Reply To: How much pressure when sharpening?
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Diamond stones do go through a break-in period where they are coarser than their final state. Some larger grit may be present, or some diamond chips stick out more than others until the plate levels out. With pressure, you can actually break those chips up.
Additionally, the very start of the use cycle involves removing some of the nickel plating that encapsulates the diamonds.
After a bit the stones will feel finer than when you bought them. They aren’t worn out, just settled into their true grit.
My experience is that people try to use too fine a plate at the start of the sharpening routine, especially if they are flattening the backs of plane irons. Lapping the backs should start at coarse or even extra coarse plates. If you think sharpening is taking too long, drop back a grit. The higher grits shouldn’t take more than a minute or two with each plate. And with plane irons, you can cheat a bit with the ruler trick.
Anyway, that’s how I approach sharpening with diamond plates. Once you get your routine down, I’ve found diamonds are way quicker and more trouble free than stones.
- This reply was modified 7 years, 5 months ago by Larry Geib.
- This reply was modified 7 years, 5 months ago by Larry Geib.