[quote=Digiorno]

QUESTIONS 3/4: What is the best stone/method I should use in order to sharpen my knfie?(SR-101 steel) I've been reading around and I have yet to find anything specific. Some have suggested using Lansky diamond stones in another forum, are those sufficient?

At the risk of sounding simplistic, there is no " best stone/ method" to use to sharpen a knife. It all depends on what the person who is sharpening the knife has to work with or is familiar with or is comfortable with or how much money you can afford to spend.
Some people like to sharpen freehand. Others like to use various jigs or sharpening apparatus. Some like to use powered machines. Some, like me, use all of these methods.
If you can't afford Japanese water stones and want to start out learning how to freehand, I think that a double-sided Norton stone is fairly inexpensive and along with a strop and some chromium dioxide will do just about anything you will want to do for quite a while. For lubrication of the stone, I've found that either light oil or water will work. You just have to stick with either one or the other.
If you find that you cannot maintain a consistent edge by hand, then an assisted system may work for you, such as, a Lansky. Diamond stones are not needed at this point. The regular stones will work fine.