# Shapton Pro 1500: First impressions/comparison with pics



## ModRQC (Jan 14, 2021)

*Knives:*

Shi.Han 52100 (polishing)

Konosuke HD2 (sharpening)

*Stones in comparison/progression (sharpening only):*

Shapton Pro 1000

Shapton Pro 2000


*SP1500: OOTB*

Will feel about as coarse than SP1000 when rubbing with a finger. Is actually a bit finer and slower in use, and I think the big difference between it and SP1000/SP2000 is porosity.

Upon first use I always do a quick soak of any stone and watch bubble behavior. SP1500 behaves more like SP320 than SP1K/2K: it produces a few big, surface clinging bubbles, which doesn’t last for long, but is still much more activity than you get doing so with SP1K/2K. It also drinks up surface water quicker than its flanking siblings, although slower than SP320 for sure but still more akin to it. In drying, SP1500 affects more of a SP320 behavior too: huge water spotting on the surface that may cling there for a good while.

_After about 90 minutes drying:_






_After about 48 hours drying:_






Before using it, after the short 15 seconds soak for the sakes of behaviorist study, I used the Atoma to condition the surface, then cleaned the mud and gave a good splash of water to soak in, then another one to get started.


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## ModRQC (Jan 14, 2021)

*First use and breaking in: polishing 52100*

Now the Shi.Han had already been thinned to what I wanted with Pride 220, which is a pretty coarse stone. Since in “that” state, and in a rehandling project before testing my grind, why not use it to test new stones polishing skills? So a couple weeks ago I used it to test Cerax 700... 








...now it was SP1500’s turn at it.

Keep in mind though that since I don’t want to overwork that blade, those are all very quick tests, not full progressions aiming for perfection.

I started from a clean state, without raising mud at all first on the SP1500.

_Right side, three straight passes + three passes adding convexity + 1 light straight pass:_





_Left side, same progression of passes:_





I count one “pass” every set of strokes worked out tip to heel until I feel satisfied that I’ve covered the whole bevel as intended. I would usually shift from side to side when a pass is completed; for this little write up however I went with progressing one side at the time, to better illustrate stone behavior – see below.

I thought SP1500 behaved splendidly: as soon as I started thinning I got a quick, healthy mud that immediately had the stone feel just right, and immediately started polishing the bevel, with little to no dragging in even the initial strokes. I added a couple drops of water in between straight passes and convex passes, then some more for the light pass, for each side, and that was it. And for so little passes, I was pretty amazed with the polishing abilities of that stone: not only did it cover the scratches from Ceraz #700 very well, but it did so with polishing skills you’d rather expect from a muddier and finer soaker.
















What more could you ask for?

As far as dishing is concerned, I had a hard time getting a pic that showed the two spots my work left on the stone once cleaned from its mud.






Mind that I solely work with straight strokes to get a scratch pattern parallel with the edge, one side per side of the stone. So yes I thin using both hands. Usually I would also work out the center of the stone with both sides, but here I just wanted to see dishing at its worst hence worked with only one motion per side. As we can see, next to nothing: stone was a full 16mm thick to start with, and is still just about 16mm thick after flattening – and some mud raising too.


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## ModRQC (Jan 14, 2021)

*First sharpening routine: Konosuke HD2*

For this test, I wanted to work SP1500 in comparison with SP1K, and finish on SP2K. Resuming the steps :


Two light swipes edge down on Suehiro Ouka to fully dull the edge;
Sharpening on SP1000;
Using cork to remove any burr remnant, testing on my nail;
Testing edge with paper;
Finishing on SP2000;
Cork/nail…
Test edge…
Two light swipes edge down on Suehiro Ouka to fully dull the edge again;
SP1500
Cork/nail…
Test edge…
SP2000…
Cork/nail…
Test edge.
I tried to take pics as to show the state of the stones and the edge bevel, so you could verify to best of viewing abilities that my angle was very consistent on both sides, for both sharpening sessions. You’ll have to trust me that I also used same pressure level, same technique, and counted number of strokes for the SP1000 to get my results as to compare it with number of strokes on SP1500. I tested with paper at each phase just to get a fresh feeling of the edge left by each stone, and compare them better.

