J-Nat Club

[julestools]

of those 3 a nice aizu is an easy rec. I love my natsuya too but way too coarse for my taste. I use it right before my aizu.

I have like 3 tomae stones from Shobudani I think they are all fantastic edge stones and not too pricey to boot. they polish a bit too shiny for my personal taste but seriously the edge on Shiro 1 off them is just nuts. definitely finer than the three you mentioned though, unless you found the finest aizu in existence

Based on previous research and discussions I’ve had, my gut says a finer Aizu would be a very approachable starter edge natty, but I’m definitely open to tomae and other stones; my knowledge of what’s out there is just limited. I like a toothiness that’s refined but also scares you a little bit

Yo I got you!

My sweet sweet prince. Texting you shortly to discuss!

 

[naader]

Ao renge from ohira, these stones hold a special place in my heart

 

[JimMaple98]

Maruoyama Tenkasumi Suita, I am still pretty damn new to this with only 6 Jnats but this is probably my prettiest stone.

 

[PalmRoyale]

An amazing Aiiwatani. This is one of the easiest and finest stones I've ever owned. It's too fine for knives but really shines with my Japanese chisels. I hardly needs any pressure to release a slurry.

 

[Froztitanz]

Shoubudani Maruka Asagi.

The finest stone I have. It's not easy to find a stone this hard that isn't grabby and still works well on knives.

 

[PalmRoyale]

I finally have an Aizu again. I sold one to a forum member a long time ago and I always kind of regretted it. Often thought abut getting another one but for some reason it never happened until recently. I use this one for my tools and with a generous slurry and little pressure I can get a smooth, shaving sharp edge that's perfect for chisels.

 

[rtt]

My new okudo suita that I was really excited about until I started doubting the authenticity of it....

Can anyone familiar with Okudo chime in if that is fake or real or impossible to tell ? There is a serial number on the side if that even means anything.

Haven't use it much other than a quick test polish and it seems to cut very fast with black inky swarf coming out in less than 10 stroke.

 

[naader]

My new okudo suita that I was really excited about until I started doubting the authenticity of it....

Can anyone familiar with Okudo chime in if that is fake or real or impossible to tell ? There is a serial number on the side if that even means anything.

Haven't use it much other than a quick test polish and it seems to cut very fast with black inky swarf coming out in less than 10 stroke.

I need higher resolution pics particularly of the sides to tell you anything conclusive

 

[rtt]

I need higher resolution pics particularly of the sides to tell you anything conclusive

Sorry I'm bad at uploading, let me retry with better resolution on my phone ! Here is a link to google drive for full resolution. thanks again for your help.

 

[naader]

That looks like some sort of asagi, not suita

 

[PalmRoyale]

Some stores in Japan will let you choose what stamps you want on a stone. They literally have a drawer full of them. Unless you know the personally know the miner there's no way to be sure where any stone came from. And you shouldn't worry about it. Judge a stone on how it performs.

 

[rtt]

Some stores in Japan will let you choose what stamps you want on a stone. They literally have a drawer full of them. Unless you know the personally know the miner there's no way to be sure where any stone came from. And you shouldn't worry about it. Judge a stone on how it performs.

That's true I should probably just use it and see how it goes, it does appear pretty fast with 5-10 light stroke and black inky swarf starts forming, definitely faster than my other finisher.

 

[rtt]

That looks like some sort of asagi, not suita

It's pretty white over and vendor said it's habutae type which translate to white robe I believe, but thanks for your input anyway !

 

[JDC]

It's pretty white over and vendor said it's habutae type which translate to white robe I believe, but thanks for your input anyway !

Is the stone acidic? You can try leaving some slurry (can be generated by diamond stone) on the soft iron and see if there's any mark left by the slurry after a minute or so.

 

[JDC]

One of my Okudo suita has a similar color to yours. This is what its slurry does.

 

[naader]

It's pretty white over and vendor said it's habutae type which translate to white robe I believe, but thanks for your input anyway !

I mean the patterning of the surface more than the actual colour lol.

Here's an example of habutae okudo shiro suita. Sides and face look completely different

 

[naader]

Even the lines on the face and on the bottom look like what I'd expact from an asagi.

 

[JDC]

Even the lines on the face and on the bottom look like what I'd expact from an asagi.

Will a sunashi suita look like that? I think maruoyana sunashi suitas look like tomae as well.

 

[naader]

Will a sunashi suita look like that? I think maruoyana sunashi suitas look like tomae as well.

Sunashi isn't some sort of specific layer, it's just a suita that doesn't have su layers in the entire thickness of the stone. The okudo I posted are between su layers on the surface so the surface lacks su/is sunashi.

