Norton Waterstone Wet Stone Sharpening Kit with 220/1000 and 4000/8000 Combination Grit Knife Sharpener Stones, Flattening Stone and Whetstone Stone Holder

This was my first entry into sharpening with water stones, and I decided to get this set after trying to piece together a similar set with individual stones. Not sure why, but the name "Starter Kit" had me concerned because it implied that it was going to be somehow smaller or less capable. Rest assured, the kit is simply their standard stones packaged in a single rather utilitarian box. Each stone is of high quality, and purchasing together this way provided significant savings over buying each piece individually.Before I talk about the stones themselves, I should add to my comments that, like others, my kit first arrived with two 220/1000 stones and no 4000/8000. This definitely seems to be a genuine quality control issue. However, in typical Amazon fashion I completed a return authorization online and had a new set in two days, and the inconvenience was minimal, but not non-existent.I was surprised how short the learning curve was with this. I started with a very inexpensive and dull stainless steel Chinese cleaver that I purchased years ago in New York's Chinatown. This thing was really little more than a novelty piece, as I'd never been able to get it more than moderately sharp using our Chef's Choice sharpener. In one attempt the stones had the knife extremely sharp, and in fact I now reach for it for a huge number of chopping tasks that I'd usually tackle with my Henckels chef's knife. Feeling confident, I worked my way through the Henckels set, and each is now shaving sharp as well. From there I proceeded to sharpen a 20-year old, original Japanese-made Kershaw Black Horse folding knife. This was a little more challenging, but after getting better at finding and holding a proper angle the blade was reprofiled and again absolutely razor sharp. Feeling confident, I then tackled the reprofiling of a KA-BAR USMC. This one was much more difficult for me as a novice, but again, after some patient practice, the blade is now a perfect, hair-popping mirror finish.After literally hours of sharpening, the stones really don't seem to be any worse for the wear, and I suspect I may never actually consume a stone. The Silicon Carbide flattening stone is very useful, and mine was perfectly flat and very quickly and easily restores the stones to a completely flat surface. I did go out and purchase a Nagura stone for the 8000 grit stone, and have found it to be indispensable as well, as the 8K does very quickly accumulate metal, slowing its effectiveness. I've read from many much more experience sharpeners than I that the 8000k stone is really overkill, but I've definitely found that it takes the blades to another level of sharpness in my amateur hands, while bringing out that jewel-like mirror finish. Using the stones becomes a bit addictive, and I actually went ahead and also picked up a strop that I loaded with green .5 micron compound, at it definitely takes the blade to a final level of perfection. The edge on that KA-BAR, for example, is truly scary after adding a stropping step!All in all, this is more than a "starter kit," it's just a very capable and easy to learn full size set that should last for a very long time, even if not forever for the typical home user.

I bought this set in 2016 and use it several times per year. I learned to sharpen knives in Cub Scouts, and I have all but perfected the craft using this set. I went through several bases to hold the stones in place while using them but now I just use an old towel. It works fine and keeps things neat. They're made in USA and are great quality. I recommend soaking your stones for at least a few hours before use. I find it greatly improves the slurry and helps me "feel" the work taking place in my fingertips. Highly recommend. One of the best investments I've ever made, hobby wise.

These bad boys are way easier to use than you might expect. I am an experienced home cook who puts her knives through the ringer most every day. Don't get me wrong, I handle my blades well (never in the dishwasher, only ever cut on end-grain or plastic cutting boards), but I chop, dice, matchstick, and julienne the heck out of any vegetable I can get my hands on. I usually send my 5 main knives out for sharpening once or twice a year, but have always cringed at how much metal the belt sanding method takes with it. I bought J. Kenji Lopez-Alt's "The Food Lab" and in it, he features a couple page text box on the benefits of sharpening your own knives using waterstones. I was terrified I would completely botch my precious blades, but his article explaining it step by step and demystifying the more complicated parts gave me the confidence I needed to give it a try. Lopez-Alt says that he thinks sharpening your knives yourself, by hand, also helps you get to know your knives more intimately. I kind of rolled my eyes at this thought, but after sharpening my kit a couple of times now, I'm almost embarrassed to admit that I see what he's saying.This kit is great because it offers everything you need all at once. I only used the 220 grit for a couple of my knives that had more damage, otherwise I stuck to the 1000 and both side of the 4000/8000 stone. The 8000 grit probably doesn't do much in terms of sharpening benefits, but it does put a beautiful mirror shine on the sharpened surface.Each knife takes about 10-15 mins to sharpen, depending on how damaged the blade is and how thorough you want to be with it. You'll also need to pre-soak the stones for 30-45 mins (I've heard estimates as low as 20 mins). The process itself isn't messy, but it isn't exactly clean. I kept the unused stone soaking in a 9x13 pyrex container while I used the other stone on a towel on my kitchen counter. Because you have to periodically dribble some water on the stone to keep it lubricated, I end up with a pretty soggy towel and a few drips and dribbles of dirty water around my kitchen. Nothing too serious, but it's helpful to know what you're getting into. Plan on spending an hour or two from soaking the stones back to a spotless kitchen.I really appreciate that this method hardly removed any metal from my knives and I love that I can keep pushing the knife around until I get just the edge I'm looking for. I don't know if it was just me convincing myself there was something special about it, but I've never had a more joyful knife cut than the first thing I cut into after sharpening my chef's knife myself. I really did feel more connected with my knives.I think this set is a great starter option. You'll spend more money getting all of the pieces individually. Maybe there are superior waterstones out there, but these seem like more than sufficient for the vast majority of users. I got this set, and countless sharpenings, for the same price that I used to pay for a single sharpening of my 5 main knives. Well worth the money.