Trend Essential Diamond Sharpening Kit with 300/1000 Grit Bench Stone, Lapping Fluid, Leather Strop, Honing Paste, Cleaning Block & Sharpening Solutions Guide, DWS/KIT/H

My kit came with the incorrect stone. Not the flagship 300/1000 stone but a 180/600 stone. Poor show. UPDATE. Amazon replaced the entire kit with the correct stone this time. Free of charge as well as free delivery to South Africa. I’m very impressed with the customer service. The kit itself is perfect. Excellent sharpening kit. See Rob Cossman on YouTube. Excellent. Well done to Amazon.

I had been shopping for a knife sharpener for some time. Finally settled on the Diamond Sharpening Kit based on a YouTube recommendation. Don't regret the purchase. I sharpened my Victorinox knives and they are like new. Really like the case to keep everything together.

I waited until I had enough experience with this product before reviewing it. The diamond plate works well for the purpose intended, but it doesn’t work long before the sharpening capability declines and it’s usefulness is reduced to a very flat metal plate, useful mainly as a base for attaching self-adhesive sandpaper.I don’t necessarily fault the product itself for this, it is what it is. Rather I fault my own misperception of the useful life of the product, which translates to whether the useful life is justified by the high price. In my opinion, the price is not justified because the useful life is not long unless you treat the plate very gently and use it only sharpen the delicate edges of woodworking chisels and plane blades, or as a tool for maintaining the flatness of water sharpening stones.I used mine initially to sharpen every wood chisel in my shop, most of which were fairly sharp already, about a dozen chisels, and perhaps a dozen hand plane blades. These presented no problem, but when I used the diamond plate for flattening the bottoms of the planes themselves (5 planes) the 300 grit size soon lost its sharpening ability in terms of “bite” into the metal. The 1000 grit side also soon followed. The plate still sharpens, however sharpening takes much longer, and if the plate were a sheet of sandpaper, you’d think it was time to change the sheet.The plate is still good for flattening Japanese water stones, which I feel give greater value for the money because their surface grit continually renews itself, and water stones last for many years before becoming too thin to use. Water stones are cheaper and are available in a greater variety of grit sizes. Also, a 1000 grit Japanese water stone produces a noticeably finer edge than the 1000 grit side of the diamond plate, something I previously would not have imagined. Water stones are more messy, but if you’re already experienced with them, you won’t be converted to diamond plates unless you also need a plate for maintaining the flatness of the water stones.So, these are fine but pricey, and you should keep your expectations in check regarding the useful life of the product because they don’t last as long as you’d expect, given the price. These have their use, but are not a replacement for water or ceramic stones, though the diamond plate will continue to flatten the Japanese stones after its useful life as a sharpening plate has ended. I give it a grudging four stars.

I've contacted Amazon, which shows as both the seller and the contact for customer service. They would not help me since it's "beyond 30 days since my purchase" although it states plainly in the description that there is a 5 year limited warranty, which covers manufacturers defects. I have had the sharpening stone for quite a while, just over a year without using it once (started a new job). However upon receiving it I opened it, inspected it, and wrapped it in the trend brand fluid provided-soaked rag for long term storage. I recently picked up the 3 set of diamond stones that Rob Cosman recommends and decided to review them side by side, since Stumpy nubs was the reason I bought the trend stone. Not only did the diamonds sluff off in streaks leaving the 1000 grit side coarser than the 300 grid side, both sides have a hollow in the center. I understand that I didn't just buy this last week. But it was stored properly in a climate controlled building, and storage conditions do not change its squareness or flatness. Also for this to be almost $200 for ONE stone. Insane, at least have 2 so that you don't have to flip constantly if you're say, lapping the backs of new chisels. Which is what did this stone in, and pretty well ruined the Cryo-treated chisels that I was testing these on. I started with the Trend thinking it would be closer to the control (sandpaper on glass). After quite some time, disappointment, and some serious loss in money. I have to whole heartedly say that this is a horrible product that is overpriced by at least 2 times what it should be, with the quality control of a kindergarten P.E. teacher. Only thing worse about this product is the customer service. Just the run around from everyone. Seriously, any warranty presented is a complete joke that you'll never even find out whos responsible for upholding the terms. Amazon says Trend, Trend says it only warranties for 1 year. Great catch 22 here with the only loser being me. Don't be me.

This review occurs about three weeks after purchase. I have used this to sharpen plane irons, chisels and kitchen knives, a total of about two dozen blades thus far, and I am very satisfied with this stone. As the product literature states, no pressure! A consistent angle and light strokes are all that is needed.The 3x8 size is perfect. It is heavy and stays put when you use the non skid mat. I am clearly still breaking it in but I get shaving sharp edges after the 1000 grit edge is stropped on leather. The 300 grit face can reshape an incorrectly ground bevel on a chisel but be prepared that it can take a full 15 minutes. It also leaves a nice “tooth” on a chef’s knife so for average home kitchen use you don’t absolutely need to use the 1000 grit face. A chipped or rounded over edge should be taken to the grinder or belt sander first of course, in the interests of time.In sum, for most of my needs this is a speedy and space saving replacement for my large piece of float glass and inventory of automotive sandpaper. Well cared for, I expect this tool to outlive me.