Thread: Nakayama stone thoughts...

Hi all. First off, I am not putting this in the review section because I am not an experienced straight shaver, so I don't want to presume to compare this stone to anything else in that regard. This thread is more of an observation and I thought this would be the best place for it, it's more for discussion than review but if the mods want to move it you have my blessing.

I ordered a Nakayama stone from OS. This is the stone I bought...

Hone #1

As a side note, Old School is a phenomonal seller. I'm glad I scooped this up. I bought the lowest priced one because this was more of an experiment for me. I have the entire line of shapton glass stones, which are the best I have personally used, but I have read so much about these, and found this one to try.

I have been sharpening all my life so I would regard myself as somewhat knowledgable about steels and stones, and I would feel comfortable talking about a stones performance. I have seen photo documentation of natural stones vs synthetic. Here SHAPTON

So I got the stone and used it on my straight and some other knives. I don't have the means to photograph it but the photos you can find on that site comparing the Nakayama and 30k are accurate. The nakayama absolutely blows away the 30k, removing much of the scratch pattern left by the glass stone. It was actually pretty amazing. The stone itself is nice to use, very hard, very flat and takes a while to build up some slurry where as the shapton is much quicker. I can see why people say that it is not a "beginner's" stone. It's not hard to use but it's more a pursuit in perfection that requires the patience and appreciation that would be lost on a beginner.

With the limited amount of straight shaving experience I have the nakayama left a much more comfortable surface. Still very sharp, I would say sharper, but it feels much less aggressive on your skin. On other knives the stone responded the same, though I will probably never use it on anything except for my straight. But all in all the stone is everything people say it is and for an application like a straight razor, it seems like the better option to me than any sort of synthetic finishing stone, of which I have tried many.

But for a knife and hone junky, within 2 hours of using it, this stone jumped up to the top of my favorites list. This is the only natural stone I have tried, but I would definately consider this option in the future based on what this natural one does.

Impressive.

Thanks for that little "review". I have a Nakayama Maruichi that I bought from O_S not long ago, http://straightrazorpalace.com/basic...-maruichi.html, and I can vouch that he is a great and very helpful seller. Although I haven't used my stone on many razors and while I still consider myself quite the honing novice, I am more than pleased with it.

Not long I actually checked OLD_SCHOOL's site to take a look at the Nakayamas he was selling (I just like to look ) and I noticed the first one was purchased! I wondered how long it would take until someone here on the forum showed off their new acquisition, and it sounds like it went to a good home. Enjoy.

I checked the OS site, and find no prices posted. The narrative there makes a reference to costing only a few hundreds but not thousands. That sounds like anything less than a grand might be a bargain. What did your stone cost?

This is his site (just to clarify, I posted two above)

Hone #1

Mine was $200 because it is smaller than most and not as perfect as some. For what I wanted it it was perfect. Knowing myself as I do, I'm sure that someday I will buy an amazing specimen. Probably after I buy a natural stone that fits the pre-finishing range.

I went back and forth with several knives (not razors) from the shapton 30k to the nakayama and the latter is clearly just a better finishing stone. It also seems clear that it is due to the randomeness of both grit size and location where as synthetic is less so.

For someone with an interest in razor honing, I would certainly bypass the shapton for the nakayama, no question. My microscope goes to 100x and it shows a much smoother finish that your skin will confirm.

Originally Posted by brothers

I checked the OS site, and find no prices posted. The narrative there makes a reference to costing only a few hundreds but not thousands. That sounds like anything less than a grand might be a bargain. What did your stone cost?

Gary, O_S has prices posted on the details page of each individual unsold one. Right now, he has 2 listed stones, for $320 and $180.

Congrats on your new hone. I'm a new J-nat owner too. Cool rocks ain't they?
I bought a Shobu-Dani Suita as a pre finisher before my Asagi stage but I 'm experimenting with a Spyderco UF in between the 2.

Another fantastic option for quality Japanese hones is So Yamash*ta at Japan Tool. He and his father have thousands of hones stockpiled so they have a wide inventory to choose from. This guy and his father are part of many generations of hone dealers and they know their stuff. So has perfectly good English skills (with an Australian accent!) and he will work with you to get you the hone you want in the price range you want. He tends to be swamped with people looking for hones so he occasionally shuts down his site to catch up but he is worth the wait.

That explains it. Thanks. I see that the 2 Maruichi stones do indeed have the prices listed. How do the Maruichi stones compare to the Nakayamas?

Originally Posted by Utopian

Another fantastic option for quality Japanese hones is So Yamash*ta at Japan Tool. He and his father have thousands of hones stockpiled so they have a wide inventory to choose from. This guy and his father are part of many generations of hone dealers and they know their stuff. So has perfectly good English skills (with an Australian accent!) and he will work with you to get you the hone you want in the price range you want. He tends to be swamped with people looking for hones so he occasionally shuts down his site to catch up but he is worth the wait.

It has been unclear to me if he keeps his site up to date. It took 2 months for him to answer me (meaning - be patient). Now, I have been waiting for him to answer my question for a few weeks.

Originally Posted by Pyment

It has been unclear to me if he keeps his site up to date. It took 2 months for him to answer me (meaning - be patient). Now, I have been waiting for him to answer my question for a few weeks.

I corresponded with him a year or so ago. I also waited weeks to hear back but his reply was quite comprehensive once I received it. He asked me where I wanted the hone to fit in and what I expected out of it. At the time I really didn't know myself so nothing ever came of it.

Now you guys are sorely tempting me to start looking at these legendary Nakayamas again but I have to pay for my Naniwas first. Ain't enough money in the world.