Thread: Checking stone for flatness?

The question of flatness comes up from time to time regarding hones. IMHO mostly flat is fine. No need for straight edges or feeler gauges. If you have lapped a pencil grid off your hone, it will be fine. I use an Atoma 400, but not necessarily to lap hones every couple of months. If you are a hobbyist, your hones will be fine for a long time. A video from some years back by Gssixgun, (Mentioned a page back)where he puts his naniwa superstones in water for a few minutes prior to use, then gives half a dozen figure 8's, leaving a little slurry on the hone, is an excellent method. I adopted it a few years back, and it is the best method of using Naniwa Superstones for honing. Doing the half dozen figure 8's keeps your hone going for long while. It also in my view disrupts the surface of the hone, which exposes fresh stone, and removes any gunk in the surface. I use the method exclusively, and I can't speak highly enough of it. I use naniwa's from the Chosera 1k to Superstones 2k to 10k, finishing on the Gok 20k, and even it gets half a dozen 8's before use.