Hi Brian, If you lost all the stones that you have today and had to start from scratch, what synthetic stone line-up would you choose? (Diamond resins included.) —Justin Kwong
Justin, this is a good question. Someone starting out could consider these stones:
- A harder 1k
- A 3k stone
- An 8k stone
Eventually, it would be useful to get these to round out the 5:
- A 10k-12k stone by Naniwa to reach another level of sharpness.
- A hard 400 for changing the shape of a bevel or working out chips without the use of a grinder.
I didn't talk about specific stones because for a beginner, it won't matter. However, since someone might keep their stones for awhile, they may want to be selective.
For a 1k and 400 stone, I favor harder stones to get to a flatter bevel right off the bat. I like the yellow stone from Suzuki Tools in the bay area. (Their house brand is very hard and can be soaked because it is vitrified.) I also like Naniwa Hibiki or Kensyou (the white ones). To a lesser extent, Chosera Pro stones by Naniwa
(Low grit stones are generally softer, in general, and have the most cutting power, so harder low to mid grit stones are worthwhile in my opinion. Keep in mind my bosses do just fine with cheap king 1000 stones, which are relatively soft. I guess there is a saying that goes something like, "Everyone returns to king stones.")
For myself, these are the specific stones I would get, in order, if I had to replace them all:
