anybody use Japanese waterstone for their knives? the 12,000grit stone is suppose to give the best shiny edge you can ever get <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" />

I have never used one but I sure want one. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Check out Mears Ray Mears Japanese Stone <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbup.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbup.gif" alt="" />

Its not 12,000 grit <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif" alt="" />, but its pretty nice for anyone who hasn't done it before.

Were did you find the 12,000 grit?

http://www.japanwoodworker.com/product.a...p;dept_id=13118

12,000grit!!~~!!!

Great link KENKEN <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbup.gif" alt="" />.

I use a 1000/6000 grit water stone on some of my knives. The 1000 puts a nice aggressive edge good for the kitchen and chopping work. The 6000 puts really sharp polished edge on. You can see your self in the edge.

Here is a link to a grit chart.

http://users.ameritech.net/knives/grits.htm

my norton 1000/8000 grit stone works geat the 8000 will put a shiny edge that will be very sharp

The combination stones are good...I use a 1000/6000 stone which I sawed a smaller size off for a compact field stone for my scandi grind knives and Golok....keep it in a plastic tea caddy box so you can easily soak it....works well....but the ultra fine grits I have not used....6000 seems to put an edge on them well enough....and there is still enough of the stone left for a bench stone as well.

They are soft though for re-profiling....diamond stones work much better and quicker at this.

I'm trying to decide if the 12,000grit is worth the money. Or will the 6,000 grit stone be "shiny" enough?

anybody use the 12,000grit stone? or even the 10,000 grit one?

Hey if you guys want to know about water stones and honing techniques?

I am not sure what the rules are for linking to other boards, Mods go ahead and delete the links if this violates board policy.

check out,
http://www.straightrazorplace.com/forums/
and
http://badgerandblade.com/vb/

They are shaving boards I belong to and they know how to make things Sharp. Just look for the honing sub forums while you are there.

For guys using water stones here is a tutorial on how to flatten your stones that you might find useful.

How to flatten your hone

That's a good tutorial. There is an easier and cheaper way to do which have been using for years on mine. I just find a flat section of concrete on the driveway or patio. Wet it down lay the stone face down apply pressure and work to stone across the concrete in either a "W" or circular motion. You will want to rotate the stone 180 degrees every dozen or so passes. I actually use both circular and "W" movements. The main thing is to keep the stone moving in a random pattern other wise you will end up removing more material from one section of the stone than others due to the uneven application of pressure. Rotating the stone while moving it in a "W" or circular pattern negates the unevenness.

The roughness of the concrete removes stone material fairly quickly however, during this process the stone is also polishing the concrete. If you have a lot of material to remove you will have to keep the stone on the rough. Once the stone is flat use the polished areas of the concrete to remove any scratches in the face of the stone. Don't forget the keep the concrete wet through the whole process