# How often do you flatten your Shapton stones?



## newwoodbutcher (Aug 6, 2010)

I flatten my Shapton stones after every use, sometimes during use. What do you all do?


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## rad457 (Jun 15, 2013)

Do not have a Sharpton, have 4 other brands, Norton, a Lie Nielson and a couple from Lee Valley.They are all a bit different with the Norton my utility stones and also the hardest so usually only get flattened at the end of the day or week depending on use. Also depends on what they are being used for, plane blades and chisels wear the stones in completely different ways. Almost all my plane blades are PMV-11 and go a long time between touch ups. 
I also use a flat board and leather with green compound to do touch ups on my chisels which also reduces the need to go back to the stones as often. 
I also picked up a Arkansa stone last week, so have been playing with it with some good results.


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## Unknowncraftsman (Jun 23, 2013)

I flatin my shapton stones a lot it doesn't take but a few seconds.My sharpening station is just outside my shop so I have a hose hanging there with a spray nozzle.I also have Shaptons Diamond on glass.And the DLRP.
Here's a look at the Diamond on glass.


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## TheFridge (May 1, 2014)

Not that often. ill keep going until I'm not getting the surface or consistency I want when using a freshly sharpened tool. I usually have more problems with them loading before I worry about flatness. 1000/5000/8000


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## newwoodbutcher (Aug 6, 2010)

I have the 500, 1,000, 4,000 and 8,000 grit on glass. My process is; For a resharpening/re-honing, I start with the 1,000 grit till I get a wire edge, I remove the wire edge on my 8,000 grit stone, then I move to the 8,000 grit stone till I get a finer wire edge and remove it. During the process the stone loads, I wipe it down with a scratch sponge till I can't scrub it all off easily. Then I'll take a few swipes with the Shapton Diamond flattening stone. If it wipes mostly clean I'm good and return to sharpening. If there is an area of the stone that doesn't wipe clean, I assume that spot is a divot so I flatten till it's gone. This happens at least once on every resharpening. I don't mind doing it so much but I'm worried I'm wearing away these expensive stones prematurely. Any instruction will be appreciated.


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## rad457 (Jun 15, 2013)

Easy trick is draw a few lines diagonal across the stone with a pencil, then when you flatten you will see the low spots.
I started of with a Norton combo set a figure that almost 1/2 gone over the last 3 years. I did do a lot of rehab on old chisels and plane blades for practice, since switching to PMV-11 plane irons no flattening and very little sharpening!


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## Lemwise (Sep 17, 2016)

I have a King Deluxe 1200 and a Sigma Select II 6000 stone. Both have a fairly friable bond but it's been at least 3 months since I last flattened them. You just have to know how to work a stone so it doesn't go out of flat. And I will also say this. Flattening a stone before every use is the biggest BS I've ever heard. But that's what you get when a self professed "expert" on youtube starts telling people it's necessary to flatten a stone every time you take a blade to it. All the amateurs take their word for gospel and they stop thinking for themselves.


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