Buying a Jnat - Facts, Fiction and Reality 

Happy Honing!

Happy Honing!

Happy Honing!

+Niclas Gudmundsson Thanks for the feedback. The audio, or lack thereof, is one of two hurdles with using the iPhone. The other is the equally annoying (for me) lack of dynamic range. As for the audio -, my Laptop's Vol. setting is about 75% and sound is fine. It seems that's not the same for everyone though. Seems I need at least a 25% bump in gain to accommodate everyone's audio/vol needs. This might be possible with an external mic. Dynamic range is what it is though - so I'll prob revert to one of my SLRs or the mirrorless, which have better everything - including audio. The convenience of using my old iPhone can't be beat though.

Happy Honing!

Hi - my Etsy shop will reopen in a few days, you’ll be able to find a stone or two for sale there.

Best thing to do is check my Etsy store - stones come and go there frequently. Your price point is a bit lower than most of the least expensive stones I usually have though.

Hi! Thanks for watching and commenting too! Oh that stone, wow - that was 2 yr ago... hard to remember which stone was which...can't really recall that one in particular.

Thanks anyway! I thought you know that japanese inscription.

I do, it says Iwatani, but lots of stone came from that quarry; and I've had dozens from that location. Unfortunately, I don't remember any details about that particular one.

HI Aaron, I get questions like this often. I understand why they come up, but it's more of a topic of discussion than it is a question that can actually be answered factually in a purely objective sense. The main thing is that Coticule edges are usually totally different than Jnat edges. Trying to determine which is better or best or if one will improve upon the other is a flawed concept. Some people love Cotis, some do not. Some like Jnats and some do not. And round and round we go. As an aside, a Jnat (or any natural hone) can not be judged by the name of the quarry/mine it came from. In the same way that every La Grise is different (you will find an extremely broad range of opinons on that particular vein) every stone from Oozuku is totally different. Every stone has to be judged on its own merit. I have handled good and bad Oozuku, and there are fake Oozuku and so on and so forth. Hones should be chosen based on their individual quaiites. As for whether or not any particular edge can be improved upon, that's impossible for someone that never shaved with the edge in question to answer. In the past, I've been sent razors with 'spectacularly perfect' edges that were, to me - only so-so or even 'not there'. I have sent edges that I felt were garden variety level to other people who remarked that they were sharper/smoother than anything they had imagined possible. Similarly, sometimes, a stone that brings one person the most insanely sharp/smooth edges will totally befuddle the next user. Everyone is different. Everyone has subjective opinions that are both valid and impossible to qualify sometimes. As much as people continually try to be objective with edge sharpness and so on, there are so many variables and so many personal preferences that it really is impossible to be 100% purely scientific about it. So - will you ever be able to better the edges you get off your Coticule with stone x - y - z? I don't know - maybe, maybe not.

So I guess what I'm curious about is how the properties of the Oozuku would compare to a soft, but slow coticule?

Well, to satisfy your curiosity you'd need to take one oozuku and one soft coticule and put them down next to each other and test them side by side. But you would only have 1 comparison between 2 stones. There are a lot of oozukus and a lot of soft coticules - one test between 2 stones doesn't speak for all possible combinations.

I see what you mean. Guess, I was just seeking a point of reference to get an idea of how different they are.

The only path to understanding, is by doing.

Happy Honing!

To simplify everything - all that matters is performance. So always judge a Jnat based on its qualities, not where it came from. Always buy Jnats from someone that used the stone you want and can tell you what it does.

Makes sense, good advice, thanks

Unfortunately, not at this time, no - sorry.

Keith V. Johnson thanks man, I would like one of those you call the surgical Black. Please let me know if have some on stock st any time. Thanks.

I would suggest not choosing stones based on the name of the quarry - Oozuku was nothing more than a hole in the ground, same for the other quarries. If you want a very hard stone, that's one thing - but overlooking a very/super hard stone from another quarry might not be the best way to achieve your sharpening goal. Oozuku is just a name - just like Nakayama, Shobu, etc - we should rely on the individual stone's qualities that they were created with, not the names given by mankind. But if you run across an Oozku that works how you want it to, then so be it.

Keith V. Johnson ubderstood, could you point me out a really hard premium finisher for razors? Any way ill keep on the look out for other mines and Collor patterns. I also collect prior to honing só good looking stones and some from different mines are on my buy list. Thanks Keith

If something like that shows up I'll keep you posted!

I am not an advocate of using a diamond nagura to make slurry for honing. I get way better results using a Tomo Nagura.

Cheers Keith, I have come across others saying the same, I guess one of my reasons for not bothering to try it. Thanks.

This video is a a few years old now, I can't remember what I used on which stone back then. FWIW - It's fairly easy to recreate the 'look' of Cashew and Urushi, they're just lacquers so any lacquer, enamel, varnish will emultate them. But it's nearly impossible to recreate the feel and 'second skin' effect that they provide. Nail polish does a decent job, and I use it when I am out of Cashew.

The LV system isn't standardized, so when someone says LV whatever it means very little to me. Not all very hard stones are razor stones. A lot of them are turds actually. For a long time a famous internet seller was selling "Ozuku Koppa' by the boatload - all of them were LV 5, 5+++ and all of that b/s. They were junk stone, low abrasive content, inconsistent, scratchy, and riddled with toxic inclusions. I am fairly certain they weren't even Ozuku. So, no - LV 5 is not an indicator. It's just a number someone arbitrarily assigned to the stone. There's no science there, it's ll made up marketing jazz.

Keith V. Johnson glad I asked because that is what I assumed was the case. Do you have sellers you’ve tried and trusted then? Thanks for the reply.

@@tayloralbrecht8362 Unfortunately, I do not. I don't recommend anyone, and I don't speak negatively of anyone either. I have to remain neutral.

Keith V. Johnson very respectable

Yeah, this was made 7 years ago, I didn't have a microphone at the time.

Four years ago I didn't have enough money to buy an external microphone, so some of the older videos have audio that is a bit low.

@@KeithVJohnson1 thanks for the answer.