sharpening?

[NCPete]

thanks to the kind generosity of a fellow member, I now find myself seeking out better ways to sharpen things with my Veritas Mk II jig. has anyone used these??? available at Amazon for 9.95, not sure how long that price will last, so I am going to order it now, but feedback would be appreciated.

[froglips]

I use several DMT "stones".

I have the Black/Blue duo bench stone. Its a marvel. Its particularly good to flatten my water stones or when I want some aggressive cutting.

They are initially coarse and they do need to wear in just a bit.

I'm partial to lubricating them with wd-40, but water works just fine too.

Just guessing, the 2"x6" card stones might be too small to work easily with your jig.

Good price too.

HoHoHo,
Jim

[DavidF]

I have had DMT diamond bench stones (8") for about 15 years now - same ones!! I think they cost me $120 each! back then. Black for coarse work or for flattening my water stones and red (approx 1200 water stone equiv) for normal honing. I go from there to my 4000g water stone. still as flat as the day I bought them. I use water as a lube, but make sure to dry them really well after use and don't put the lid on the box too soon.

[Gofor]

I have a couple of the "Smith's" brand perforated diamond "stones similar to what was pictured (one "medium" - about 350 g and one "fine" - about 700). Bought one at HD and one at Lowes. Do they work to cut hard metal: yes. are they flat: NO. I won't buy any more perforated ones that do not have full solid support throughout the entire stone (the plastic backing doesn't support it well so the center "dishes"). Also, the edges are very rough until they get somewhat worn down by use.
I think this is a case where most inexpensive is not economical, especially for plane blades, etc. I use them to reset bevels for my cambered blades, because they definitely put a camber in a flat surface!

JMTCW
Go

[Deacon Shuster]

I also use DMT's in combination with Norton water stones and either a Mk II or side clamp guide.

I checked out the Amazon link and I would be cautious of buying those "stones". 2"X6" is a small surface and the Mk II Veritas guide is at least that wide and with the distance between the bronze roller and the edge of the blade you may not have much stone left to hone on.

A good quality diamond plate made by any manufacturer is going to cost much more than $10, you are probably going to get what you pay for in this case. They probably work great for other applications though.

"If it's stupid but works...it ain't stupid."

[NCPete]

I thought they might be small, but I have an ugly set of chisels, and I can use these stones to flatten the backs/remove the grinding marks, and I will look at other options when I get back up to Raleigh. Thanks everyone for the input!

[Deacon Shuster]

Pete,

If you want to try out some of the mentioned items contact me and I would be more than happy to have you stop by and get your hands dirty. Or if you prefer..."Have tools, will travel."