u/Xkapa

There's a big sale I want to take advantage of and would appreciate recommendations for my first sharpening stone. I already got great advice a few days ago but these are now new better-value options I'm weighing.
My budget is €50-€80 and I will be sharpening mostly softer-steel kitchen knives.

Atoma 140 replacement plate: €49 (would have to glue it to something flat)
Atoma 400: €55
Shapton Rockstar 500: €43
Shapton Glass 500: €30 (obviosly thinner than Rockstar)
Shapton Rockstar 1000: €44
Naniwa Chocera Pro 400: €35
Naniwa Chocera Pro 600: €47
Shapton Pro 1000: €29
* plus various lapping stones by Naniwa for €17 to €37

Will I be reviving very dull knives and setting new bevels or just maintaining sharpness? Well, the former would be nice but if it requires getting a stone that won't be used much or passing up on the perfect setup for maintaining sharpness, then I'm content to just do the latter.
The ideal setup might be getting one of the Atomas plus the Shapton Pro 1000, if it's fine to use the Atoma for both setting a new bevel occasionally and for flattening regularly. Or maybe Glass 500 plus Atoma 140. I could also perhaps forgo an Atoma and get one of the cheaper lapping stones plus a middle-of-the-road stone like the Rockstar 500 or one of the Choceras...

Thanks in advance!

I would appreciate some advice to help me decide if I could or should get into (kitchen) knife sharpening for myself and my friends, at least at this point in time.

Context: I'm going to buy my first decent kitchen knife and a honing rod, and in searching for recommendations I stumbled upon videos and forums dedicated to the hobby and profession/trade of knife sharpening. I've only become aware of it a few days ago, but it's definitely something I can see myself enjoying; it seems to be a hobby and skill that is very useful, has an accessible gradual learning curve and a beautiful tactile and meditative quality. However, I'm on a pretty limited budget right now, already to be partially spent on a knife and a honing rod. So I can basically only afford one single stone to get me started and give me a feel for the hobby.

There is a store selling Japanese knives and sharpening supplies (plus sharpening services) a 2-hour drive away from me . I'm either going to buy a Tojiro Basic Nakiri for $77 from them or I'll buy a Victorinox Fibrox chef's knife for $47. I can get a second-hand MAC ceramic honing rod (#2000, 215mm) for $40; of course, for steel rods there's a variety of options around or below that price.

My whetstone options: I can get a second-hand but unused/like-new Naniwa Gouken #1000 for $40. And the above-mentioned store sells Naniwa Traditional Standard #220 for $53, Shapton Rockstar #320 ($66), #500 ($68), #1000 ($71) and #2000 ($80). The $71 is probably the most I would be ready to spend on a stone right now.

(Btw, I plan to DIY a strop using either an old leather belt or a piece of denim I have lying around plus a grit paste/emulsion.)

Questions:

• Should I go for a #1000 stone or is a coarser one better because it will allow me to refresh really dull knives in a reasonable amount of time?
• Can I avoid spending a lot of money in the near future on an Atoma 140 for flattening the whetstones? Can I really reliably flatten using the 'flat surface + silicon carbide grit' method or 'flat surface + wet sandpaper' method? Depending on how often the whetstone will need flattening, could I maybe just occasionally take the stone to the knife-store above and have it flattened there? Is the only way to avoid the hassle and stay within budget to go for an affordable diamond stone instead (the Sharpal 168H 320/1000)?
• Are there any cons, other than a less enjoyable experience, to an affordable dual-grit diamond stone like the Sharpal 168H for a beginner like me, for example: an inherently more aggressive grind (more scratches/grooves on the bevel face), an inconsistent grit due to a period of break-in or due to wearing out as opposed to constant surface-refreshing of a water stone etc?

Thanks!