SE 3-Piece Diamond Sharpening Bench Stone Set - DF8527DB

I ordered these for the price and because I sometimes have rougher sharpening jobs that just don't need to fancier finer stones. I also sometimes let others use my stones to sharpen and teach sharpening and don't like misuse of my finer stones. These seem perfect for those uses. I heard complaint that the base was too flexible, but the manufacturer seems to have solved this problem. Grits do feel a bit coarser than labeled, but seem about right for my intended use on less than my best knives.

I got the sharpeners quickly and packed well. There was a problem with the red block. The red one which is the finest grit of the three had melted plastic smeared on the surface. It looks like it was done when the sharpening plate was attached to the plastic/nylon backing. This does make it a little difficult to use well.A note about these sharpeners. They are VERY aggressive. The grit is 150 for the blue one. This one is great for sharpening axes and chisels and the like. Think for a while before you swipe your Russel or Hinkles blades across this block. Remember that diamonds are forever and so are the scratches. The Yellow block is 300 grit and still very aggressive. It is good for roughing in cleavers and heavy blades and for touching up any sharp edges on glass or tile.The red block is 450 grit and it will do a quick job on a hard blade. If you are careful you can put an acceptable edge on most anything. What I would recommend is to get a finer block or stone to finish your blades with. Something in the 1000 to 3000 range.I think everyone should have a set of these for general use. I even sharpened my shears, awl needles, fish hooks, dive knife and scissors with them. The price is right and they are a good add on item. I only gave a four star because the red block has some melted plastic on it out of the package and I can't get it off.

I recently laid a straight edge across my two-sided silicon carbide tool sharpening block and discovered that there was a significant concave dip in the center. I researched how to true the stone on the internet and found a plethora of techniques, from rubbing the stone on a sidewalk to grinding it on a thick plate of glass with valve-grinding compound, among others.Several posters suggested using a diamond block to true the stone, so I ordered this inexpensive package of grits. Upon receiving it, I used the 150 grit stone and stroked it lightly on the SC stone under running water. I intended to just try it out and expected to continue later, thinking it probably would be a lengthy process. To my surprise, the diamond block flattened my stone in about ten minutes of easy work! Perfect!In the past I had fooled around with some diamond files and was impressed with how fast they cut, but haven't had much other experience with such diamond products. Bottom line, I'm now a believer. This product, at least for my needs, is fabulous. I enthusiastically recommend it.

These seemed like a good deal. I guess you get what you pay for. They fell apart after a few uses.

Appearances are deceiving. They look thin, cheap and might have questionable grit. They sharpen quickly, efficiently and well. They require minimal effort and minimal time. They are the best general sharpening stones I have used. I still prefer to finish with a hard natural stone, but they leave an edge that is easily honed and lasts.

Pros:decent sizefast cuttingmultiple gritsflatonly need water for lubricant, saving the cost of honing oilCons:not fine enoughbacking plate too thinscratches knife bladeI have only sharpened a few knives so far, but the results were good, but not spectacular. First off, these stones are fast cutting, and put a good utility edge on every knife I have tried them on. The grit seems to have some edges quite a bit higher than the surface (relatively speaking) because if you are not very careful, you can scratch up the blade with them. This seems to be improving as the stones break in, but they still will scratch the blade if you are not careful. The stones cut quickly, but are on the coarse side, even the finest grit will cut, but not polish. That said, if you use care, you can sharped a pretty good nick out of a blade, in a short time. These stones are great for taking the nicks out of blades, and establishing the proper bevel. However, to get a truly sharp edge, as in shaving sharp, you will need to follow up with something finer.My other complaint, is that the backing plate the stones are mounted to, is quite thin, having it be an inch thick or more, would allow for easier use. The way it is now, you have to put them on the edge of a table, or counter, to be able to lay the blade edge flat against the stone, otherwise the thickness of the handle, will not allow for it. This is a minor quibble, because a thicker stone, would take up more storage space, and it really isn't that hard to either place them at the edge of a work surface, or on top of some kind of spacer.I give them a 3 star performance, good but not great, but probably 4 1/2 stars in value. Where else can you get a 3 stone diamond hone set, for under $10, let alone decent sized stones (they are about 2X8 inches in size). I have yet to use them enough to learn about longevity, but at this price, I can't complain. The stones are flat and true, no warpage or wobble to them. I will end with one last comment. The clearance holes you see, in the cutting surface, are recessed in that the diamonds are bonded to a thin piece of metal, and that metal piece has clearance holes cut into it (like most diamond stones do). Unlike a DMT stone, which has the clearance holes filled with plastic, making for a flush surface, the plate seems to be glued on top of the plastic, so you need to watch so you don't snag the blade tip on the edge of the holes. Not a big deal, just something to watch for.All in all, these are a good supplement to my red and green DMT stones (fine, and ultra-fine) as the finest in this set, leaves off, about where the fine DMT stone takes over. The DMT ultra fine stone, is fine enough to get a truly polished edge. I was going to buy a medium DMT stone, but I got this set of 3, for about half of just one additional DMT stone would have cost, so the value is there. Just keep in mind, for someone who wants a hair-splitting edge, you need to finish with something finer. For utility work, like opening boxes, envelopes, peeling the insulation off wires, they do just fine, and do the job quickly.