On SP1000, it took 3 passes to get the burr to desired consistency, 2 passes to flip it, then my usual 10-5-3-1 deburring strokes per side, and 2 edge leading final deburring swipes per side. Doing this took about… I’d say 4-5 minutes, no water added.








Finishing on SP2000 yielded the usual fine with bite edge.

On SP1500, 3 passes wasn’t exactly sufficient to get the desired burr, and it also took a tad more work to flip it. It’s thus slower than SP1000, but not slow in any way: it took perhaps the additional minute or two, couple more passes to get the full burr, one more to flip it, same deburring progression. Edge of SP1500 is a bit more refined than SP1000, nowhere near SP2K, and thus about true to grit, but gives a whole different kind of bite, making it a pretty interesting, lively edge. Stone feels a bit softer and is more enjoyable than SP1K. It looked about exactly the same than SP1K after, but blue: clean with some swarf trapped in some remnant of hazy water.

Doing that progression, I realized however that the SP1500 was rather calling on me to use it after raising mud first – which is something I never felt I had to bother myself to do with SP1K, because it sure doesn’t invite to it, and just works well with a splash.

So adding to my initial plan, I dulled the edge once more, and went for another sharpening progression with the SP1500 – muddy. It’s no real faster or slower this way, but it might be slower still because it invites to drop the pressure level altogether, and concentrate on that tremendous feedback you get, coupled with an even creamier and softer feeling and an edge amazingly alive, spicier than using it from clean, a bit more frankly keen still – subtle differences but paper can tell a lot, and you can feel them.









Particular also that, once finished on SP2K, the edge kept most of its SP1500 character – perhaps explained by grits being so close that the SP2K could refine a bit but not altogether change or reduce the micro-teeth at the edge. It made for a pretty amazing edge feeling, somewhat as fine as usual SP2K edge, somewhat grabbier and spicier still. In grits, SP1500 to SP2K would feel like a useless progression, but the edge is really quite different than any other progression I’ve made into SP2K – where I would usually say that result feels like an SP2K edge, “erasing” any particularity of the previous stone. NP800 would perhaps be able to refine enough to get some of its characteristics over to SP2K, but those tend to blend pretty closely with SP2K characteristics – my experience being that SP2K is a bit more refined, bit keener NP800 edge with a dash more aggressiveness thrown into the mix.









I think the edge straight out of SP1500 would also work quite well for a kitchen knife for those who like a healthy amount of bite. And on an aside note, if in need of more refinement with still a good bite, I’d say SP1500 to Suehiro Ouka is sure to please – but that’s another write-up.

*Can't resist but to say: scratches over the edge on the right side are from previous owner who is a lefty. That on the left side is mine from one slipping, which I usually do once each sharpening no matter my best intentions - and I'm a righty. I think "slipping" on our less natural side is a given - I've seen this tendency quite a lot.


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## Runner_up (Jan 14, 2021)

Very nice write up! 

I don't think the shapton pro 1.5k gets enough love. It's one of my most used stones - really helpful for both sharpening and polishing. Gives great feedback. 

On stainless knives like henckels and such I finish on the pro 1.5k with a quick stop on leather. Really nice edge for those types of knives.


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## KingShapton (Jan 14, 2021)

I'm glad you like the stone so much.It's a very good stone and too often overlooked.

I get more and more the impression that we, in some cases, have similar preferences when it comes to stones.


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## Garm (Jan 14, 2021)

I enjoy reading your thoughts on stones and sharpening in general, and this was no exception.


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## jwthaparc (Jan 14, 2021)

Hmm. Seems like I might like this stone. A stone that isn't overly muddy, but raises some slurry is just my speed.


