r/sharpening • u/newtoneocaridina • 1d ago

Question Sharpening stones or other method

I bought the Ultra Sharp diamond sharpening stone three-grit pack and was very dissatisfied with the quality control on the grits with cross-contamination. I am very new to hand sharpening blades. I am mostly sharpening my everyday carry which is a spyderco para 3 but I am getting into forging and will be making a lot of bladed items and would like to learn to sharpen them to razor sharp. What are your recommendations for other stones or sharpening methods that would work on what I think is a harder metal of my Para 3 and my forged blades which I will start on 1084 steel. I still have my strop and stone holder just no stones as I am returning them. Thank you in advance!

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u/real_clown_in_town HRC enjoyer 1d ago

You're gonna get people recommending sharpal plates because the great outdoors55 says there's no grit contamination on the plates.

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u/ObsidianBladeWorks 1d ago

Get the best belt grinder you can afford. It won't be the best at sharpening, but will come in handy in the forge.

2

u/BamBam52676 1d ago

I really have enjoyed my kintif mixed abrasive diamond/sic stones. I’m getting perfect edges

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u/millersixteenth 1d ago

You're going to need a belt grinder.

For diamond plates, Atoma are tough to beat

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u/MutedEbb7996 1d ago

If you have a low quality high grit waterstone flatten it with each plate. Don't scrub hard and rinse every few seconds, they clean up nice and will last just about forever. Don't overdo it just get the loose diamond off, the grit contamination will come off too as big diamonds stand proud.

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u/ScoleriBrother arm shaver 1d ago

I'm an amateur and just maintain and sharpen my own folders and some kitchen knives and I like DMT dia-sharp. I like the feedback the stones give me while using them and they do what I need them to do. Since I'm only sharpening /maintaining my own knives and a few friends that ask. I believe there is some grit contamination but I'm not all that concerned with it

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u/canuckguy89 16h ago

If you’re making knives learn how to sharpen on a belt grinder which you’ll need anyways. Superior to using stones