Diamond Waterstones - JKI Anybody tried them?

[Ourorboros]

Has anybody tried the 1K & 6K waterstones from JKI?
I'm curious about the feel, speed, and maintenance of these stones. I'm not sure I want to buy them, but having an option other than diamond plates for high vanadium steels sounds good.
What other water stones do they feel like? Do they have good cutting speed? Is a regular diamond plate enough to flatten them?
Thanks for your input.

[Kalaeb]

Yes, I have them and they are among my favorite stones for anything other than simple carbons.

They feel like a harder stone although it would be very difficult to compare them side by side to standard water stones because they are diamond. As far as speed, the 1k is fast but leaves a great scratch pattern. It took a bit for me to get used to applying less pressure, the 6k is the stone I usually end on, great tooth and again, only minimal pressure is needed.

I have had mine for over three years and have never maintained them as far as flattening. They can gum up a little depending on the steel, but John provides a cleaning nagura to bring them back. It takes only a few passes to bring them back.

Do not use a regular diamond plate to flatten. The actual diamond medium is only 1.5-2mm, the rest is an aluminum plate.

[Ourorboros]

Thank-you. I didn't catch the diamond plate at first glance.
I really dislike using regular diamond plate, but more edc knives are in S35VN now.

[Kalaeb]

Thank-you. I didn't catch the diamond plate at first glance.
I really dislike using regular diamond plate, but more edc knives are in S35VN now.

To categorize these with other diamond plates would be a big disservice. They are in no way comparable to something like a DMT or other. They provide much better feedback and are less aggressive than similarly named diamond stones.

For basic whites, blues and American simple carbons, they might not be worth the investment, but if you have any super steels, PM steels or the likes, these are a must have.

[Ourorboros]

Sorry, typed wrong. I missed the steel plate underneath the diamond layer.
I am thinking of these because of all the vanadium heavy super steels out now.

[Captaincaed]

After four years, I took the dive a grabbed a set. They work quickly and feel nice to use. Seems to be easier to deburr tricky stainless (e.g. R2) on these stones, compared to AlOx based stones. I think they'll do well on high alloy PM steels as well. I'm throwing a D2 benchmade at the 1k pretty soon.
I've sharpened chisels on diamond plates for years, and these stones feel different.
I would caution the matrix is still fairly soft, so be careful using them. I managed to dig my tip in a little, and now I'm pissed at myself for leaving a scratch.

[Ourorboros]

I'm throwing a D2 benchmade at the 1k pretty soon.

Please let me know how that goes, so many budget knives are D2 or "D2" now. Not my favorite, the time it takes doesn't seem worth the edge it takes.
How do you feel about the wear rate?

[Captaincaed]

Too soon to tell about wear rate, wish I could help. Supposed to be quite a long time.