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## SolidSnake03 (Jan 14, 2021)

Agree on this stone being an overlooked gem. This stone in a weird way reminds me of the King Deluxe 1200 in that it leaves a really nice toothy edge, polishes better than you think, muds fairly easily but is controllable and is pretty cheap all things considered. It also leaves a really good all purpose working edge like the King Deluxe 1200. Now there are a lot of differences between these two of course but those things at least seem very in common.

also the Shapton Pro 320 to 1500 is totally doable and leaves a wicked edge in terms of bite and “eagerness to cut”. If you ever feel like your edges are slippery or too much polish, this combo will fix that real quite, it bites hard.


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## KingShapton (Jan 14, 2021)

SolidSnake03 said:


> also the Shapton Pro 320 to 1500 is totally doable and leaves a wicked edge in terms of bite and “eagerness to cut”. If you ever feel like your edges are slippery or too much polish, this combo will fix that real quite, it bites hard.


That is very interesting information, I was not familiar with this combination before, but the result sounds exactly to my taste.

Now I have the next stone on my list ... luckily I wanted to deal with coarser stones in the future anyway ...


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## SolidSnake03 (Jan 14, 2021)

It’s definitely worth a try especially since both of these stones (320 and 1500) are pretty darn cheap in the Kuromaku line, I think each one is like $40-45 which is quite reasonable given how slow they wear as well. This combo works well on semi stainless and powdered metal steels too, the edge feels incredibly bitey and a bit coarse but in a it’ll cut through anything and into your board for weeks on end sort of way. PM steels especially seem to hold this kind of edge for a long long time. It’s not highly refined but it’ll rip through anything and if you are a more “I just need to cut stuff and get it done” type of thing it works great.

With my carbon steels I tend to go a bit higher like 3-4K or a natural or something most of the time but for stainless and semi and pm this combo cuts well and I usually don’t go much higher if at all. Maybe just a strop on some newspaper or cardboard and I’m set


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## KingShapton (Jan 14, 2021)

SolidSnake03 said:


> It’s definitely worth a try


Ok, this information is like music to my ears.

You've got me hooked, definitely!

Thank you very much.


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## SolidSnake03 (Jan 14, 2021)

Yeahs it’s a good combo to try and works well for that kinda edge. I think you’ll like it.


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## KingShapton (Jan 14, 2021)

It's crazy, I have almost all of the Shapton Pro's with 3 exceptions - # 120, # 320, and # 30,000.

As it stands now, the # 320 seems to be a missing link in the chain. At least for my preferences. And I'll change that, I'm curious.

And I'll try @ModRQC's tip too. It would never have occurred to me to rub the Pro 1.500 with a diamond plate to create mud.


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## SolidSnake03 (Jan 14, 2021)

Definitely work up a mud/slurry first, really helps the feeling of the stone and gives a softer feel that seems easier to control and sharpen. Takes away some of the glassy feeling that some say the pros have as well. It’s good for a solid polish as well that way 

nice to hear that the Shapton collection is almost complete. Haven’t used the 120 or 30k so can’t comment on those


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## adam92 (Jan 14, 2021)

ModRQC said:


> *First use and breaking in: polishing 52100*
> 
> Now the Shi.Han had already been thinned to what I wanted with Pride 220, which is a pretty coarse stone. Since in “that” state, and in a rehandling project before testing my grind, why not use it to test new stones polishing skills? So a couple weeks ago I used it to test Cerax 700...
> View attachment 110025
> ...


Thank you so much for the review, it was very useful, I only have SG1k & SP2K, in the future definitely grab one SP1.5K to try!

I saw YouTube sharpening video from Yoshihiro factory, he use SP1.5K as well, must be nice!


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## aikon2020 (Jan 14, 2021)

Would you say that this stone is capable of replacing 1k stone all together and after 1.5k then jump to 5k or 6k?


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## jwthaparc (Jan 14, 2021)

SolidSnake03 said:


> Haven’t used the 120 or 30k so can’t comment on those


Haven't used the 30,000k , but the 120 is a steel eating monster. It's my go to for projects where I need to do any major thinning or profiling. By far faster than any other stone I've tried, and leaves a better finish than an atoma 140.


