Shapton GlassStone 320 Grit

The 320 grit stone fills a specific gap that sharpeners discover once they start working with a proper progression. Below 500 grit you are in heavy metal removal territory - 120 and 220 are for serious reprofiling and significant chip work. Above 500 you are into normal bevel setting and refinement. The 320 sits right between those two zones - coarse enough to remove metal quickly from damaged or neglected edges, refined enough to leave a scratch pattern that cleans up in one step on a 500 or 1000 grit stone without laboring through multiple intermediate grits. If you own a 120 or 220 and find you are spending too long bridging to your 1000, the 320 is the stone that fixes that.

Shapton makes the GlassStone 320 with the same hard, dense abrasive construction that defines the entire GlassStone line - fast-cutting, slow-wearing, and bonded to a tempered glass backing that keeps the stone thin, light, and resistant to cracking from drops. No soaking required after the initial first-use preparation - splash with water and start sharpening. One reviewer noted this stone cuts fast enough without slurry that it actually performs differently from the 120 and 220, which benefit more from slurry buildup. That is a useful distinction: the 320 is efficient and clean even on a dry splash, which makes it quick to set up and quick to clean up.

What Customers Are Saying: All four reviewers gave this stone five stars. One called it the best coarse stone he had ever used, raising a burr in under a minute per side. A second said it will put a shaving edge on any blade in a short time and wished he had bought it years earlier. A third uses it as the first stone on every knife, noting it removes material freely while leaving the edge ready for a 1000 grit follow-up. The most detailed review maps out exactly where this stone sits in the progression - noting it is fast enough to jump straight to 1000 grit if you do not own a 500, and the perfect bridge stone from a 120 or 220 if you do. That is exactly how to use it.

• Brand: Shapton
• Origin: Made in Japan
• Series: GlassStone
• Grit: 320
• Use: Splash and Go (no soaking required after first use)
• Construction: Abrasive bonded to tempered glass
• Stone Dimensions: 210 x 70 x 5 mm (8.25 x 2.75 x 0.2 in)
• Total Thickness with Glass Backing: 10 mm
• Item Number: 50301

Care Instructions: Splash with water before each use - no soaking required after the initial first-use soak. Flatten regularly with a diamond plate to maintain a true surface. Store dry between sessions. Handle with care - the tempered glass backing improves drop resistance over standard ceramic stones but is not indestructible. Spots or color variation on the surface are normal and do not affect performance.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​