Aldi Diamond Stone

[SVB]

Anyone seen / tried these before:

http://www.aldi.co.uk/uk/html/offers/58_8705.htm

Looks like a no-brainer for the price even if it does not last forever.

BRgds
Simon

 

[Maverick.uk]

Anyone seen / tried these before:

http://www.aldi.co.uk/uk/html/offers/58_8705.htm

Looks like a no-brainer for the price even if it does not last forever.

BRgds
Simon

The same article from Axminster is £9.78

http://www.axminster.co.uk/product-Axmi ... 642316.htm

Cheers

Kevin

 

[SVB]

Good spot Maverick,

so, anyone got one, any good?

Simon

 

[joiner_sim]

I'd spend a bit more for a better one. I got my EZE-LAP diamond stone, with two different stones for only £30 about 3 or 4 years ago.

 

[Setch]

I've had what I suspect to be an identical product, albeit in different packaging. The diamond cuts well, and I used them a great deal for reestablishing the bevel on chipped irons or chisels, but they are not flat, and are prone to separating from their backings.

I ended up pulling off the backing, and superglued them to a dead flat granite tile, and this really helped, but even so I ended up abandoning them for most tasks. It's just too easy to round over the blades if the stone won't stay flat.

IMO a false economy - buy once and get a good, flat DMT stone, or go cheap and use scary sharp on glass or granite tile.

 

[frugal]

I got an identical looking one from my local hardware shop last year. They are okay but they haev one or two issues taht cause more problems than they solve.

The four sides each have a dimond coated metal sheet on them at different grits (200, 300, 400, 600 if I recall). However the substrate does not appear to be very flat and themetal sheet lifts after a little bit.

I sharpened my plane blade on it, and then had to spend an absolute age reflattening the back when I got a decent diamond stone.

The one I have is now relegated to sharpening the gardening shears or other implements that do not need precision, I won't let it near my woodwork tools anymore

 

[Ross K]

If it's not dead flat it's not worth using if you want truly sharp chisels. The thing is that the backs of the chisels have to be proper flat not almost flat and only a super-flat stone can achieve this.

In our workshop all the cabinet makers use water stones with a Veritas honing guide. Expensive but well, well worth the investment.

I used to use oil stones but realise now that there is "sharp" and there is "VERY sharp". The latter is available only using water stones.

A cheap diamond stone may be okay for your rough joinery chisels but for cabinet making I wouldn't compromise.

 

[joiner_sim]

Used my EZE-LAP diamond stone today, and got my 1/2" chisel razor sharp. It wasn't cheap and it wasn't expensive, and does the job that its designed for, at the right price!

 

[Setch]

I used to use oil stones but realise now that there is "sharp" and there is "VERY sharp". The latter is available only using water stones.

I think a great many experienced people would disagree emphatically. You can get VERY sharp a number of ways, the main way being to select a technique and stick with it till you get the results you need.

I'll agree that the stones that prompted this thread will not ever get something VERY sharp, but scary sharp, high quality diamond stones, and many other techniques will, and may be cheaper, easier, and less fragile than waterstones.