Help non-polisher pick a polishing stone

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Danejah

Danejah

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So I somewhat foolishly sold a nice (I believe) aiiwatani koppa I got from JNS. I didn’t really think polishing was an avenue I wanted to venture down. But I recently picked up knife from Simon Maillet that I really like and think I will hold onto. Thinking more “stone finished/ready” knives may be in my future. I do understand or assume that although many of these knives are “stone ready” they may not be absolutely perfect but more ready than other knives. I’m not looking for perfection but am I assuming that if I had a polishing stone I could achieve decent results out of the gate with general understanding of the fundamentals.
Current stones:
JKI diamond plate Gesshin400,2k, gesshin Synthetic Natural

Wondering if a BBW could possibly fill this role. Read through the thread and folks seem to think it has admirable polishing capabilities and gives a great edge( not sure the overlap with my synth natural) and the price of BBQ is also appealing.

Correct me if my assumptions here, ultimately I’d like to find a way of achieving a reasonable reset of patina and having a nice finish other than using flitz. Have also thought about stone powder but my knowledge in the arena is limited. Hoping to avoid a rabbit hole.
Thanks!
 
Get something soft and not overly fine - ie, you don’t want a nakayama kiita, hard suita, asagi type stone, etc.

Something soft that’ll self slurry and leave a good finish is ideal. Shoubu tomae are usually a good bet for knives. AFrames has a couple iromono type Shoubu in stock that I bet would be incredible. Maruo shiro suita have gotten harder to find and more expensive but would also be a very solid bet.
 
I am selling a stone that would probably tick the boxes @ethompson mentions above, I’ll shoot you a PM.
 
What kind of steel is that Simon? I find BBW great for pure, simple carbon, like white no. 2. Less good for AS. It is great for edges. I think the easiest, cheapest solution is a King 800 -- just use the mud on a rag or polishing sponge. That will get you most of the way there. Beyond that, the rabbit hole beckons. You might try a Natsuya, for not too much, or you could jump right in a hunt down an Ohira Suita. It'll hurt financially in the short run, but you'll miss all the intermediary stops.
 
ethompson said:
Get something soft and not overly fine - ie, you don’t want a nakayama kiita, hard suita, asagi type stone, etc.

Something soft that’ll self slurry and leave a good finish is ideal. Shoubu tomae are usually a good bet for knives. AFrames has a couple iromono type Shoubu in stock that I bet would be incredible. Maruo shiro suita have gotten harder to find and more expensive but would also be a very solid bet.
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Nice feedback and nice to see you back on the forum, thank you!
 
Cliff said:
What kind of steel is that Simon? I find BBW great for pure, simple carbon, like white no. 2. Less good for AS. It is great for edges. I think the easiest, cheapest solution is a King 800 -- just use the mud on a rag or polishing sponge. That will get you most of the way there. Beyond that, the rabbit hole beckons. You might try a Natsuya, for not too much, or you could jump right in a hunt down an Ohira Suita. It'll hurt financially in the short run, but you'll miss all the intermediary stops.
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Its White1 with xc15? cladding I believe, the king800 is an option I have not considered. Thanks
 
BBW is definitely something to consider, probably the best value in naturals. Search recent threads for that King 800 -- you'll see some beautiful jobs that look pretty straightforward.
 
I've actually had pretty good results with AS on a BBW for sharpening. As far as polishing is concerned, another alternative to consider might just be uchi finger stones. In that case, you can use synthetics (though probably something higher than 2K) to polish the core steel and then just create a kasumi finish with the finger stones.
 
yummycrackers said:
I've actually had pretty good results with AS on a BBW for sharpening. As far as polishing is concerned, another alternative to consider might just be uchi finger stones. In that case, you can use synthetics (though probably something higher than 2K) to polish the core steel and then just create a kasumi finish with the finger stones.
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Yes, BBW leaves a screaming, angry edge on AS. But for polishing, you won't get the bright core you will on white 1 or white 2
 
Sounds like the King800 for 22 bucks on amazon might not be the worst place to start. Probably worth seeking out a BBW as well. Not sure why its so hard for my brain to justify the cost of a Jnat.....
 
I can’t remember how cerax 1k compares to king 800 but it’s also cheap and muddy.
Cerax 1200/3k mini combo stone is a low budget way to test the waters if you’d like before you start making some serious investments. But the 1200 side wears crazy fast so need to stay on top of flattening it.
 
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Danejah said:
Sounds like the King800 for 22 bucks on amazon might not be the worst place to start. Probably worth seeking out a BBW as well. Not sure why its so hard for my brain to justify the cost of a Jnat.....
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For polishing, king 800 is soft and muddy, but coarse. So what that means is that you get lots of contrast very easy, but the resulting finish will have a significant amount of drag. It's good for a base stone, then follow up with something finer to finish.
 
tostadas said:
For polishing, king 800 is soft and muddy, but coarse. So what that means is that you get lots of contrast very easy, but the resulting finish will have a significant amount of drag. It's good for a base stone, then follow up with something finer to finish.
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That’s definitely something on my mind. I get decent contrast with my gesshin 400 but was curious about the potential drag as I’ve seen that discussed here before with coarser stones
 
Danejah said:
Ive been checking that stone out as well, I really should just reach out to Jon and get his opinion based on my needs. Do you have any experience with it?
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Never a bad idea to seek advice from Jon. He always tells it straight and won’t try to sell you something you don’t need.
 
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