Hello,
I need some of you fellows expertise on lapping waterstones for straight razors I dont have much experience with these type of stones. I just bought a Kuromaku 1.5k, 5k, 8k, and a Naniwa 12k specialty stone. I was doing some research and from what I gather they are not flat from factory, and can't have a fairly rough surface finish. I dunno yet, because I haven't received them yet. I have read also that its some kind a voodoo to lap with sandpaper because of contamination of grit into the stones.
I may be wrong but I believe those expensive diamond plates were over hyped by the Shapton glass, and Naniwa stones. Dont get me wrong one day I hope to get some Atoma plates. Some stone manufacturers say if you lap with sandpapers you will embed grit into the stone, so you have to use diamond. Some manufacturers recommend that you use the steel reference plate with loose SIC grit. I figured loose grit would be more likely to get embedded into the stone, but I have no clue. Right now I can't afford a diamond plate, that will have to be later down the road. So what grit of wet/dry sandpaper do I use to finish each stone? I was going to use 150 grit paper to get them all flat then progress to finer grits on each stone. I do have a 8×3 xxc Dmt that's never been used yet. I've had it for years for the purpose of reprofiling knives.
Another fellow recommended me to use and finish the surface with 220 on the 1.5k, 600 grit on 5k and 8k, and 800 on the 12k. He said that if you lap them crazy fine you will cause the blade to want to stick to the stone. He also said that he couldn't tell any difference in the scratch pattern left on the bevels when viewing on a scope, if you lapped the stones with a more coarse surface. That has me confused a little bit though . He recommended me to finish the 5k and the 8K with the same grit of (400 grit) sandpaper?? Wouldn't that make the 5 and 8k cut about the same?
I did some research on other stones and lapping plates, and the Shapton glass series recommends using their diamond lapping plate for all the grits they offer even the 30k glass stone. I think I read somewhere the plate is around 350-400 grit. So you would lap a 30k stone with a 400 grit diamond plate?? Looks like that would leave a very aggressive scratch pattern on the bevel plain?? I do have experience with vitrified stones like Norton InDIA stones, and if you lap them coarse they will indeed cut coarsely, and if you lap then fine they will cut finer, because they dont shed fresh grit, and they have to be periodically dressed .
On the other hand non-vitrified alum oxide or SIC stones they are not so particular, because they continually shead grit and expose fresh abrasive. Heck I've even took a Norton SIC stone and lapped it on a cinder block with great results, but if you do that with a vitrified stone you will only dull and round if the abrasive cutting points on the stone. My experience i like loose grit on vitrified stones. So how do these waterstones behave compared to what I am familiar with? How and what do I lap, these with? How to recondition/finish/ dress the final surface finish on each stone?
Greatly appreciated!
Mike
I need some of you fellows expertise on lapping waterstones for straight razors I dont have much experience with these type of stones. I just bought a Kuromaku 1.5k, 5k, 8k, and a Naniwa 12k specialty stone. I was doing some research and from what I gather they are not flat from factory, and can't have a fairly rough surface finish. I dunno yet, because I haven't received them yet. I have read also that its some kind a voodoo to lap with sandpaper because of contamination of grit into the stones.
I may be wrong but I believe those expensive diamond plates were over hyped by the Shapton glass, and Naniwa stones. Dont get me wrong one day I hope to get some Atoma plates. Some stone manufacturers say if you lap with sandpapers you will embed grit into the stone, so you have to use diamond. Some manufacturers recommend that you use the steel reference plate with loose SIC grit. I figured loose grit would be more likely to get embedded into the stone, but I have no clue. Right now I can't afford a diamond plate, that will have to be later down the road. So what grit of wet/dry sandpaper do I use to finish each stone? I was going to use 150 grit paper to get them all flat then progress to finer grits on each stone. I do have a 8×3 xxc Dmt that's never been used yet. I've had it for years for the purpose of reprofiling knives.
Another fellow recommended me to use and finish the surface with 220 on the 1.5k, 600 grit on 5k and 8k, and 800 on the 12k. He said that if you lap them crazy fine you will cause the blade to want to stick to the stone. He also said that he couldn't tell any difference in the scratch pattern left on the bevels when viewing on a scope, if you lapped the stones with a more coarse surface. That has me confused a little bit though . He recommended me to finish the 5k and the 8K with the same grit of (400 grit) sandpaper?? Wouldn't that make the 5 and 8k cut about the same?
I did some research on other stones and lapping plates, and the Shapton glass series recommends using their diamond lapping plate for all the grits they offer even the 30k glass stone. I think I read somewhere the plate is around 350-400 grit. So you would lap a 30k stone with a 400 grit diamond plate?? Looks like that would leave a very aggressive scratch pattern on the bevel plain?? I do have experience with vitrified stones like Norton InDIA stones, and if you lap them coarse they will indeed cut coarsely, and if you lap then fine they will cut finer, because they dont shed fresh grit, and they have to be periodically dressed .
On the other hand non-vitrified alum oxide or SIC stones they are not so particular, because they continually shead grit and expose fresh abrasive. Heck I've even took a Norton SIC stone and lapped it on a cinder block with great results, but if you do that with a vitrified stone you will only dull and round if the abrasive cutting points on the stone. My experience i like loose grit on vitrified stones. So how do these waterstones behave compared to what I am familiar with? How and what do I lap, these with? How to recondition/finish/ dress the final surface finish on each stone?
Greatly appreciated!
Mike