Exactly! I gave up on water stones ... except for my 12,000 because they don't stay flat. Sure ... you can use a flattening stone or something else ... and can do a decent job of it ... but flatness isn't the only problem ... it's twist ... and if ya use a jig that references to other than the stone like the Brian Burns jig ... it'll drive ya nuts getting a decent edge. Also ... you can remove a lot of thickness real fast trying to flatten something like a 4000 with a flattening stone ... it's easy to remove 1/8" real fast ... and you'll still have the twist to remove.

The reason I moved away from the Veritas jigs was because the ones I had had a tough time properly holding tapered tools and mine was tricky to use on my Japanese chisels and their 30 degree bevels. The Brian Burns jig worked much better for my stuff.

Ken Blanton

: All right- that system looks cumbersome, but I suppose if you were
: left in a dimly lit room and those were the only materials you
: had at hand it would be a good solution.

: Anyway- I gave up on water stones, and here's why- they don't stay
: flat. So your blades don't stay flat. To get the stones flat
: once they're not flat you have to remove material, which is
: money down the drain.

: I switched to mylar sheets because even mounted on a piece of MDF
: they are flatter to begin with and stay flatter, and when they
: start to loose their abrasive you don't have to get out your
: nagura or diamond hone to flatten them, you just rip off your
: sheet and stick down another one. I also like using mineral oil
: to clean the swarth instead of water. No rust or black flecks on
: my work from oxidizing swarth.

: One of the best features of the Veritas jig is the cam on the wheel
: that allow you to set an accurate and repeatable microbevel. You
: don't need to sharpen the whole thing, so it barely takes any
: time, and the blades last longer because you aren't grinding
: them away as quickly.

: m