How do you hold a waterstone?

[dan sherman]

My first set of waterstones arrived yesterday, and I have already hit a snag. The stones in question are Nanwia super stones, that have 4 little feet the size of a pencil eraser. I tried everything i could think of last night, sandpaper, router pad, foam rubber, but nothing kept them from moving all over the bench.

How does everyone secure their stones so they don't move around?

[Joe Close]

Place the stone on a piece of plywood or similar device, then screw in a stop and let the stone rest against the stop.. I covered my plywood w/ a piece of plastic to deal w/ the water.

[dan sherman]

I tired, this and it prevented the stone from moving in one direction but not the other. It seems like I almost need a vice like mechanism.


Place the stone on a piece of plywood or similar device, then screw in a stop and let the stone rest against the stop..

[Richard Niemiec]

This might help.

http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2&p=54849&cat=1,43072,43071&ap=1

[Bruce Haugen]

sized to fit my waterstones. On the bottom, there is a little rectangular knob that protrudes that fits into the dog holes on my bench. There's nothing I can do to move those stones while sharpening.

[Jim Koepke]

My solution was to go to the local Target and check in a few different departments for the best price. It was found in the automotive department where some rubber floor mats were on close out.

We also checked the kitchen department for mats that go under dish drainers. We also looked at bathroom mats.

The one we bought has a rim around the sides and ribs. At the time, my sharpening was done on my bench. This kept the water off the bench. Now there is a dedicated spot in the shop for sharpening and there is not as much concern about the water slopping around. The mat still keeps it in its place.

jim

[dan sherman]

Unfortunately, my stones are 1-1/4" to long for that holder.


This might help.

http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2&p=54849&cat=1,43072,43071&ap=1


That's an interesting Idea, I wonder if I can modify that to work for me (I don't have a true bench yet).


sized to fit my waterstones. On the bottom, there is a little rectangular knob that protrudes that fits into the dog holes on my bench. There's nothing I can do to move those stones while sharpening.

[Michael Peet]

My solution was to go to the local Target and check in a few different departments for the best price. It was found in the automotive department where some rubber floor mats were on close out.

We also checked the kitchen department for mats that go under dish drainers. We also looked at bathroom mats.

The one we bought has a rim around the sides and ribs. At the time, my sharpening was done on my bench. This kept the water off the bench. Now there is a dedicated spot in the shop for sharpening and there is not as much concern about the water slopping around. The mat still keeps it in its place.

jim

This is what I did also - an automotive floor mat.

Mike

[Harlan Barnhart]

How does everyone secure their stones so they don't move around?
As my sharpening skill increases, I have found my stones (Naniwah SS) move around less because I use less pressure and "let the stone do the work."

[dan sherman]

I could see that being the case, where I really noticed it was while trying to flatten the back of a #7 blade, the suction really pulled the stone around.


As my sharpening skill increases, I have found my stones (Naniwah SS) move around less because I use less pressure and "let the stone do the work."

[Kieran Kammerer]

David Charlesworth had a set-up in a DVD with plywood covered by plastic on to which he attached two small pieces of wood spaced slightly farther apart than the length of the stones. By using two small wedges between one stop and the end of the stone, he could easily and securely hold the stone in place. make sense? Kieran

[Larry Marshall]

I'd like to second Harlan's response. Most people believe they have to press very hard on the stones and move the blades swiftly back and forth as though they were trying to start a fire from the friction. My sharpening results improved greatly once I figured out that a slower, lighter touch yielded not only better results but they yielded them more quickly.

Cheers --- Larry

[Bill McDermott]

For water stones, I have an old shelf, made of melamine, to which I have screwed a few small strips of wood that frame the stones. The melamine is well suited to the slop. I can flip the double stones over and trade them in and out of the frame. The fit should be loose, because the wood swells when it gets wet.

I also have a sticky rubber sheet adhered to the board. It came with some diamond stones. I use the board and water for them as well (flattening and heavy removal). Again... handy and relatively tidy.

I put a few cleats on the bottom of the board so it sits on top of a laundry basin that happens to be in my basement shop. I intentionally shimmed the rear so the board slopes down in to the sink. While I am sharpening I keep the faucet dribbling so I can always grab a drop of water, or a handful.

Another feature is some additional strips screwed to the board which help if I am using a honing guide, to get the blades locked in properly. I butt the guide against the board. The business end of the blade hits the strips, which are fixed at the right distance from the edge to create 20, 25, 30 and 35 degree bevels, and square the blade to the guide.

