Recent content by vinster

Stones are easy. I order USPS medium flat rate boxes from the USPS website. Knife boxes are a bigger issue, but I'm not as much a knife nut as many on here are. I have 2 large contractor garbage bags full of foam peanuts, bubble wrap, and other padding material in my garage. I need to post a...

Oh yeah. I wasn't explicit. Keep them in a cool dry place. Think wine storage (for temp stability, not necessarily humidity). I like to let them dry slowly and naturally after use to help prevent cracks or sudden catastrophic failure. Sometimes I'll stack them on a safe surface -- kind of like...

I have stones hidden (and spread out) in every corner of the house where my wife is least likely to notice how many there are. There are usually a few on the counter, but most are on shelves or wire racks. I don't keep any that I care about in the garage - the temp swings out there can be...

Takeda used to supply good stones to various outlets as well as direct. Not sure if he still does.

One of my first jnats was a "Meara" I got years ago from Ken Schwartz. I suspect that is a marketing name made up by Ken or his supplier, but I'm not 100% sure. The dimensions of these stones are somewhat unique, and similar to a run of "Kouzaki" stones sold on JNS a couple years back. Similar...

I've tried some amakusa and binsui and haven't been happy with any. they're generally pretty slow. Aoto are really hit or miss. The cheaper ones are usually small 60mm wide stones. I'd second the recommendation of going up to 2-3k with a synthetic. it'll most likely be cheaper and faster cutting.

Great price on the Tsushima stone. I think it's an underrated stone around here. they're usually good size and super clean. Hard to make a slurry on its own but a diamond plate really helps it come alive. Finish is not quite as fine as a typical aizu.

Nice writeup Todd! To echo what brooksie and badger said -- some stones will respond (or react) to certain steels more than others. You'll notice it when you try different knives on the same stone, or the same stone on different knives. I've had a few stones pass through that had a strong...

The scratches on the surface used to drive me crazy! I've found the best way to get rid of them is to.... use the stone! hah. I can't say I've tried everything but an atoma 1200 will leave a visible scratch pattern. I've tried various synthetics but didn't want to worry about grit...

Many people don't care for an edge as refined as a hard jnat can put on kitchen knives (most of the time). It's generally harder to get a slurry going from a hard jnat vs a hard synth stone. But if you want to do it a tomo nagura is a good way to go. I personally like to abrade the surface of...

OP asked talked about finishes so it's worth mentioning that softer/muddier stones tend to be easier for beginners to leave an even polish on a knife bevel. If you just care about the end finish for less cost, then I might just get sandpaper and fingerstones and call it a day. Takes some elbow...

What I want to see is the Nakayama you're keeping!

I've yet to try either of these types of stones and would like to get my hands on some. I'd be interested in buying/borrowing/trading for one of these. If you're interested in a trade to test, I'd be open to sending a flat rate box containing some rocks in return for the same. PM me with what...

MM occasionally refreshes his stock on his website, but doesn't always update the "what's new" section so you might have to click through his categories. He seems to put a fair bit of stuff up for auction on ebay and on yahoo.jp. There's a huge ohira suita up right now that closes in less than a...

No Fair. Asteger has insider information. Picking 3 is hard. I think I could maybe do 5... But I should preface by saying that I'm just a home cook so my knives don't get a ton of use. I'm more interested in jnats for the finish they leave. I can get a sharp enough edge on all the stones here...