Japanese King Knife Sharpener Whetstone Grit 6000 HT-43 S-45

These are smaller stones so keep that in mind, they are NOT your typical 3x8 inch stones, rather they are about 7x2 inch stones and about 0.60 inches thick, these are fairly friable stones so they wear pretty quickly and this stone isn't gonna last a super long time if you are doing reprofiling of hard steels or if you are correcting edge damage and using a lot of pressure the stones gonna wear pretty quickly. With that said they don't wear no faster than other coarse fast cutting friable stones of similar grit and cut speed so don't count that as a negative. They will require flattening/lapping more often than stones that are less friable, because they are a more friable stone that is how they cut faster as they quickly release abrasive during use and that goes hand and hand with increased wear. So you have a longer lasting slower wearing less friable stone or you have a quicker wearing faster cutting more friable stone that's just how it works and there isn't really any way around if unless you go with a different type of abrasive like diamond or cbn. For 21 dollars your getting a high quality stone that does a very good job at its intended purpose and that's to be a fast cutting low grit stone and thats exactly what it does. Now one thing that is important to note, these are simple abrasives, and they aren't gonna be efficient at cutting harder steels that are over 63hrc in hardness or steels that are incredibly wear resistant due to high carbide levels of hard carbides like Vanadium and or tungsten carbides. So your not gonna Wanna use this to sharpen something like let's say Maxamet, or Zmax, or S125v etc those type steels require diamond or cbn abrasive now simple water stones like these. Where these shine is for quick steel removal of steels like 1.4116/X50crmov15, 14c28n, 12c27, VG10, aus8, AUS10, vg1, 8Cr13Mov, 9cr17mov, 10cr15mov, aus6, simple carbon steels, 1095, 1080, 1066, blue paper, white paper aogami steel etc. For steels like those these stones are superb and do their job efficiently and effectively. I love King stones because they are a synthetic stone that also performs and feels more like a natural fired stone as they have a clay like mud to them that's created during sharpening and it leaves a very nice finish and wicked Sharp edges with a lot of bite to the edge even at higher grits as where other synthetic stones leave a more keen but slick edge king stones leave a very keen but toothy edge and those type edges cut better and last longer in my findings. Plus the smell that king stones have is very nice as it's a clay like small and it just feels very natural and the silky smooth feel of king stones as they build up some mud is just a pleasure to sharpen on. Now that's not to say I don't love my sintered type water stones like Shapton glass or kuromaku, I very much love them and they perform at a higher level than these stones when sharpening steels that are ran at a harder HRC and or that are more wear resistant compositions but king stones hold a special place in my heart and I will always love using them. If you use this stone on steels that it is capable of effectively cutting then you will get great performance and you won't wear the stone at to fast of a rate. Let the stone do the cutting and don't try to force it, the stone is already very friable so adding more pressure trying to make it cut faster will only wear you stone quicker so keep that in mind, the stone already cuts very quickly so no need to try to increase pressure to make it cut faster, if you need faster cutting than go with a lower grit Sic stone or diamond or cbn. These stone do not load up nor do they glaze over so long as you keep them wet so they clean up with nothing more than running water over them. That will wash all the steel particles and abrasive particles away and no load up of steel will remain with just a simple rinse. Value for the money of these stones is excellent considering your getting a quality Japan made stone from a company That has been making high quality sharpening abrasives for a very long time. These aren't cheap and low quality and low performance China made whetstones, these are high quality stones, high quality tools I should say and high quality tools are rarely low cost so when you consider that and its only 21 bucks its a lot of value for your dollar as all King stones are. The king deluxe line of stones is such a great value, you get full size and full thickness stones that will last a life time if taken care of and provide you with a high quality sharpening experience for literally your life and a hand me down or three and all for 30 bucks a stone or so.... King stones value is pretty much untouchable by any other quality Japan made stones on the market. These stones are 5 stars in every way, if anyone has any trouble with them it's simply because they aren't using them correctly and it really is that simple. Read more

This is a really good little stone. It is a little small. But it's a fantastic little finishing stone. It gives a bright, polished finish that exceeds what some 5 or 6k stones leave you with. If you handed it to me and told me it was a 6k I would probably believe you. It's quite hard for a King stone, strikes me as harder than their 6k "S" stones which I wouldn't classify as soft. It cuts relatively fast for a stone of this grit as well. It not only leaves you with a bright, polished edge, but also a very sharp and refined apex with the perfect amount of bite for my taste on most steels. It's getting a little fine (and small) for cheap stainless kitchen knives (but great for higher quality knives) but it's excellent for woodworking tools and carving hatchets etc. I removed mine from the base so I can use it when I want to take the stone to the tool instead of the other way around. Honestly I'm very surprised how good this little guy performs. I have much more expensive stones in the 5kish arena and this one competes with any of them. Like I said, it's hard, does NOT need a soak despite the description, doesn't release abrasive quickly and holds its shape well, cuts well for the finish it leaves, and has adequate feedback. It feels more "lively" than something like a Shapton Pro/Ha No Kuromaku 5k for example, which feel a little more "dead" and "soulless" IMO Read more

OK, this is for a King , 6000 grit, HT-43/S-45. This is my third, single grit, King waterstone, which is a brand I trust, and not a trust I give easily, but after reading a plethora of articles, mini books, searching the web, talking with others, getting on steel manufactures FAQ boards, knife sharpening boards, knife manufacture boards, I definitely got good advise from every one of them. things that, after 40+ years of only using oilstones, I learned that I had been doing some things from a little wrong to a very bad, and I was very happy I spent the time to find better ways to use my oilstones, and the way that all of the listed above boards where telling me "How to use a waterstone correctly." Waterstones are a bit different than oilstones, you can read up on it by just Googling them, and if you follow instructions instead of just saying to yourself "I know how to do anything without any help, how hard can it really be", like those poor people in Chernobyl did, you too can find a whole new way to sharpen a blade of almost any quality to a blade with an edge that suits your needs vary fast, relatively speaking, just as you were getting using oilstones, or edges you and I may not have known about, their advantages and disadvantages, and spending a lot less money, at least in my case, and hopefully yours as well. This King stone with a 6000 grit for finishing, and I will admit that in 40+ years, I have never gotten a finish on a blade like I have now. I admit, I have oilstones that gave me edges, I thought, that where as good as you could get outside of a factory edge. I am wondering if I need to have anything to make me more happy with the results the 6000 grit has given me. It's a mirror finish, and I truly mean a mirror, and when keeping your angle correct, you may need a sharpening system, which is what most people seem to like now days. Research it very well, and buy the best for your budget, for the cost of replacement stones, and other replacement parts or upgrades available in the future. If you freehand sharpen like some of the older folks do, keeping the same angle is paramount to give you the nicest, buttery smooth edge I have ever seen. But be careful, with an edge that sharp, you can cut small pieces of yourself off, and not know it until you start bleeding, and coming from experience, you want it to bleed fast, because that generally means the cut is shallow. Trust me, you don't want to be hanging around with your friends comparing "whos cut is the worst", because that just means that you are not paying attention to what you are doing, and getting needless cuts for it. Either way, buy the Japanese King Knife Sharpener Whetstone Grit 6000 HT-43/S-45, it lasts with a lot of work being done on it, it comes with it's own non-slip base and good packaging, you will be happy with the beautiful finish you get with it, and they do make a base for stones like this to keep you safe. Stay safe, enjoy your new hobby, impress yourself on how well you can do something new, and impress yourself on how few cuts you get doing it. Read more