A Sharpening Stone is used to sharpen edges and other surfaces, through an application known as "grinding" and "honing". You can learn more in our sharpening stones guide.

What is a Sharpening Stone?

A Sharpening Stone is commonly referred to as an India Stone, although an India Stone forms part of the Sharpening Stones family. An India Stone is just one of many stones that can be found within our range.

What is Grinding and Honing?

Honing is a process that produces a precision surface on a metal surface. This is done through scrubbing or grinding an abrasive stone such as an India Stone or a Japanese Waterstone along the edge.

Which Sharpening Stone do I use?

There are several different types of stones that you can use for sharpening a surface. The type that you choose entirely depends on the surface that you are looking to sharpen.

Types of sharpening stones:

Oil Stones - A more traditional choice of Sharpening Stone. Comprised of three main materials - Novaculite, Aluminium Oxide and Silicon Carbide. Oil stones use oil for swarf removal, which is the term used for metal filing.

Water Stones - This type of Sharpening Stone comes in both natural stone form and synthetic stone material. Water Stones enable fast cutting and use water to remove swarf from stone.
Diamond Stone - These type of stones for sharpening contain small diamonds which are attached to the face of a metal plate. A Diamond Sharpening stone is one of the "harder" versions for sharpening.

How to choose the correct stone?

Coarse stone is an ideal choice for re-shaping or re-establishing an edge and removing nicks. Medium is ideal to turn a basic edge into a very sharp edge. The fine option is mostly used for the final polishing.