Japanese waterstone ( The White One )

[bobl]

Its Bob The Knife Grinder again.
Also, what about the Japanese water stone? Would that be any better for knife sharpening.
Come on all you Gurus!! Tell me what is best for my knife sharpening business.
What are your experiences with the various stones/wheels.
I would appreciate your feedback.
Cheers again.
Bob

[Herman Trivilino]

Bob I wish I had the inclination to spend $350 to find out how well the SJ grindstone works on knives. But alas I do not, so I can contribute little to the discussion.

But I won't let that stop me ... 

When I carefully prepare the SG grindstone with the fine side of the stone grader to get the smoothest 1000 grit finish possible I still see scratches on the bevel with my 40X microscope. Polishing the bevel on the leather honing wheel doesn't remove these scratches. But it does polish the surfaces between the scratches to a mirror finish. So I'm thinking the 4000 grit SJ grindstone might remove these scratches and produce a finer, longer lasting edge on a knife.

[Ken S]

Bob, I have no doubt that the SJ wheel can produce very polished edges. I have one, bought when my dealer was having a store wide sale several years ago. I have not yet used it, so cannot really comment on it.

In hindsight, I wish I had not purchased the extra wheels and put part of the money into taking Steve Bottorff's class. I lived only an hour's drive from him at the time. He has since retired, and I have moved further away. I would have gotten much more value from expert teaching than from more tools. my advice to you is the same. See Robin!

fondly, but sternly,

Ken

[Herman Trivilino]

Ken, I wish I had something of equal value that I wasn't using and that you wanted. Then we could trade. But as it is I couldn't even justify paying half the cost of that grindstone. Yes I have an intellectual curiosity in its performance, but in practical terms my SG grindstone gets my knives sharper than anyone I know. Plenty sharp for my needs.

[Ken S]

Herman, if you are interested, in the spirit of forum education, I will lend you either stone or both. Give them a good test for a couple months, and report your conclusions. Let me know if you are interested.

Ken

[Herman Trivilino]

Which two are you talking about, Ken? The SJ-250 and ... ?

[Ken S]

SJ 250 and SB250. Please send me a PM for more on this.

Ken