Now there is an increased interest in knives, and industry and trade are experiencing a real “knife boom”. As a result,
whetstones for sharpening knives are no less interesting
. Moreover, they have several types: they are made and applied differently. This article is intended to answer the most common questions about how sharpening bars are and how they differ.
Types of bars
Along with time-honed grinding stones, all kinds of artificial bars are now common. In general, they can be divided into four types: natural, diamond, ceramic and artificial. Let's consider each of them separately.
Natural whetstones for sharpening knives
The most famous of the natural stones is the "Arkansas stone" (novakulit) and Japanese water stone. Both the one and the other modern industry learned to do artificially, therefore, they can be called natural only with a certain stretch. However, even manufactured industrially, these bars are very expensive, and working with them requires special patience and skills. So, for example, a water stone should be soaked for a long time before work, and during sharpening, constantly lubricate it and wash off metal dust from the surface. In addition, these bars quickly and unevenly grind, and it is difficult to restore them. Meanwhile, they give the highest quality of sharpening and therefore are popular among professionals. A beginner is hardly worth buying or using such stones.
Diamond stones for sharpening knives
This is a very popular type of bars. They have a large number of advantages and practically have no shortcomings. Available in a variety of sizes and grit sizes, they are easy to find on sale. Diamond whetstones for sharpening knives are inexpensive, wear-resistant, highly effective. However, it should be borne in mind that the high efficiency of metal processing requires some caution, since it is easy to spoil the edge of the blade with a diamond bar. Such a stone is probably the best choice for a novice master. Especially good results can be achieved using a diamond bar together with ceramic (for finishing finishing).
Ceramic whetstones for sharpening knives
Ceramic stones are the most modern of the types of grinding bars used now. They are made from a special ceramic powder and combine the advantages of natural and diamond stones. Their use allows you to achieve the same high quality sharpening as that of natural stones, but at the same time, "ceramics" practically does not wear out and does not change shape.
However, ceramic bars also have a serious drawback. Sharpening with their help is extremely slow and requires a lot of time, and therefore they are used mainly for fine-tuning after sharpening with other stones, such as diamond.
Abrasive Artificial Stones
This is usually electrocorundum or various carbides in soft binders. These whetstones for sharpening knives have been known to everyone since the Soviet era and need no introduction. They choose metal well, but wear out quickly and are not suitable for filigree sharpening, but they are extremely cheap and affordable.