Sharpening Stones

1) Regular Flattening Keeping water stones flat with the Double-Time Flattening Stone. A flat water stone is essential for good performance. Coarser water stones tend to wear faster and require more regular flattening. Flattening wate...

Understanding The Differences In Materials The three most common types of sharpening stones are water stones, diamond stones, and oil stones. Each of these stones has its own advantages that can help users achieve their sharpening goals. Below ...

What sharpening stones should I start with? We get asked regularly to recommend stones for the beginning sharpener. Everyone wants to get stones that will be of the most practical use. No one wants to waste money on something they will have to repla...

Slip stones are sharpening stones shaped to fit the inside bevel of tools like gouges, v-tools, or knives with a concave edge such as hawkbill knives. Their defining characteristic is having at least one rounded or tapered edge. With regular ben...

"He wondered if something could be so sharp that it began to possess, not just a sharp edge, but the very essence of sharpness itself, a field of absolute sharpness that actually extended beyond the last atoms of metal." – Terry Pratchett, Reaper Man...

Nano Hone is a high-quality maker of Water Stones, Diamond Stones, Stone Holders, Flattening Stones, and more. Nano-Hone products are known for the many innovative features that make sharpening easier and more enjoyable. Complete Line of St...

Are diamond stones really made of diamond? Yes, our DMT® diamond stones are made of diamond. These monocrystalline diamonds are man-made diamonds. The largest and coarsest diamonds in the DMT® sharpening line are 120 microns in size while ...

What is a lapping plate and why do I need one? A lapping plate or flattening stone is a coarse stone used to flatten other sharpening stones. In order to keep flat and straight edges on cutting tools, it is necessary to have a flat stone to sharp...

Why do I need a flatten water stones? Water stones (also called waterstones) sharpen very fast because the binder that holds them together breaks down quickly constantly exposing fresh grit. While this results in faster sharpening, it also means ...

The Double-Time Flattening Stone is a quality USA-made flattening stone used to flatten water stones. It is the only flattening stone with all of the design and manufacturing features we've listed below. Made In the USA When we put the Sh...

We're excited to offer natural whetstones direct from 1Stone, a maker of sharpening stones in the Ardennes region of France. 1Stone is run by a gentleman named Nicolas Rollin who is reviving the manufacture of natural whetstones that have been out of...

What are Japanese Water Stones? We carry a wide selection of Japanese water stones. Historically, Japan was famous for its natural sharpening stones. That tradition of quality sharpening stones continues today with the synthetic stone...

Naniwa Has a Wide Range of Stones to Fit Every Need Naniwa has been manufacturing quality waterstones for over 60 years in Osaka, Japan. They have developed several different lines of stones in that time, each with its own unique characteristics. ...

Choosing only a fine stone The temptation to only purchase a finer stone for all your sharpening needs is tempting. It is the number one mistake that beginners tend to make when selecting a stone. The theory that you can just spend a few more min...

Our Sharpening Stone Grit Chart We decided to come up with a grit chart based on 10 levels. Since one person's "fine" and one manufacturer's "fine" may mean something completely different we established a 1 to 10 grit chart with 1 being the m...

Are Arkansas Stones natural or man made? Arkansas Stones are natural stones. The stones we offer are quarried, graded and milled to shape in the US. How do the grits of Arkansas Stones Compare to each other? Arkansas Stones are graded not by g...

Should I Get Interrupted Surface or Continuous Surface Stones? DMT Diamond Stones are available in two main varieties, the Interrupted Surface found on their Diamond Whetstones and DuoSharp stones, and the Continuous Diamond Surface found on their...

Why sharpen with DMT diamonds? The diamond is recognized as the hardest, most durable substance in the world. This uncompromising crystal gives DMT Diamond Sharpeners their durable construction, outlasting conventional sharpeners and offering unsu...

Extra-Extra Coarse (XX)Silver - 120 micron - 120 meshExtreme repair of a very damaged edge. Extra Coarse (X)Black - 60 micron - 220 meshFor aggressive removal of metal on damaged tools. Useful on garden tools, axes, lawnmower blades, plane s...

If you've only been around sharpening for a few years, you've probably never heard of a carborundum stone. It isn't that these stones don't exist, it is because the current popular language doesn't use the term carborundum to refer to the silicon car...

An India Stone is made from the man-made abrasive aluminum oxide. The term India Stone is a trade name for Norton's Aluminum Oxide sharpening stones. Norton's India stones are orange, tan or brown in color. This distinguishes them from Norton's Cryst...

The Hard Translucent Arkansas Stone is actually translucent. We've put it to the test to remove any doubts. Hard Translucent Arkansas Stone with Flashlight To demonstrate the translucent properties of this stone we simply turned off the lights an...

Common Beginner Sharpening Mistake: Using only a Fine Stone We work with beginning sharpeners on a daily basis. The most common mistake beginners tend to make is skipping the coarse grits and going straight to fine grits. Fine grits sharpen man...

What is a coarse stone and how is it used? Coarse stones are sharpening stones in the 150 to 325 grit range, with abrasive particles of about 45 to 100 microns in size. These stones provide aggressive cutting action allowing for fast material remo...

What is honing compound? Honing compound is extremely fine abrasive used in the final polishing stages of sharpening. These abrasives are sometimes loose, but are usually held in a medium like a wax bar, a paste or a spray. The particles in our s...

Sharpening stones are made of abrasives intended to abrade or cut the metal you're sharpening. Sharpening stones can be made from a variety of materials such as diamond, silicon carbide, aluminum oxide, and ceramic. Depending upon the type of stone ...

Which is better, wet or dry sharpening? Or, put another way, "Do I need to use water/oil with my sharpening stones?" This is a question that comes up regularly here at Sharpening Supplies. Conventional wisdom says that using water or oil with a sh...

What is your most economical Diamond Lapping Plate? Looking for the best lapping plate available for your valuable waterstones, but also looking for some more budget friendly? Consider our exclusive new lapping stone from DMT, the 8" Dia-Flat 95. ...

DMT Lapping Plate Comparison Chart   Dia-Flat Lapping Plate Dia-Flat 95 Lapping Plate 8",Dia-Flat 95 Lapping Plate Dia-Flat Plus Lapping Plate ...

This is definitely a source of confusion for people looking through the available types of sharpening stones. While ceramic stones and ceramic water stones sound similar, they are not the same thing. In our Sharpening Glossary we define the two types...

Norton makes a number of stones in a Fine, Medium and Coarse grit. But those grits are seldom stated in terms of the actual grit. Based on our experience and referencing their documentation, we have determined the grits. Interestingly, Norton produce...

I've purchased a Hard Black Arkansas Stone, can you tell me the grit? I've read it could be anywhere from 1200 grit, to as high as 4000 grit. The reason I ask is because on some softer steels I never seem to get the edge I'm expecting. Could it be t...

Whether you've already got a Double-Time Flattening Stone or you're thinking about getting one, proper use and care is important information. Have a look at the following instructions for using and caring for your Double-Time Flattening Stone. Soa...

Here are some examples of questions about sharpening stones that we often hear: I heard this called a "wet stone" but I thought it used oil. Should I use oil or water on it? The instructor said I need a "wet stone" what should I get? Are water s...

New Double-Sided Stones DMT is an American made brand that has been making high quality diamond stones for decades. Their lineup features a large range of sizes, shapes and grits. We now have exciting new DMT double-sided stones that will increas...

Diamond sharpening stones are a layer of diamond abrasives bonded to a metal plate. They're fast sharpeners. Diamond stones will quickly sharpen any kind of steel, stay flat, and work reliably for years. Because of these great features, they’re a pop...