Couple of Waterstone questions

Re: Couple of Waterstone questions

woodburnbob


>Wow, Joe. You might have taken the "paver" story a little too literally. Was it brick or concrete? If you'd taken three "pavers" and "originated" three "flat" pavers first, it might have worked a lot better.

Before you put the mesh on something, use a straightedge and make sure it is flat. Most formica-type kitchen counter tops are. Thick chunks of MDF often are. Or, go to Home Depot. Get a straight edge from the tools cage. Walk over to granite/marble tiles. Select the flatest tile. Put back the straightedge. Buy the $2 tile.

I'd glue down coarse wet/dry SiC rather than float the screen, but I suppose the screen could work under a light touch.

Oh, what's sharpening method "C"...out of curiosity.

C =

Joe in a Cleveland suburb


>C. was my lazy way of saying Christopher Schwarz.

Joe

Re: C =

woodburnbob


>Sorry, Joe, I stupidly misread it. I was thinking there were A, B, and C methods. I read too fast. I'm still curious. What is the method he recommends?

Re: Couple of Waterstone questions

Ian Smith (Sydney Australia)


>Hi Joe,

Drywall mesh over a sheet of glass (provides a flat surface) works for me. If the grooves you've made in you stone are deep you might have to take a fair bit off to get back to a flat stone.

You don't have to use glass as a backing either. Derek Cohen for example uses a laminate covered board (refer posts in response to your question a few days ago).

Regards,

Ian.

Re: Couple of Waterstone questions

Dan Donaldson


>In reality, it probably doesn't matter if it has grooves in it as long as the high points of the ridges are flat. (does this make sense?) The grooves will just fill with swarf and the tops will do the cutting. should still work fine.

Re: Couple of Waterstone questions *LINK*

Richard B


>I think one of the most important things about checking flatness of anything is using a good quality straight-edge - preferably one made from an engineering shop. Old squares that are in good condition are a good a source for straight-edges. IMO glass or marble cannot be guaranteed to be flat, unless it has been made specially for that purpose.

On my Norton's, I use their flattening stone which has grooves in it to catch the slurry. They are cheap to buy and designed for this purpose. From what I have heard, they work equally as well on other manufacturers' water stones. Just my 2�!!


Flattening Stone

Thanks guys but...

Joe in a Cleveland suburb


>what about my 8000 stone question? Would it be worth mu while to have one for honing after using the 1000/6000 & nagura?

Thanks.

Joe

Hear, hear.

Pam Niedermayer - Austin, TX


>Precisely, Dan, at least for most everything larger than 1/8".

Pam

Re: Water stones

Moses Yoder in White Pigeon, MI


>I use a 4000 grit water stone for the middle of my sharpening process. I bought the 1000, 4000, and 8000 Norton water stones from LV this year and am very well pleased with them. I bet they will last me 20 or 30 years. I thought about getting them one at a time, but when my wife brought home another dog I just bought them all at the same time. The chips can fall where they will. The 8000 grit stone puts a pretty bright shine on my Hock irons, and I'm sure you would get a better edge with the 8000 stone, but whether you would actually "feel" the difference is debatable. I like stones, and of course would suggest to everyone buy all you can. I am sure you can do without the stone and wonder if the 8000 would make a difference the rest of your life too.

Re: Couple of Waterstone questions

Scott Burr in Ben Lomond, CA


>Use a drywall screen they work well on a flat surface that is. I think a 8K might show some imporvement in an edge. It makes a noticeable improvement on A2 blades. That said, I also go 1K, 4K then 8K.

Re: Thanks guys but...

Steve Kubien


>Joe,

I seriously doubt it would make any difference to how the the tool performs or feels. I think 6000 grit is plenty fine for woodworking...heart surgery?...I'd rather not find out. If you are still unsure, why not try some green honing compound on a flat, smooth surface (like a glass plate)? It's a lot cheaper and the particle size of it and an 8000 girt stone are about the same.

Regards,

Steve Kubien

Re: Couple of Waterstone questions

Vlad


>Joe,

I currently use a 1000/8000 Norton stone and a 4000 King stone. To flatten them I use 120 sandpaper on 1/4" glass. Works very well. A couple of swipes and it's flat.

As an aside, the the Norton stones are absolutely amazing. Much better than the King stones sold at LV.

Good luck.

Vlad

I was wrong...

Joe in a Cleveland suburb


>Sorry. I was wrong. It's the Autumn 2004 issue. Here's their site. You can get Back issues if you want I think. If, like me, you are not an expert sharpener, buying this issue would be worth the $8.00 if you can get it. All I can see is it worked for me.

Basically the article talked about less sharpening more often. He showed doing few strokes on each stone than what I used to do. Just until you get the burr. Then move on. Hard for me to explain. Maybe Chris would explain it(?). Chris?

For me, it was a big help. For the experts it may seem lame but it helped me a lot. I can get, what seems to me anyway, a sharp edge quickly now. Where before I was using all kinds of expensive sandpaper and taking a long time to get it sharp.

BTW, the above magazine is a very nice little publication if you haven't seen it. I have every issue so far. It might seem redundant in content or overly simple for the experienced out there, but I've gotten good info out of each article. The quality of print and photography is nice too.

Joe

Re: Couple of Waterstone questions

Paul Kierstead


> ... the Norton stones are absolutely amazing. Much better than the King stones sold at LV.

I have the King stones. Not having the Nortons to compare to, I am curious as to how they are better (i.e. what aspect[s]). Do you mean the actual cutting action is better, less glazing, just better ergonomics, wider, etc.?? I am always game to make the sharpening more pleasant and easy, so if they are much better ...

Good question.

Joe in a Cleveland suburb

Re: Couple of Waterstone questions

Vlad


>Gentlemen,

The Norton stones appear to be tougher - kinda like an oil stone. The King stones are prone to breaking (happened to me)and gouging when you add a microbevel.

I've had issues with the Kings where the two grits separate from each other. However, it was an old stone.

The Norton stones cut MUCH faster than the Kings even though it's the same grit.

The King stones that I have are only 2" wide. A real PITA for wider blades. However, I think wider ones are available check with LV.

The Norton stones absorb the water - you can hear fizzing when you put them in the bath. Kings don't. Not sure if this is better. For the price I prefer the Nortons. Day and night difference to me.

You get a better slurry with the Nortons stones. The Kings tend to gum up and require more frequent watering.

I get a real good polish with the 8000 Norton Grit. I could possibly skip the 4000 King intermediate step.

Hope it helps.

Vlad

Re: Couple of Waterstone questions

Denis Ch�nard, Orl�ans, Ont.


>"I get a real good polish with the 8000 Norton Grit. I could possibly skip the 4000 King intermediate step."

That's what I do, and it works fine. There's so little area to be honed that it goes very fast.

Can't compare the King and the Norton, I own the latter but I've never tried the former. Paul, maybe we could bring our stones at the next OWA meeting to compare?

DC

Re: Couple of Waterstone questions

Paul Kierstead


>Thanks, Vlad; something to think about. The cutting fast thing is interesting; I seem to recall in the past that Norton and LV rate the grit sizes differently, which may account for it. The King stones are indeed quite soft and easily gouged; I presumed it was the nature of the beast, but apparently not. They also do clog relatively easily, which I also assumed was the nature of the beast. Next time I buy one, I will definitely give the Norton's a good thought.