Choosing whetstones and stones for sharpening knives
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Every housewife knows how much easier and more enjoyable it is to cook with a sharp knife on hand. However, even the best quality blades become dull over time and require immediate sharpening. To return the blade to its original state, use whetstones to sharpen knives. Today, the household goods market offers a huge selection of these tools. Sharpening stones differ in the nature of origin, grain size and nature of the abrasive substance. Each of the devices has its own advantages and disadvantages, so the choice of whetstone must be approached very responsibly, based on the characteristics of the knife.
Natural whetstones
Sharpening stones are divided into natural and artificial based on their origin. Whetstones made from natural materials are not always better than artificial sharpening stones. This is easily explained, because the grains of a natural abrasive substance are heterogeneous and differ greatly in size from each other.
To make a good tool, you need a stone whose length exceeds 20 cm, and such a complete mineral has a fairly high cost.In addition, natural stones are more fragile than artificial ones, so they often have to be edited and ground by hand. However, many people prefer to have such devices and are happy to use a natural stone sharpener.
Arkansas (novaculitis)
The birthplace of Arkansas stone is the American state of Arkansas. The mineral consists of fine-grained quartz crystals, which have incredibly sharp edges and are tightly bound together. Not everyone can use novaculite: you need to know how to properly sharpen a knife with a whetstone from Aransas stone. You have to be a true master of your craft to sharpen a knife with such a tool.
When working in Arkansas, a lubricant is required, the role of which is most often played by mineral oil. If this condition is not met, the surface of the stone will quickly become contaminated with particles of the ground material and the tool will become unsuitable for use.
Japanese water stone
Another natural material used for sharpening knives is Japanese water stone. If this tool falls into the hands of an experienced sharpener, then the speed and quality of sharpening will be ensured. For beginners, this option of a sharpening stone, like the previous one, is absolutely not suitable.
The fact is that Japanese water stones are very expensive and require special conditions of use. During work, do not forget about lubrication. In addition, coarse-grained and medium-grained whetstones must be stored in water, which is recommended to be constantly changed, and fine-grained stones for sharpening knives, on the contrary, must be thoroughly dried after use.
Water stones are very soft and wear down quickly, and the grinding occurs unevenly.More abrasive material is worn off on one side, and less on the other. To bring a sharpening water tool to its original state, you need to put in a lot of effort: find a marble plate with a flat surface, cover it with sandpaper, moisten it with water and adjust the sharpener, slowly running it over the sandpaper.
Artificial stones
Today there are technologies for producing sharpening stone artificially. This significantly reduced the cost of the tool. Artificial stone is two abrasive materials mixed together, firmly connected under the influence of high temperatures and pressure.
Silicon carbide, corundum and chromium oxide are used as the working fraction. These materials are so strong that they can cut away layers of metal. To hold the working crystals in the bar, a special base is used.
Ceramic stones
Ceramic bars are durable and have a high quality metal surface treatment, but they lag behind other types of bars in several important parameters.
- Sharpening with ceramic stones is a long and labor-intensive process.
- It is almost impossible to buy fine-grained ceramic stone.
Among the advantages of ceramic sharpening tools, one can note their low cost and ease of use. This tool does not require lubrication or soaking and is often used instead of musat.
Today on the market there are a large number of ceramic sharpening stones made in China or Germany. Sometimes there are products produced during the Soviet Union.If you are lucky enough to purchase such a tool, you don’t have to worry about the quality of sharpening at all, since these products are of excellent quality.
Ceramic stones are needed not only for sharpening knives, but also for sharpening fishing hooks and needles. If you rub two old stones against each other under running warm water, you can use them again.
Diamond bars
Some ignorant people think that a diamond stone is studded with diamond crystals. However, this one is far from it. A diamond sharpening tool is a plastic or aluminum substrate on which metal plates with a set of diamond abrasive grains are fixed on both sides.
A double-sided diamond whetstone is the best option for sharpening knives. It can be used by both an experienced master and a beginner.
Diamond sharpening stones have the following advantages:
- even after prolonged use, the diamond sharpener remains completely flat;
- diamond grains have very sharp edges and do not grind down during operation;
- if a diamond stone is accidentally dropped, unlike a ceramic stone, it will not break into pieces;
- When sharpening, it is not necessary to wet the sharpener with water or oil;
- to clean a diamond stone from steel particles, just rinse it in clean water and wipe dry with a piece of cloth;
- A diamond whetstone very quickly grinds down the steel of a knife, so the surface of the whetstone remains in working condition for a long time.
Diamond sharpeners have a significant drawback. If the block falls into the wrong hands, the knife blade may be irreparably damaged.This is because diamond grains, held on the surface of the stone using electrolytically sputtered nickel, are much stronger than steel and can scratch and even shred a knife blade.
Diamond sharpening stones are often produced as an integral part of a sharpening machine, so you can find and choose whetstones of various shapes and sizes on sale. In addition, all kinds of fasteners can be sold complete with sharpening tools.
Diamond abrasive stones are durable, but they take time to break in. Once all the loose grains fall out and the tool takes on its normal shape, it will serve for many years and do its job efficiently.
What is the grit of a whetstone?
The grit (or otherwise “grit”) of the stones used for sharpening knives shows how many particles of abrasive substance are located per 1 cm2 surface of the bar. This value ranges from 80 to 10,000 grit. The higher the grit, the smoother the bar and the smaller the abrasive crystals.
Bars with a small grain size are used for the initial processing of a cutting object, since they remove a thick layer of metal due to large particles. It is advisable to use them in cases where the blade is very dull or the cutting edge has crumbled.
Sharpening stones with a higher grit index are more gentle on metal. They are used for finishing the blade. When sharpening a knife, if you have several whetstones with different grits and use them in increasing order of grit, you can make the knife incredibly sharp.
Rules for sharpening a knife on a diamond stone
When sharpening a knife on a diamond whetstone, you need to follow a few simple rules - only in this case will you be able to get a positive result.
- Before starting work, you should moisten the diamond stone with water, after dropping a little dishwashing detergent or liquid soap into it.
- After making more than ten movements, it is necessary to wash off the suspension formed on the bar under running cool water.
- During a break, it is better to place the block in a container of water.
- When sharpening a knife, the sharpening stone should lie not on your hand, but on a wooden plank and have a strong support. Holding a stone or block in your hand is uncomfortable. This can be done when it is impossible to find a hard and flat surface to install the block, for example, while hiking.
- During the sharpening process, you should use all surfaces of the bar evenly, and not rely on only one edge, then the abrasive substance will grind off evenly.
Important!
When sharpening, you should not press the knife with all your might - this can break the abrasive crystals from the stone and ruin your expensive tool.
- A new diamond stone requires “breaking in”. At first it removes the steel coating very aggressively, but after sharpening 7-10 knives it will work more gently.
- The length of the sharpener should be equal to the length of the knife or slightly exceed it.
- For complete and high-quality sharpening, three types of stones are used, differing in the degree of grain size. Processing begins with a coarse-grained stone, and ends with a bar with the smallest abrasive crystals.
- To sharpen a knife blade every day, you need to have a grinder. This tool resembles a file and is used to bring the blade to optimal sharpness.
Having sharpening stones with different grits in your arsenal, you can always keep your cutting tools in order. For experienced craftsmen who have to sharpen knives every day, expensive natural minerals - Arkansas or Japanese water stone - are more suitable. For a beginner, it is advisable to purchase a diamond stone that is less demanding to use.