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## SolidSnake03 (Jan 14, 2021)

Good question about the 1k and if the 1.5k can replace it, I would say yes in the sense that one could use it as their main coarse stone. It’s slower than the 1k for sure but one could use a 120, 220 or 320 and go right to the 1.5k. I typically end with the 1.5k and strip because I like the bite but you could totally go to a 5k or 6k if you wanted.


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## spaceconvoy (Jan 14, 2021)

Interesting comparison, I've been thinking about buying a Pro 1K to compare to my 1500 out of curiosity, but feels like I don't need to now.


SolidSnake03 said:


> Good question about the 1k and if the 1.5k can replace it, I would say yes in the sense that one could use it as their main coarse stone. It’s slower than the 1k for sure but one could use a 120, 220 or 320 and go right to the 1.5k. I typically end with the 1.5k and strip because I like the bite but you could totally go to a 5k or 6k if you wanted.


I did a rough speed comparison between the 1500 and a GS500, and found the 1500 only about 20% slower. It feels faster than the King Neo 800, though I didn't compare them rigorously (and to be fair, I only have basic stainless and carbon, not any exotic steels where the Neo supposedly shines). It would work well as the main medium grit stone in your lineup.





Testing stone speed (GS500 vs SP1500)


I've always suspected the difference between some stones is overblown. Since I got a Shapton Pro 1500 I've been using it to set bevels and it didn't seem much slower than my Glass Stone 500. The recent thread about 'one travel stone' made me curious if I was missing something about the GS500...




www.kitchenknifeforums.com




Also, can we finally put to rest the myth that the 1500 clogs on stainless? I try to correct this misinformation when I see it but some people have stubbornly clung to this nonsense for unknowable reasons (even when they admit to not having tried it themselves).


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## SolidSnake03 (Jan 14, 2021)

Yeah honestly not worth getting the 1k too if you have a lower grit stone to do more of the heavy lifting. The 1.5k does a great job cleaning up from a lower grit stone like a 320 pro or 500 grit glass.
Agree that the 1.5k doesn’t load up more than anything else does on stainless.


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## ModRQC (Jan 15, 2021)

I'd say if you want bite, you should get a taste of the Ouka/Cerax #3000 after any of your favorite med: it has a healthy respect for med toothy. I tried the Kono tonight... Warning: in a slice pulling motion, liable to find oneself with only the knife in one hand, and the produce clawed in the other hand. The board and the rest of the cuts will be on the floor, if one is ever searching for them. Might be lucky and have the couple lasts still sticking to the blade - not everything will be lost.


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## KingShapton (Jan 15, 2021)

SolidSnake03 said:


> Agree that the 1.5k doesn’t load up more than anything else does on stainless.


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## coffeelover191919 (Jan 15, 2021)

The 1500 seems like a great stone, just like the 1000, and the 2000.

For those who already own the 1000 for raising a burr and sharpening a medium-dull blade and the 2000 for maintenance sharpening, what would we use the 1500 for?

for the record, i absolutely love the SP2K edge for kitchen knives. it is sharp enough to cut any food and shave/cut paper and has the toothiness for things like fruit skins, etc.


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## SolidSnake03 (Jan 15, 2021)

Good question about what the 1500 would be used for. I don’t know personally if it’s the best for someone that already has the 1k and 2k and are happy with that combo. That combo is really great already and if it provides enough bite for you then probably stick with that. I’m a fan of the 1.5k because it has more bite than the 2k which I enjoy while still begin a bit more refined than the 1k which I find a bit rough/coarse to finish on myself. The 1.5k works for me in a set up with the 320 as an easy 2 stones for working knives set up. The 320 to fix any major damage or chips or broken tips or other badly abused knives and then the 1.5k to finish up then strop. If you just have the 1k and 2k then you still would potentially need something coarse like the 120/220/320 for heavier work. I’m a fan of doing more with less which is where to me the 1.5k is really nice. Again a reminder of the King Deluxe 1.2k where you can go like King 300 to King Deluxe 1.2k and call it a day easily.

hope that helps on that


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## Runner_up (Jan 15, 2021)

Yeah I agree with @SolidSnake03 . 