Finally, the board hangs on a joist above the sink and the stones live in a tupperware box full of water, on a purpose built shelf near the sink.

In my world, ease of sharpening correlates with frequency of sharpening. I like this rig.

Best wishes.

PS - Unfortunately, the whole shop is stored in a lockup during some remodelling. I am woodworking vicariously through Sawmill Creek these days. Arghhh.

[paul cottingham]

I use http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2&p=30214&cat=1,43000 and they work great.

[Derek Cohen]

Here is my waterstone board. There is a end stop, and the waterstones are held against it with a sliding clamp. They are removed and set up very quickly.

http://www.inthewoodshop.com/WoodworkTechniques/GrindingNirvana_html_7193d77a.jpg

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Richard Jones]

Dan,

I always remove any bases or feet from stones, allows you to use both sides if you need to. If these are on a plastic or wood base, just bandsaw as close as you can and clean up with an old chisel, etc. Any remaining glue will disappear when you flatten them a time or two. Actually just did this yesterday to an older King G-3 that I had lying around.

How do you like how they cut? I'm in the market for a 12-16k stone, really difficult for me to drop the hammer on a Shapton or (gasp!) Chosera......................

Forgot............to hold mine...........they just lay on an old DMT blue pad (a really great pad, BTW) on top of a piece of cherry that fits in between the ends of my stone pond. As long as your substrate is flat and the stone is flat, suction will hold it pretty well. If it moves a lot, flatten your substrate, flatten the stone, and/or quit pushing so hard. :)

Rich

[Roger Benton]

I use the same stones and only encounter this same problem while lapping the backs of plane irons. it can get to the point where it seems impossible to make progress. I have a bench and what i've begun to do right off the bat when i break out the stones is to grab them in a hand screw and secure the hand screw to the bench with a holdfast.

Other solutions that have helped:

First make sure the stones are dead flat, for which i use a norton flattening stone. My stones were not perfect out of the box.

Second, try experimenting with the amount of water you're using. I assume you know that these stones don't get soaked, you just spray or drizzle a little water on them prior to honing. When things get sticky for me i usually find that a little less or a lot more water will get things moving again.

Hope this helps. Other than this situation, I have been getting great results with these stones.

[Matt Wilson]

If you've got the space, you might want to consider a sharpening station. I built one a couple of years ago and its served me well... I use some dowel posts and elastics to hold my stones in place. I wanted something quicker than wedges. Its also nice to be able to have a couple of stones set up at the same time.

http://i207.photobucket.com/albums/bb279/mwilson_24/P9020094.jpg

[dan sherman]

I like them better than scary sharp, But i wouldn't say I've owned them long enough to give a definitive review.

this might be of interest to you, super stones without a base, and twice as thick, but also twice the cost.

http://www.chefknivestogo.com/superstones.html


How do you like how they cut? I'm in the market for a 12-16k stone, really difficult for me to drop the hammer on a Shapton or (gasp!) Chosera......................

[John Gornall]

I use a plastic kitchen cutting board about 16 x 20 inches which has a gravy groove around the edge to catch the water. These boards are about 1/2 inch thick and can be drilled and tapped easily. I screwed a series of 1/2 inch diameter rubber feet about 1/4" high - black rubber or hard plastic with a screw hole in the middle that hold the stones in place. 1 foot on each end and 2 on each side of each stone. I screwed a wood strip along the front edge underneath that goes in my front vise like a bench hook. The whole thing can be put under the tap to clean.

[Richard Jones]

I like them better than scary sharp, But i wouldn't say I've owned them long enough to give a definitive review.

this might be of interest to you, super stones without a base, and twice as thick, but also twice the cost.

http://www.chefknivestogo.com/superstones.html

Dan,

Thanks, I've had Mark on speed dial for quite some time...............:)

Anyway, keep us posted on the stones, I am shopping hard for a polish stone to replace the one I have, and a 30k Shapton really doesn't make too much sense, either for a chisel or any of my JK's............

Hope you have fun with them.

Rich

[dan sherman]

Rebecca (fiance), came to the rescue with a chunk of 1/8" thick natural gum rubber she had leftover from a project of hers.

Attached is a shot of my custom flattening stone. It's a chunk of 1/2" thick aluminum that I lapped flat, and then adhered 220 grit wet dry sandpaper to.

[Matt Meiser]

I've got a rubber pad I set mine on. Not that I use it much since I got my Worksharp.

[Matt Evans]

Heres the way I hold my oilstones. . .

I am not sure that it would work with waterstones, but for my setup it works really well.