Diamond plate for lapping hones / whetstones

[Corsair]

Still new to all this but I understand that stones need periodic dressing with a diamond plate to keep them flat.

I don't yet have any stones for the SR but do already have some in a Lansky sharpener set which gets used for all sorts (don't worry - not the razor!). This kit has served me well but it's clear that the stones are far from flat - I suspect both as a result of used and because they were never perfect from new.

They range from 70 to 1000 grit; the more coarse stones look like ally oxide (grey) the others I'm not so sure about (red and white, IIRC).

So... can I use the same diamond plate to lap all of these stones, can I also use this to lap a larger whetstone(s) when I get one for the razor, and if so what type / grade of plate do people recommend?

Thanks!

 

[totorlekiller]

You can get special lapping stone. I have one from Norton. However, most of the time, I do not bother to take it out and just use whatever diamond plate I have handy. It seems to me that you could used the 70 to lap the 1000. Lapping the 70 could be done on a flat surface with some sandpaper if you do not want to make any unnecessary investments.

 

[rbscebu]

To lap my whetstones flat, I use a sheet of wet & dry sandpaper, used wet, on a marble or plate (not float) glass tile.

 

[Legion]

A popular choice is the Atoma 400. That’s what I have.

If the hone is really messed up I do the grunt work with WD paper, so as to not wear the diamond plate, but for normal lapping the Atoma is good.

 

[rbscebu]

@Corsair, a 1000 stone is suitable for bevel setting on a straight razor. You then work your way up to at least 10k although most will go higher to about 25k. Those who want the sharpest of edges will go further to about 200k.

We are talking razor sharp here, not knife sharp.

To conserve money while you are new to this gentlemanly art, you might consider using lapping films instead of whetstones. Particularly after the initial bevel set.

 

[Gamma]

Contact Lansky for their recommendation on lapping their stones flat. Then use common sense after they weigh in.
Chances are, yes - any diamond plate that will suffice to lap your Lansky stones will be fine for other lapping duties. The reason for asking the mfgr is to ID whether or not any of those stones of yours are diamond impregnated, and/or of extremely low grit.
Me, personally, I would not lap an 80x stone with a 400x plate unless I knew that there would be no issues. Same for diamond stones like Naniwa's where the top few mm of stone are loaded with diamond abrasive and flattening them must be done judiciously.
Also - you may not really need to flatten the knife stones unless you have really put them through the mill and/or you are looking to get things a bit more 'accurate'. Point is, I hardly ever lap stones north of 1k for knives, but for razors I do so religiously.
The lapping stones from various makers usually need to be lapped before use.
Sandpaper on tile or whatever will work. But, generally speaking, most quality diamond plates are going to be flatter than most bits of tile or glass. Which brings us to - confirming flatness. Some will use pencil grids to show that lapping is flattening the stone. I've found that pencil grids come off way long before flatness is achieved; so I use a quality straightedge to proof my work.
There are many ways to handle the task, no one way is the only way.

 

[Steve56]

I’m like Keith for the most part. Knives don’t matter that much. I keep my coarse synthetic razor hones flat. The final natural finisher, less so. If the final finisher is slightly dished, and I mean slightly, it just adds a tiny bit of angle. I’m trading the final finisher flatness for the burnished surface.