I purchased the 1.5k to be economical. I figured I could buy that one stone and skip the 1k and 2k. I use it after a shapton glass 500 or sometimes 220. I find it to be a really good progression when I'm not using jnats. Even then, shapton pro 1.5k to a natural finisher is awesome too. 

I did buy (and later sold) a shapton pro 1k to try and it is a good stone for sure - definitely worthy of the praise it gets. But I still prefer using the 1.5k


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## Kitchen-Samurai (Jan 16, 2021)

That's great information for all who interested in the Pro 1.5k, thanks for sharing it! Interesting about the porosity, porosity and drying time. I wish it was more similar to the 2k in this regard. 

Could one of you guys that have the stone maybe compare the tactile feel / hand feel of this stone to the Pro 1k, Pro 2k or Chosera 800 a bit more?


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## SolidSnake03 (Jan 16, 2021)

I can give some quick feels on feedback, it feels a bit finer and softer than the 1k pro and about the same as the 2k to me, maybe a tiny bit less glassy but really the 2k isn’t glassy or dead feeling like the 5k I had was so it’s all relative. The biggest difference to me was that it didn’t feel nearly as coarse as the 1k which to me feels more like a 600-800 grit stone in its coarseness.

the Chosera 800 feels softer with more tactile feedback. The chosera stones really have some of the best feel and feedback to me


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## KingShapton (Jan 16, 2021)

SolidSnake03 said:


> I can give some quick feels on feedback, it feels a bit finer and softer than the 1k pro and about the same as the 2k to me, maybe a tiny bit less glassy but really the 2k isn’t glassy or dead feeling like the 5k I had was so it’s all relative. The biggest difference to me was that it didn’t feel nearly as coarse as the 1k which to me feels more like a 600


 




SolidSnake03 said:


> the Chosera 800 feels softer with more tactile feedback. The chosera stones really have some of the best feel and feedback to me


I see the comparison with the Chosera 800 differently, I like the Shapton 1500 more in terms of feedback and feeling, but that's just a personal feeling.


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## SolidSnake03 (Jan 16, 2021)

Agree on feel being highly personal. Glad you agree on Shapton feeling. I’ve got a couple Nanohone stones arriving sometime soon from MTC Kitchen whenever they get caught up on orders so I’ll be interested to compare those too.

Yeah I’m a big chosera fanboy when it comes to feeling. They rank up there with King for me in terms of my favorite feeling stones but that is highly highly subjective. I love the feel but they strike a weird middle ground for me compared to my Sigma Power Select ii. Feel better than Sigma but noticeable slower and Chosera grits are a little weird with 1k feeling way more like 2-3k from other brands in terms of smoothness and edge. Sigma and Shapton and Suehiro seem to be very accurate grit wise imho and feeling wise with Chosera seeming higher than stated and King being kinda all over the place with some feeling higher and some lower. Like a King Hyper 1000 regular feels and cuts so fast it seems coarser but something like the King 6000 polishes so smooth and so shiny it seems higher.

this is all just a big nerd rant and of course ymmv because a lot of it is feeling based


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## daveb (Jan 16, 2021)

Thanks for taking the time to write this up.

Like others upthread, I already have the SP1000, and SP2000, (and several others) and wondering if it makes sense to add another. I do a lot of Germans for friends and might try it in that application.

It's not lost on me that the SP1000 and 2000 are $40ish each on Amazon, while the SP1500 is $75 so saving money by buying one stone vice two is not very compelling.


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## daveb (Jan 16, 2021)

SolidSnake03 said:


> this is all just a big nerd thread and of course ymmv because a lot of it is feeling based



Fixed that for you Snake


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## ModRQC (Jan 16, 2021)

Kitchen-Samurai said:


> That's great information for all who interested in the Pro 1.5k, thanks for sharing it! Interesting about the porosity, porosity and drying time. I wish it was more similar to the 2k in this regard.
> 
> Could one of you guys that have the stone maybe compare the tactile feel / hand feel of this stone to the Pro 1k, Pro 2k or Chosera 800 a bit more?



