Sharpening, love it or hate it, it's a must for clean , crisp joints and ease of work. I remember when I started to be able to get my planes, and chisels sharp enough to cut the hair from my arm. When I was able to do this my work improved dramatically, and I learnt a new understanding of my planes and chisels. I use diamond plates/stones and I have never used anything else other then a cheap oil stone, so I can't comment on other systems but, diamond plates get the job done quickly, no mess or fuss and the all important sharpness I'm looking for. I do hear that Japanese water stones will never be surpassed, but they just sound like to much hassle to me. Storing them in water, packing and unpacking, flatten them and not to mention the cost of them. Diamond stones are really good, I've got them all set up on a piece of ply , extra coarse , course , medium and fine. I pull the board from underneath my bench , put it in the vise, spray some window cleaner...
One man's obsession with woodwork.