Choosing Your First (and only) Sharpening Stone For Woodworking 

Hi Peter That fine stone sounds good. I'm not an expert on all the different stones. At the end of the day, if it works, it works! The India is very versatile and slots well into my routine.

Hi Gary. As you point out, Nortons will last a lifetime or two. I'm happy to use anything as long as it's effective. I think it's important to share the fact that many think of as ordinary or outdated methods and tools are still just as relevant and brilliant as they always have been. Thanks for the comment.

Diamonds are a boy's best friend.

Wow! More of a casket 😂. Yes, you're right, changing the pressure does change how it works. I use it a little lighter when I chase the burr.

It's cheap and I'm cheap. Why do I want to waste money on special honing fluids when mineral oil does the job 🤷‍♂️? It stops rust building up without having to worry about a separate process for that. I still like a grinder. I know historically there were "rub stones" and it would be cool to have a big grind wheel but I'm happy to use a smaller wheel to do what I need. But hey, it works for you, I'm not in this to convince people my methods are the "true way". Thanks for the feedback.

Yes, I've heard the saying "cry once". It's a broad brush statement with an element of truth but it's not really a very helpful statement. It's as if spending a lot assures you of a good outcome. If only it were that simple! I'll never have enough time/motivation/money to look at all the options but there are plenty of tools that are perfectly acceptable and in many cases work just as well as something in the high price bracket. Planes are a great example. A vintage No.4 in the UK costs between £20 to £40 and works perfectly. You can spend the same on a new item from Amazon and it's a let down. Buy a "Rider" from Axminster which looks like it's from the same factory as the "Bench Dog". Having sent one back it's still not as good as a vintage. Then there's the well made stuff, Lie-Nielsen, WoodRiver, Veritas etc which can all cost up to £300. They are made to high standards with excellent customer care, but they don't do the job any better. If you can afford one you won't be crying, but if you can't afford it, one might suffer from fear of missing out. It's about knowing what works and what doesn't and making your choice. Thanks for the comment, I really appreciate you watching the videos.

Well, in pondering the use of a much coarser stone than I am used to, and my experience with hand planes is very minimal, I pulled out an old cheap Stanley plane I bought from the big box store many years ago. It was so bad that I gave up on it and planes in general, until my dad gave me his Lie Nielson planes. So, I dug it out of 'retirement' and spent several hours getting things squared away on it. The sole had maybe a 1/16 inch concave from nose to tail.... After correcting all the problems with it, which I kind of know how to do now. I took the blade up to 220 grit on a diamond plate, then stropped it on a piece of plywood with some polishing compound on it, maybe about 800 grit, till there was no burr, and took it to a piece of alder. It actually cut very well. It does not leave the glossy surface that a 15000 grit stropping will leave, but the resulting surface is still pretty good. I did get minor chattering and some very minimal tear out, but that could have been me, and maybe a tiny bit the plane, but as I said, I am still learning how to use this tool. The piece of alder was about 5 inches tall and about 1 1/2 inches wide. Now it is down to maybe 3 1/2 inches tall..... Maybe by the time it is down to kindling size, I will have a much better idea on how to use a hand plane. Always experimenting. I did look up the Norton Oil stones, and I think the orange part is 220 grit or so. I guess continued experimenting may lead to 320, 600, and even above stones. I did see one guy who went from 600 grit straight to a 16000 grit Shapton stone. May have to try that, but will most likely stick to the honing pastes rather than buying another stone....

@@robohippy Good on you. Yes, a concave sole is very common on cheap planes. A Norton India fine is 400 but will bed in for sure. Getting the best out of a plane does take a little while. And it's important to judge them in context. I'd love to see more people using the tool on projects rather than test pieces. I'll hopefully add to the project content soon. Thanks for sharing your experience 👍

Hi Alex, I'd love to. There is a series of photos on my Instagram feed that shows how I do it. I will happily do one in the future.

Hello! Sorry for the slow reply. RU-vid doesn't notify me about comments on older videos. I tried a tri hone by Dan's. Ally Ox, Soft Arkansas, Black Arkansas. Very nice it was too. It was described as a knife hone but it was ideal for woodworking tools. I don't maintain my stones, I just try to use the whole surface with even pressure. If I buy an old one I'll flatten it, not because I'm obsessed with flat, I just like to start from new and the stone to evolve with me.

Hi Alex. I hope it works out for you. Use all the stone to avoid hollowing. It's very hard so it'll stay flat for a while. No need to clean, just apply oil and wipe off when you're done. If it does go hollow old books say to rub them flat on a concrete block! I'd probably use PSA 80grit on a tile. If you're careful you should never need to flatten it.

@@faceedgewoodworking Thank you. Is your stone medium or fine india ?

@@alexponcho2279 mine is Fine.

Thanks for the question. With most oilstones as long as you use all the stone, flattening is not really required. Softer stones that work with water are a different matter.

@@faceedgewoodworking I pick up used sharpening stones and when I get them they're usually pretty sway backed. I like to true them up before I add them to my collection. I make those little wooden holders for stones I get if they're missing too. It's a hobby of mine.

@@1pcfred Nice, Paul 👌. I like keeping my eye out for old stones too

@@faceedgewoodworking stone hunting is definitely a thing. When I get them they're usually so cruddy I don't know what they are. I haven't found anything too fantastic yet. Some that I'd call interesting though. Have you ever heard of a Hindustan stone? I hadn't until I found one.

@@1pcfred No! I haven't, I could pretend I do by googling. What's the deal with them?

Thanks for the comment! We're starting to discuss the various approaches, this is good. As long as a routine gets us what we need it's good. I'll add some clarity to my approach soon, but there's no surprises, it's all tried and true.

Are you talking of the same stone? The fine side of the double sided Norton India is more like a 400 grit. That´s far from a medium high grit. Because the stone is so hard the particles themselves dull a bit, which gives you a finer finish, especially with light pressure. I can get a decent edge even on the coarse side. Why limit yourself? For simplicity of course. Most applications don´t need a finer edge. Your chisel or plane iron won´t get a lot sharper with even finer grits. With the fine india stone you get about 80-90% of the sharpness you´ll need and there are very few applications where it will make a noticable difference. Carving tools are an example, those need to be absolutely razor sharp. With plane irons I think there´s a little less resistance if you go finer but you have to decide if it´s worth it. My chisels and plane irons have never touched a grinder. I maintain them with sharpening stones alone. The angle is about 25-30° for most of them and when I ever think one has gotten a little too steep or out of square, I´ll correct that over the next few sharpenings.