The 1.5 is really not a problem with drying. It does act a bit more like SP320, but any Shapton Pro still dries pretty fast, and watermarking isn't something that will lead to problems in my experience.

Porosity was a suggestion I made as to the behavior of the stone compared to its siblings. Softer, releases more abrasive, is a tremendous stone with some mud. Then again, I like mud on SPs. Never really bothered conditioning the SP320 - I think what that one really needs is just enough water not to clog, then it pretty much behaves as it should regarding to the activity involved. And for SP1K, never bothered because I think what works for it is how uncomplicated it is, and with little water you get a working slurry that's feeling great, and "softens" the feeling just enough to be more comfortable.

But for the SP1500, 2K, 5K, definitely raising some mud first is what I do. They're all still usable without doing so, and have some virtues there, but really, even where the 1.5 and 2K are much nicer feeling that SP1K as is, raising mud on them is paradise. As for the SP5K, raising mud is the difference between hating that stone, and learning to respect and love it. It's glassiness and lack of feedback are utterly transformed into creamy hard response and just that nice amount of tactility.


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## ModRQC (Jan 16, 2021)

daveb said:


> Thanks for taking the time to write this up.
> 
> Like others upthread, I already have the SP1000, and SP2000, (and several others) and wondering if it makes sense to add another. I do a lot of Germans for friends and might try it in that application.
> 
> It's not lost on me that the SP1000 and 2000 are $40ish each on Amazon, while the SP1500 is $75 so saving money by buying one stone vice two is not very compelling.



That's strange.

Don't Amazon these, then, but I don't understand, I got the SP1500 for a price in line with its grit as to the rest of the SP lineup. Either Amazon.ca or Paul's Finest in Canada had reasonable prices. SP1K and 2K might tend to be a tad less expensive than SP1500 generally, but not in any way close to being able to say I could get two for the price of the one.


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## SolidSnake03 (Jan 16, 2021)

The Shapton Pro 1.5k is $45 on the site that will not be named. I’m not advocating buying there but other places not Amazon have it more in line price wise  

thanks for the fix Dave as you are entirely correct on that haha

agree on mud on the 1.5 and 2k for sure, I always make up a mud for those (when I had the 2k that is). Really helps in feeling. Admittedly I never held onto the 5k long enough to really experiment with mud on it but definitely sounds like it would have helped. I had it earlier in my sharpening and wasn’t as knowledge then in terms of mud, stone feeling etc... just that it was too glassy and sterile for me at the time.


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## daveb (Jan 16, 2021)

SolidSnake03 said:


> I had it earlier in my sharpening and wasn’t as knowledge then in terms of mud, stone feeling etc... just that it was too glassy and sterile for me at the time.




I thought I was the only one that found that the stones get better as I get better.....


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## ModRQC (Jan 16, 2021)

SolidSnake03 said:


> The Shapton Pro 1.5k is $45 on the site that will not be named. I’m not advocating buying there but other places not Amazon have it more in line price wise
> 
> thanks for the fix Dave as you are entirely correct on that haha
> 
> agree on mud on the 1.5 and 2k for sure, I always make up a mud for those (when I had the 2k that is). Really helps in feeling. Admittedly I never held onto the 5k long enough to really experiment with mud on it but definitely sounds like it would have helped. I had it earlier in my sharpening and wasn’t as knowledge then in terms of mud, stone feeling etc... just that it was too glassy and sterile for me at the time.



It was part of my very first stone lineup. I learned to use it as I used SP320 and SP1K.

As soon as I had the Rika, I didn't touch the SP5000 anymore for a couple of months at least. By then, I had experimented with different stones - the creamier NP800, the full muddy and dishy Cerax #320, the SP2000 that felt so much righter than SP1K or SP5K.

