If you are just getting into the world of knife sharpening it is important to understand the differences of stones and how to choose the right one for your knife.
There are three main types of water stones: ceramic stones, traditional compressed stones and natural stones. Ceramic stones are made to be hard and wear slowly with use. These are great if you see yourself doing a lot of sharpening and purchasing multiple stones in various grits.
The more traditional stones wear down fairly quickly and require regular resurfacing. These are often available as two sided stones, either as coarse and medium or medium and fine. Traditional stones are also more affordable for someone who just wants to touch up their knives every once in a while.
Natural stones are stones mined from a quarry and vary in grit, size and price. These are stones that take some understanding to care for and can be very expensive. We recommend natural stones for experienced users.
Stone grits can be separated into three main categories: coarse, medium and fine.
Coarse stones will range in grit size from around 100 to 600 grit. Medium stones can vary anywhere from around 700 to 2000 grit. Fine stones will be from 3000 grit and up.
The state of your edge and steel type will determine which stones you will want to use when sharpening.
We hope you enjoyed this tutorial and feel ready to get sharpening!
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