Thread: Basics for synthetic hone set

I personally purchased Shapton kuromaku stones, 1k,2k,5k,8k and a used 12k naniwa.
Bought all stones from Amazon and they are for the money awesome stones. Really affordable, after doing some reading and looking this about the best deal I could find getting all the same brand. I like the speed at which they work and the finish produced. These are the Japanese version of the Shapton pros IIRC. Great suggestions so far from these members.

Originally Posted by ejmolitor37

I personally purchased Shapton kuromaku stones, 1k,2k,5k,8k and a used 12k naniwa.
Bought all stones from Amazon and they are for the money awesome stones. Really affordable, after doing some reading and looking this about the best deal I could find getting all the same brand. I like the speed at which they work and the finish produced. These are the Japanese version of the Shapton pros IIRC. Great suggestions so far from these members.

I do have the Shapton Pro 1k, 1.5k, and 2k and have used the full series. I can agree that the 1k Pro is a perfectly good bevel setter and I would prefer it over the Specialty/SuperStone 1k. I like the lower grit Pros but liked the higher grit ones less. My rate of having to go back and re-hone was about 2-3 out of 10 with the entire Pro series. If the Kuromaku hones are comparable to the Pros, then I think the lower grit hones he listed, followed by the Naniwa Specialty/SuperStone 12k is a perfectly viable option.

The Kuromaku stones are the same as pros in performance. Might be a slightly different formula for the pro series for the US market, but from what I gather they perform the same. I'd need more time with the mid & upper end of the series before I gave an more informed opinion, but I haven't a complaint with them so far.

What happened to the classic Norton 4/8 combo?

Originally Posted by Airportcopper

What happened to the classic Norton 4/8 combo?

The Norton set are still the meat and potatoes of my personal honing kit. A lot of folks don't like soaking the 4k, some don't like the feel of it. And I think many pick up a higher grit finisher, then end up shelving the Norton 4/8 in favor of the new brand.

I'm probably an oddball in that I have another full set of stones, but still defer to the tried & true Norton kit for the vast majority of my honing. Aside from needing a little soak it hasn't done me wrong.

Originally Posted by Airportcopper

What happened to the classic Norton 4/8 combo?

Nothing .

I prefer the Chosera 1K, Norton 4/8 then a finishing stone.

Buy one really good natural hone (not a sole endfinisher) that is able for wide range honing (a good coticule or Jnat i.e.), learn how to hon with it and you can skip nearly all of this one grit synthetic hones -maybe with exception of the 1 k that gives you a defined bevel and starting point.