My experience with various stones just taught me a very simple basic: use from clean, see how it goes, then try with mud, especially when the stone feels rather poorly working from clean. I don't even look at a stone basic requirements anymore. I soak any stone, and those that bubble a lot, stay soaked for a longer period, with which I will experiment if the stone is really thirsty, but otherwise if water management is ok, then 20-30 minutes soak does it. S&Gs, once proven that soaking is useless, are abundantly rinsed before being put to work. The best of them, after the initial splash, I can work my deeds without any more water, and I like that. Then again, doable also with muddier and thirstier stone, it's always a matter of helping the stone getting a better feedback. Usually the better feedback corresponds well with the plateau of the stone - where it really exhibits its best behavior with minimal involvement.

Edit: what I luuuuuv with S&Gs is using from clean to get that dark slurry that follows the blade everywhere; then couple drops of water if needed, raise mud with the atoma being careful not to evacuate swarf, and mix the result with my finger spreading it all over. Even the creamy NP800 is much more sexier this way. Slows the stones some, but not so much, especially if working with pressure level. But to me, raising mud comes after getting the burr with pressure level; it's where I evade, have a little moment with the stone where burr and amount of passes doesn't matter anymore, until the very last couple of edge leading strokes to deburr. Some stones like to be cleaned by then, others slurry should be kept on even then.


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## KingShapton (Jan 16, 2021)

SolidSnake03 said:


> Yeah I’m a big chosera fanboy when it comes to feeling. They rank up there with King for me in terms of my favorite feeling stones but that is highly highly subjective.


Subjectively, my favorites consist of the 2 sides of a coin ..

Shapton Pro and Glass on one side, King on the other. And that for different reasons / applications. Occasionally (for me) outstanding stones from other manufacturers move in between, but these are individual stones.

And I better not talk about natural stones now ...

But, as you have said so correctly, that is a very personal feeling and that is one of the nice things about this hobby.


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## SolidSnake03 (Jan 16, 2021)

Agree the personal tastes and aspects of it are so very interesting in a good way, makes it much much more fun. It’s interesting how our feelings on stones and stuff changed as well as skill increases and time progresses. I remember thinking anything by King wasn’t worth the time or the mess... but that was before I perma soaked them and learned to love the feedback and communication of those stones and tried the Hypers too. Now it’s a whole different story and I love my 1200 Deluxe. Planning to try the Hyper 1000 soft and the 2000 too sometime, like whenever the next mtc sale is haha.

point is, it’s interesting how feelings change with time and skill and how new things adjust and realign our perspective. The Nanohone stones may make me change my feelings on the pro and glass stones, or they may make me feel more strongly how good a value those Shaptons are, time will tell


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## stringer (Jan 16, 2021)

I have the SP1000 and the SP1500. I have a SG2000 but I have never used the SP2000 so I can't comment on that. In my experience the SP1000 is quite a bit softer than the SP1500 and way softer than the SG2000. It cuts a bit faster and it dishes faster. The SP1000 scratch pattern is less consistent than the 1500 and quite a bit more coarse looking. The SP1000 would be my preference for softer stainless because it doesn't glaze as easy and cuts faster. I primarily use my 1000 as a stone for doing work on coworkers cheap knives that don't need chip repair, thinning, or reprofiling. After that I go to a Naniwa Super Stone 2K and I'm done. 

The SP1500 I use primarily as a razor bevel cutter. I have been experimenting with it a little for single/wide/convex bevel carbon knives. But I can't comment much except that it polishes evenly with out getting as much of that contrast killing shine that comes from the finer shapton offerings. 

With razors, you are moving so much less material that I don't care that the 1500 is a bit slower or glazes more easily. It's more important that it dishes slower and that it polishes the bevels better than the 1000 without giving up too much speed. From there I go to naturals usually coticule and then ark or jasper. The more inconsistent scratch pattern of the 1K is not ideal for razors. The 1K is quicker to set the bevel but then it takes more work to polish and finish it up nicely.

TLDR - I like the SP1000 for sharpening stainless or stainless clad that doesn't need major work.

The SP1500 I like for cutting bevels on straight razors.


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## ModRQC (Jan 17, 2021)

*UPDATE*

Just a quick word about using the SP1K in a full progression for my Shi.Han, and raising mud like I do with the SP1500-2K-5K.

