Thread: Naniwa stone 12K changing grit?

Apologies if this has been asked before - couldn't find it with the search.

I touch up my razor about once a month with 15-20 circles on the 12K. When I'm done, I flatten it with a Norton flattening stone. (BTW, I'm flattening it because when I get it out, I touch up all of my knives, not just the razor.) When I got the Naniwa, and for the first few months, it was as smooth as glass. Now it seems much rougher, maybe about like my Norton 4K when I slide my fingers over it. Any thoughts? Am I doing something wrong? Can I get is back to its old smoothness?

Thanks in advance for the help.

how long do u soak it for? some nanis dont like getting too wet

You should be using 750 grit or higher for a 12k stone. Otherwise, it will feel rough after flattening. I flatten mine with 2000 grit sand paper on a certified granite slab. The result is smooth as glass. The Norton flattening stone is too aggressive for me. Fine for knives and their 1k and 4k stones, but not for a Naniwa 12k.

By the way, no soaking is needed for any stone above 5,000 grit. Just spray some distilled water on the surface and get busy.

Etorix, no soaking - I just wet the surface. Gammaray, thanks for the advice - it begs the question: where would one find a certified granite slab? I guess it also begs the question, what would use you to flatten my Norton 8K? Thanks!

Originally Posted by medicineball

Etorix, no soaking - I just wet the surface. Gammaray, thanks for the advice - it begs the question: where would one find a certified granite slab? I guess it also begs the question, what would use you to flatten my Norton 8K? Thanks!

You can order a certified flat granite slab for ~$40USD online.

I use the 2,000 grit on my 8k Norton combo with excellent results. I go down to 1k sand paper on the 4k.

Woodcraft.com caries them, but for my money any piece of modern float glass will do at least as well for much less to free. However glass does flex so it needs to be on a sturdy backing such as plywood, or a counter top. A high grit dmt 1.2k or so is worth considering.

My barely informed opinion is that if you use the hone with dmt raised slurry, the slurry will smooth the scratches from a 325 dmt.

Jonathan

Originally Posted by Gammaray

You should be using 750 grit or higher for a 12k stone. Otherwise, it will feel rough after flattening. I flatten mine with 2000 grit sand paper on a certified granite slab. The result is smooth as glass. The Norton flattening stone is too aggressive for me. Fine for knives and their 1k and 4k stones, but not for a Naniwa 12k.

By the way, no soaking is needed for any stone above 5,000 grit. Just spray some distilled water on the surface and get busy.

Some pretty interesting statement on your post, i use a dmt 325 to flatten most without any problems and furthermore soak stones above 5k as well.

I also use a 325 diamond on my 1k, 4k, and 8k stones for knife sharpening.

But I prefer the finer grit for my SR stones.

This is just a personal preference.