Shaptons for several years, and was not happy with the 5000. I found it glazed over easily, which made harder work for the 12000. I contacted Stu (at Tools from Japan), with whom I corresponded often at that tome (he is a fellow Aussie). He recommended a Sigma 6000, and sent me the 1200/13000 combo as a gift. In comparison, the Sigma 13000 was superior to the Pro Shapton 12000. The 6000 was just way better than the PS 5000. The Sigma stones seem to work better on the more abrasion resistant steels, such as A2 and PM-V11.

Generally I find a system and stay with it for as long as it does the job. The Spyderco were an additional system, purchased on the recommendation of George (who remains mythical on this forum)

Regards from Perth

Derek