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Grit Table / standards / Reference scale

The yardstick

The reference scale 参考刻度

JIS R6001, fitted across its range, as one yardstick

One scale to read every product against. The reference scale is JIS R6001, which spans the widest grit range that sharpening stones use (#240 to #8000), fitted between its grades and extended past its ends by continuing JIS's own trend, so any grit number maps to a micron. The real JIS rungs (#240 to #8000) are firm; the extended rungs (coarser than #240, finer than #8000) are our extrapolation and uncertain. The extended fine numbers land far below the maker numbers (#16000 here is 0.35 micron, where makers call it about 0.9), which is the point: maker ultra-fine grits run coarser than an extended JIS would put them.

Particle sizemicrons, log
1005030201053210.50.3
coarserfiner
inkmeasured or standardmaker figureour estimate
shapeknown distributionpoint, spread unknown
#150Our estimate
reference
96.3 µm

Extrapolated below JIS R6001 #240, continuing the coarse end-trend

#220Our estimate
reference
62.8 µm

Extrapolated below JIS R6001 #240, continuing the coarse end-trend

#240Standard-defined
reference
57 µm

JIS R6001 median.

#320Standard-defined
reference
40 µm

JIS R6001 median.

#400Standard-defined
reference
30 µm

JIS R6001 median.

#600Standard-defined
reference
20 µm

JIS R6001 median.

#800Standard-defined
reference
14 µm

JIS R6001 median.

#1000Standard-defined
reference
11.5 µm

JIS R6001 median.

#1200Standard-defined
reference
9.5 µm

JIS R6001 median.

#1500Standard-defined
reference
8 µm

JIS R6001 median.

#2000Standard-defined
reference
6.7 µm

JIS R6001 median.

#3000Standard-defined
reference
4 µm

JIS R6001 median.

#4000Standard-defined
reference
3 µm

JIS R6001 median.

#5000Our estimate
reference
2.4 µm

Interpolated between JIS R6001 #4000 and #6000 (log-log)

#6000Standard-defined
reference
2 µm

JIS R6001 median.

#8000Standard-defined
reference
1.2 µm

JIS R6001 median.

#10000Our estimate
reference
0.81 µm

Extrapolated past JIS R6001 #8000, continuing the fine end-trend (uncertain)

#12000Our estimate
reference
0.58 µm

Extrapolated past JIS R6001 #8000, continuing the fine end-trend (uncertain)

#16000Our estimate
reference
0.35 µm

Extrapolated past #8000 (uncertain; makers call their #16000 about 0.9 um)

#20000Our estimate
reference
0.24 µm

Extrapolated past JIS R6001 #8000, continuing the fine end-trend (uncertain)

#30000Our estimate
reference
0.11 µm

Extrapolated past #8000 (uncertain; makers call their #30000 about 0.5 um)