Understanding Japanese Whetstone grits
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I posted a video on this topic, so watch the video if you don't like reading.
There are three main whetstone categories.
Fixing: Whetstones with ratings up to 320 grit. These are for fixing chips on blade edges or bringing incredibly dull knives back to life. They are not for weekly use.
coarse: up to 140 grit are strictly for fixing large chips
medium 220-240 grit are for micro-chips on a blade edge
fine: 320 grit is for incredibly dull edges or the transition between fixing and sharpening whetstones.
Here are my favorites in this category.
Atoma 140 (Full review here)
Cerax 320 (Full review here)
Sharpening: 400 - 3,000 grit - whetstones in this grit range are too inefficient for fixing chips.
Coarse: 400-600 grit whetstones are great for dull knives but too slow for fixing chips
Medium: 800-1,500 grit range is the most critical and is where your knives will get their edges.
Fine: 2000-3000 grit whetstones are not popular, but if used correctly, they leave your knives with incredible edges without needing to go to a 5k or 6k whetstone. Please read about my favorite 3K whetstone and how I maintain my knives.
Here are my favorites in this category.
Naniwa Pro 800 (Full review here)
Suehiro Cerax 1k (Full review here)
Naniwa Pro 3k (Full review here)
Polishing: These whetstones will not sharpen your knives but will give them the finishing you desire, from a Kasumi (hazy) to mirror polish.
Medium: 4,000-6,000 grit - This polishing grit is the most common, as every manufacturer will offer a 6000 grit whetstone.
Fine: 8,000 - 12,000 grit - This grit range is a little more challenging to find than the 6,000 grit, but 8,000 has become more common.
Ultrafine: anything over 12,000 grit - These can get insanely pricey, so only purchase if you have use for them.
Here are my favorites in this category.
Suehiro Rika 5k (Full review here)
Kitayama 8k (Full review here)
Do you need every whetstone in each category to get a sharp knife? Watch my A-Z sharpening video and see for yourself.