Raising mud, sharpening some: 









Bit of finger mixing the resulting mud with water for some more polishing of the edge - just throwing concepts to the stone as I'm trying this, because I already knew I wouldn't be coming back to this stage for this stone...








As I willingly raised mud on this stone, I remembered I had tried this back when I was still relatively noob with stones - in the beginning of me discovering the use of mud with SP2K and 5K, like mid-summer 2020. I remembered why I never did it again until now, and why I had forgotten to remember: raising mud on that stone is rather painful for little amounts you get, it does give the stone some additional tactility, but at the cost of that mud having the stone dry way faster, and cut somewhat slower. It doesn't suit it enough neither that you'll want to lose yourself into sharpening on feeling. It's just adding a lot of pain to the use of a stone that is perhaps the most straightforward, simple, efficient stone I ever encountered.

First pic, you can see how little mud, and how it just wants to clump already, first sign of drying...
Second pic, dried out zones, a bit of clumped mud at places.
And despite the healthy amount of water given on the third pic...
Still drying out as I just finished what amounts to stropping more than sharpening, taking me like 1 minute.

TL;DR raising mud on SP1K, the deed of itself; will take as much time as completing a burr; managing the stone then with that mud, just the moves involved in what I did here... the stone would be clean and put to dry, next stone in prog already under sharpening, when using SP1K from clean.

Edge barely more lively, still not one I'd want to export into the kitchen... and anyway, it's just a given that SP1K is a natural born progression stone: it's goddamn fast and effective if the knife is dull, and edge will be usable, but no one serious about sharpening use this stone alone. 

Shapton should slap a half 1K to a half 2K for a killer on the go combo knife reviver. Seems pointless for a combo grit prog, but with the intent of reviving a lot of different states of edges in say, a pro kitchen, and in aim of adding as little to the knife bag as possible, I'm guessing this combo would win over a LOT of folks.


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## aikon2020 (Jan 21, 2021)

In general I use 1k and then 5 or 6k. Sometimes ending on 3k just because I want more toothiness sometimes. 

Is SP1.5K and 5K a good set to be all end all and that's it? Or is the 1k and 5k a better combo?


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## KingShapton (Jan 21, 2021)

Sorry, double post


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## KingShapton (Jan 21, 2021)

aikon2020 said:


> Is SP1.5K and 5K a good set to be all end all and that's it? Or is the 1k and 5k a better combo?


In my own experience, with the Shapton Pro it is particularly worthwhile to go from 1k (or 1.5k) to 2k and only then to 5k.

Of course you can also go directly from 1k or 1.5k to 5k, also with the Shapton Pro's, but with the 2k in between the results after the 5k are much better, really much better.

I'm only talking about the Shapton Pros, with other stones it looks different!


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## aikon2020 (Jan 21, 2021)

daveb said:


> Thanks for taking the time to write this up.
> 
> Like others upthread, I already have the SP1000, and SP2000, (and several others) and wondering if it makes sense to add another. I do a lot of Germans for friends and might try it in that application.
> 
> It's not lost on me that the SP1000 and 2000 are $40ish each on Amazon, while the SP1500 is $75 so saving money by buying one stone vice two is not very compelling.


Thats why I thought that 1.5k maybe is a better stone than 1k in combination with 5k to lesser the jump a bit


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## ModRQC (Jan 21, 2021)

aikon2020 said:


> Thats why I thought that 1.5k maybe is a better stone than 1k in combination with 5k to lesser the jump a bit



SP1K - SP5K would be a better jump than 1.5 - 5 IMO. As @KingShapton says SP2K even better, but as edge goes SP1K resembles more what SP5K aims to do. Or more aptly SP1K is an edge without much character hence keen to take whatever character came before and comes after.

Get SP2K before getting SP1.5 - really an essential SP stone where you can finish any kitchen edge, or go up. I to this day also still believe SP2K to have extraordinary edge deburring and cleaning powers that makes it a killer stone to touch up too.


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## inferno (Jan 21, 2021)

i think the shapton pro 2k is one of the best stones i've ever tried. but so is the naniwa pro 2k. both killer stones imo.


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