Here's an unfancy little Narutaki Tomae that shows nicely why this kind of thing can be a very good catch-all stone for Japanese knives. Cost me $60 from someone in the US, and I guess you could probably find for half that with some snooping around on Yahoo Japan.
It's a soft stone and not the fastest thing in the world, but then it's a jnat and they're not. And because of that, what this kind kind of stone does do well is sharpening slowly without raising much of a noticeable burr.
On a lot of other types of stone that do that you're likely to get a very overly-refined edge in terms of kitchen knife use, but often with jnats you don't. This edge is fine but still has some bite even on Shirogami 2 which isn't the toothiest steel in the world. We can do nice wavy patterns in paper towel though.
The real kicker in terms of versatility though is because it's quite muddy it also polishes nicely and easily. This knife had some bits of brown rust on it before I started because I'd cut a load of onions and not washed it up immediately. Coupla mins on the stone though and back looking fairly presentable I think, it's not a completely world-class finish off a long progression of fancy polishing stones, but it's a pretty nice kasumi with a minimum of fuss.
There aren't many non-Japanese stones that can do this kind of dual-purpose versatility in the same way. Hindos and Dalmores might be slightly better for sharpening, but not quite as good a polish, and Belgian Blue Whetstone is slightly better for both, but that's about it.
I don't use jnats very often tbh, but even the less glamorous ones like this have a certain charm and feel to them, and will do things that not many other stones can replicate.
It's a soft stone and not the fastest thing in the world, but then it's a jnat and they're not. And because of that, what this kind kind of stone does do well is sharpening slowly without raising much of a noticeable burr.
On a lot of other types of stone that do that you're likely to get a very overly-refined edge in terms of kitchen knife use, but often with jnats you don't. This edge is fine but still has some bite even on Shirogami 2 which isn't the toothiest steel in the world. We can do nice wavy patterns in paper towel though.
The real kicker in terms of versatility though is because it's quite muddy it also polishes nicely and easily. This knife had some bits of brown rust on it before I started because I'd cut a load of onions and not washed it up immediately. Coupla mins on the stone though and back looking fairly presentable I think, it's not a completely world-class finish off a long progression of fancy polishing stones, but it's a pretty nice kasumi with a minimum of fuss.
There aren't many non-Japanese stones that can do this kind of dual-purpose versatility in the same way. Hindos and Dalmores might be slightly better for sharpening, but not quite as good a polish, and Belgian Blue Whetstone is slightly better for both, but that's about it.
I don't use jnats very often tbh, but even the less glamorous ones like this have a certain charm and feel to them, and will do things that not many other stones can replicate.
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