Whetstones, also known as water stones or sharpening stones, are used to grind and hone the knife edges. Even the best kitchen knife will lose its initial sharpness over time. The sharpening devices and the right technique will make the sharpening task easy. Whetstones have different degrees, depending on the grain of the stone. A fine-grained whetstone is dense, sharpens less, but allows adjustments in the edge. In contrast, a coarse grain edge removes more material from the cutting edge. The higher the grain reference number, the smaller the grain size.
- 220-400: Coarse stones. Reshape or repair chips, put on an edge for very dull knives. Not recommended to beginner sharpeners as they are abrasive and shave off a lot of material.
- 800-2000: Medium stones. Regular sharpening.
- 3000-8000: Fine stones. Basic finishing and polishing stones.
- 10000-12000: ultrafine stones. Used for mirror polish finish.
We recommend to have several whetstones with different grain (coarse, medium and fine) to achieve the perfect sharpening
Shapton Professional stones are manufactured in Japan by one of the leading companies in the sharpening market.