The Best Whetstones for Sharpening
A tool is only as good as its edge. The finest pocket knife and the most expensive chisel become useless when they are dull. Sharpening on a quality stone is the skill that separates the craftsman from the consumer. These are the stones worth learning on.
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How to Choose
Grit progression is the key concept: start coarse (200-400 grit) to reshape a damaged or very dull edge, move to medium (1000 grit) to refine it, finish fine (3000-8000 grit) to polish and hone. You do not need every grit -- a 1000 and a 6000 combination stone handles 90% of sharpening tasks. Water stones cut faster than oil stones and produce a finer edge; natural Arkansas stones produce the finest edge of all but cut slowly.
King KW-65 1000/6000 Combination Stone
The King KW-65 is the stone found in culinary schools, woodworking shops, and craftsmen's benches across America. The 1000-grit side resharpens a dulled edge in minutes. The 6000-grit side produces a mirror polish. The stone is soaked in water before use -- no oil needed, easy cleanup. For the price, no other combination stone competes.
The stone to buy if you are buying one stone. The 1000/6000 combination covers 90% of all sharpening tasks.
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Norton IM313 Three-Stone Sharpening System
Three Arkansas stones in one box -- a coarse Crystolon for reshaping, a medium India for refining, and a fine Arkansas for finishing. The oil-stone format is slower than Japanese water stones but produces an exceptionally fine edge on tools and knives. The plastic case holds all three stones and has a non-slip base for bench use. A complete sharpening system in one purchase.
The complete system approach. One box, three stones, everything needed for every sharpening task.
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DMT Dia-Sharp 6-Inch Diamond Whetstone
Diamond stones cut faster than any water or oil stone and never need flattening. The DMT Dia-Sharp uses monocrystalline diamonds bonded to a steel plate -- they cut on the first stroke and the last stroke equally. Available in grits from extra-coarse to extra-fine. Not as fine as a Japanese water stone at the finishing stage, but an excellent choice for anyone who values speed and consistency.
For the sharpener who values speed and durability over the finest possible polish.
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Smith's TRI-6 Arkansas Tri-Hone
Natural Novaculite from the Ouachita Mountains of Arkansas is the finest natural sharpening stone in existence. The Smith's Tri-Hone holds three stones -- coarse, medium, and fine Arkansas -- on a rotating base. The fine Arkansas stone produces an edge that Japanese water stones at the same grit cannot match. For knives and tools used for precision cutting, natural Arkansas is the finishing stone.
Natural Arkansas stone produces the keenest edge of any sharpening medium. The choice for blades that need to be genuinely sharp.
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