Thread: hone grades - thinking of buying a second hone

Just wondering about hones...

I have an Ice Bear waterstone at 10,000 grit. It is a great stone, but I've found I need something a bit coarser from time to time.

I know that most of the guys here swear by the Norton 4000/8000 combination waterstone as the basic stone for razor sharpening.

However, I've seen a King brand 1000/6000 combination stone.

Somehow, 1000/6000/10000 seem like reasonable gradations, would you guys agree?

If I buy the Norton, either the 8000 or the 10000 seem redundant.

Would you guys agree?

I don't have that 1k/6k but I use the the king 4k after the king 1200 grit. I have a 6k king but I would find it too slow after 1200 grit.

Most threads suggest purchasing more popular stones so that you have feedback from other users that have the same stone. I'm not sure how popular those stones are, I'm not knowledgable enough so I'm sure someone else can chime in with more information. I don't think the King stones are as popular around here, but I could be wrong. I'm just a newb and learning myself.

In general, a doubling grit progression is recommended. I think a jump from 1k to 6k is a bit much. It would be nice if you could find a 3 or 4k hone in between those. Norton does make single grit hones so you could get just a 4k. Of course, there are lots of other brand options as well, but regardless, I think you'd benefit from something between the 1k and 6k.

Thanks for the info guys. Seems that if I need something a bit coarser than the 10,000, the 6,000 would be fine as the grade below.

That will work, because I'm not looking at any heavy honing jobs just yet, I just have a razor that the 10,000 won't bring up to scratch any more. If I need another stone later, I can get a 2,000 or 3,000, then I'll have a progression right from 1000 to 10000

Thanks again!