The reason I think it is an asagi is because of the texture and patterning on the face more so than the sides.

I've attached a closeup picture for you that's similar to what I see when I look at your stone.

 

[JDC]

Sunashi isn't some sort of specific layer, it's just a suita that doesn't have su layers in the entire thickness of the stone. The okudo I posted are between su layers on the surface so the surface lacks su/is sunashi.

The reason I think it is an asagi is because of the texture and patterning on the face more so than the sides.

I've attached a closeup picture for you that's similar to what I see when I look at your stone.

Thanks for the reply, but I'm just a curious bystander, not the OP.

Yeah there can be some little holes even for a sunashi suita. But I do sometimes find Tomae-like sunashi suitas:
https://ikkyu-japanavenue.online/pr...60-size-1333g-f-s?_pos=4&_sid=124b6f178&_ss=r
Not saying they are legit though.

 

[naader]

Thanks for the reply, but I'm just a curious bystander, not the OP.

Yeah there can be some little holes even for a sunashi suita. But I do sometimes find Tomae-like sunashi suitas:
https://ikkyu-japanavenue.online/pr...60-size-1333g-f-s?_pos=4&_sid=124b6f178&_ss=r
Not saying they are legit though.

Definitely true, there are some sunashi suita that are tomae like, an entire layer of them from okudo afaik. The kinda cream colored tenjyou suita are almost alway 100% sunashi. They're also some of the damn nicest stones money can buy.
Here's one such example:

That being said, the stone posted on the ikkyu looks like no suita to me but what do I know lol

 

[naader]

Thanks for the reply, but I'm just a curious bystander, not the OP.

Yeah there can be some little holes even for a sunashi suita. But I do sometimes find Tomae-like sunashi suitas:
https://ikkyu-japanavenue.online/pr...60-size-1333g-f-s?_pos=4&_sid=124b6f178&_ss=r
Not saying they are legit though.

I just looked at the pics on my computer and im 90% sure that "okudo suita" ikkyu posted is a yaginoshima asagi lmfao. Knew from day 1 that site was a scam.

 

[Lucien]

I just looked at the pics on my computer and im 90% sure that "okudo suita" ikkyu posted is a yaginoshima asagi lmfao. Knew from day 1 that site was a scam.

I once noticed a couple of sold stones on Buyee that look exactly the same as ikkyu's inventory. I guess their whole business model is reselling stones from auctions without even trying them first...

 

[JDC]

I tried to buy from them, and they even sent testing pics for me. But the pricing wasn’t sweet enough for the size and quality. Anyone had actually bought from them?

 

[naader]

I once noticed a couple of sold stones on Buyee that look exactly the same as ikkyu's inventory. I guess their whole business model is reselling stones from auctions without even trying them first...

I've got no problem with them if they wana flip stuff but this is outright scamming lol. Sometimes you win a killer stone and slap a fat markup, sometimes you get concrete with an okudo stamp and take the loss. These guys don't get that.

 

[cotedupy]

I've bought a stone from Ikkuyu. It was trash, but very cheap so not the end of the world. You live and learn eh!

 

[JDC]

I've bought a stone from Ikkuyu. It was trash, but very cheap so not the end of the world. You live and learn eh!

Guess they didn't mention "trash" in their description!

 

[cotedupy]

Guess they didn't mention "trash" in their description!

No... They did play pretty fast and loose with the definition of the term of 'non-toxic' though!

 

[user 16756]

I tried to buy from them, and they even sent testing pics for me. But the pricing wasn’t sweet enough for the size and quality. Anyone had actually bought from them?

tons of stuff.

it should be obvious that when you buy from them you're rolling the dice. subsequently, I dont buy anything expensive from them. on the other hand, I have an INCREDIBLE ohira shiro suita from them they thought was laden with toxic lines and cost like 250 dollars. and several perfectly fine tomae stones.

I would not spend 500 dollars on a stone from them even, much less the kind of money you'd shell out for a big chunk of uchigumori/nakayama/etc. there are plenty of sources for actual good stones if you have the money, and when I spend up Im going to go to one of those.

 

[JDC]

tons of stuff.

it should be obvious that when you buy from them you're rolling the dice. subsequently, I dont buy anything expensive from them. on the other hand, I have an INCREDIBLE ohira shiro suita from them they thought was laden with toxic lines and cost like 250 dollars. and several perfectly fine tomae stones.

I would not spend 500 dollars on a stone from them even, much less the kind of money you'd shell out for a big chunk of uchigumori/nakayama/etc. there are plenty of sources for actual good stones if you have the money, and when I spend up Im going to go to one of those.

Very useful information, thanks! I'll bet with confidence next time I see something interesting on their website lol.