Preferred set of water stones

[charles Tauber]

Originally Posted by redir

Yes the 8000 does glaze. Like Charles, mine live in water too. I think that is the key to success using these stones. Go find a tupperware like container that will fit all your stones and drown them in water.

The success of most water stones is their friability - how easily its matrix releases abrasive particles and how easily the particles fracture to expose fresh cutting surfaces. Water stones work largely by the abrasive slurry of released/fragmented particles that sits on the stone. Without water, the stone doesn't break down and doesn't cut. Without cutting, it clogs.

Due to its high friability, water stones wear/dish very quickly, much more quickly than oil stones, but, that is why they cut faster than oil stones.

[Quickstep192]

Yes, I soak them before use and keep them very wet while in use.

I was experiencing the loading problem while sharpening the iron for my spokeshave. The blade is 3/32″ thick, about 2 1/8 inches wide and made of hardened “O-1” tool steel. It seems pretty hard, but I had the same issues when sharpening a cheap spokeshave blade as well.

[redir]

Originally Posted by charles Tauber

The success of most water stones is their friability - how easily its matrix releases abrasive particles and how easily the particles fracture to expose fresh cutting surfaces. Water stones work largely by the abrasive slurry of released/fragmented particles that sits on the stone. Without water, the stone doesn't break down and doesn't cut. Without cutting, it clogs.

Due to its high friability, water stones wear/dish very quickly, much more quickly than oil stones, but, that is why they cut faster than oil stones.

What do you use to flatten your water stones?

[charles Tauber]

O-1 tool steel is hard. What do you use to flatten the stones?

[charles Tauber]

Originally Posted by redir

What do you use to flatten your water stones?

I was introduced to water stones by Rob Cosman in classes I took with him a decade or so ago. At that time, he was using two 1000 water stones, one to flatten the other, rubbed back and forth against each other. He has since switched to a combination of diamond and Shapton stones. He now uses the diamond stone to flatten the Shaptons.

For most routine flattening, I still use the 1000 stones - they are both in the same water bath, ready to use and at hand. I've also used a course stone sold by Lee Valley specifically for flattening water stones. I've also used a 250 grit diamond stone. I've found all of those work okay. If there is a lot of flattening to do, I'll use the diamond stone - it's coarser and cuts faster. If flattened after each use, it doesn't take much to flatten them, a minute or two.

[Quickstep192]

Originally Posted by charles Tauber

O-1 tool steel is hard. What do you use to flatten the stones?

I’m using a Norton Flattening stone like this one.

[charles Tauber]

I've run out of suggestions. I'm not sure what is causing the glazing on the coarser stones. It sounds like you are doing the right thing.

[tadol]

We found that waterstones could get contaminated - oil, wd-40, grease, wax - all of which could affect their ability to cut, and cause them to appear glazed. It was a problem because we used them for a sharpening class, and students brought in all kinds of tools in all kinds of shape. Lots of time spent on a Makita wet grinder. Usually you just had to dress the stones aggressively - but a small surfacing stone (or wet/dry paper wrapped around a block) to help get the slurry started was useful too -

[runamuck]

With the stones that glaze easily, try scrubbing them with dishwashing detergent several times and see if that improves things.

[Howard Klepper]

The granite surface plate and wet-or-dry (do it wet) sandpaper can also be used to flatten a waterstone.

[Carey]

Originally Posted by Quickstep192

Yes, I soak them before use and keep them very wet while in use.

I was experiencing the loading problem while sharpening the iron for my spokeshave. The blade is 3/32″ thick, about 2 1/8 inches wide and made of hardened “O-1” tool steel. It seems pretty hard, but I had the same issues when sharpening a cheap spokeshave blade as well.

A nagura stone, natural or synthetic, will probably solve your loading problem:

https://www.toolsforworkingwood.com/store/blog/91/

They are not really for flattening, but rather to get a hardish or glazed stone to cut, and to create a slurry if desired. I have a couple of extras, and if you want one, you can send me a PM.

[RogueBrit]

After trying most sharpening solutions, for knives as well as chisels and other cutting tools I have, for many years now, settled on a set of US made 'Spyderco Ceramic Whet Stones'. They are synthetic sapphire (alumina) in a fired ceramic base. They come in medium, fine and ultra fine. The medium is pretty fine, but cuts fairly freely and is a dark brown colour. The fine and ultra fine are white - the ultra is very fine indeed, producing a highly polished edge. I only use it if I'm being very picky.

These stones are used dry; the waste appears as a fine dust on the surface and can be wiped away. If further cleaning is needed, water with something like Scotchbrite works well. The stones are impervious to water - e.g. they can be autoclaved for sharpening surgical items.

One huge advantage of these stones is that they stay FLAT. Spyderco say that the medium, brown, stone is an open cell texture that might wear slightly over time, the others showing little or no wear over time. They come guaranteed flat over their 8in length - if the medium stone has worn at all - over many years of sharpening some very hard steels and other metals - I can't notice it! But I'm still careful to use the full surface as far as possible. This feature makes them superb for sharpening plane irons, especially.

Personally, I would hate to have to go back to messy and inaccurate oil or water stones. Diamond are great, in the finest grades, for quick rough removal of metal in my experience. The finest I've found are too coarse for a finished edge for my purposes.

I bought these a long time ago; I can't recall, but I think they were not cheap. They come in nice fitting, lidded plastic boxes with non-slip rubber feet. They are everything I want in a sharpening solution for fine work, and the hardest steels. I am surprised I don't see them mentioned very often.

I do a lot of fine woodwork, engineering and other activities demanding the sharpest tools. I'm not a luthier, except in an amateur way, but I hoped my experience might be of interest.

Roger

[charles Tauber]

Seems like a good option: https://www.spyderco.com/catalog/category/sharpeners

Thanks for pointing it out.

[Carey]

I've been meaning to try the Spydercos for awhile now, so yes, thanks for
mentioning them. Flattening waterstones does get old.

[Bill Kraus]

Thanks for all the responses, I've got some reading to do.