Thread: Final call for my birthday finishing hone. 12K nani, 10K king.

This is the final call on the finishing hone I want for my birthday. The order will be placed this weekend.

The options I have are the.

10mm x 70mm x 210mm 12K naniwa with an 8K rubbing stone. £85

10mm x 70mm x210mm 10K naniwa with an 8K rubbing stone. £80

Or the oddball.

25mm x 75mm x 200mm 10K king with 8K rubbing stone. £90


I'm sure most people will say the Nani 12K is where I should go. I just can't help looking at that 10K king and seeing a lot more stone for the money. Yes The king needs a soak, And it's probably slower than both naniwa stones. The the king is almost the same dimensions but you get a stone and a half more thickness for only £5 more. I'm also pretty used to the king stone as I've been using the 1/6 combi for a few months and I happen to like the hardness and the slow cutting. Added to the fact it is very forgiving.

Has anyone used both stones and can give a direct comparison.

The naniwa is a much higher quality and better performer all around over the king. Not a matter of more stone for your money. Well in a sense it is, although smaller, naniwa will give you much more bang for your buck. Or pound. Or sterling or rupee

The 12k will outlive you, so the difference in thickness is pretty much irrelevant.

Happy Birthday!

If the Ice Bear is, as reputed, a rebranded Kitayama 8K, then I have used both and would definitely recommend the Naniwa 12K for finishing razors.

Nani 12k for me also works great

Originally Posted by Ecl

If the Ice Bear is, as reputed, a rebranded Kitayama 8K, then I have used both and would definitely recommend the Naniwa 12K for finishing razors.

Kitayama 8k and Icebear 10k is one and the same. (minus some kanji on the top of one)

I have a full set of both the king and Naniwa (including the Kitayama 8k).... IMHO - It would be like taking a Porsche or a Fererri to a race track and racing against a Nissan Cube..

Originally Posted by Brighty83

Kitayama 8k and Icebear 10k is one and the same. (minus some kanji on the top of one)

I have a full set of both the king and Naniwa (including the Kitayama 8k).... IMHO - It would be like taking a Porsche or a Fererri to a race track and racing against a Nissan Cube..

Yeah, nothing against the Kitayama. It's a good stone, mis-marketed by people who cut-and-paste their copy instead of being familiar with their stock. I bought mine because of the vendor's assertion that it was an 8K with friable grit that could polish up to 10K. Maybe even 12K... or higher! Buy it! It bends space and time! It'll change your life! The fact is, I've found it to be a decent but unexceptional 8K and nothing more. I put mine in my knife pile, where it's my go-to finisher for those kitchen knives that need something in that range.

Just talking grit here but if you have only the 1/6k and are looking for the next step, I would say get the King 10k. A 6k step up just sounds like a lot to me and if you like the way your king works for you then you have that to consider. And unless your going to open shop and hone razors for a living the thickness should not be considered. There, you got my 2 cents :<0)

I've not used the Naniwa 12K but the King 6K, which I do have, is in roughly the same ballpark as a Norton 8K from what I'm told and I've read quite a few people happily going from there to the 12K.

It's a bit of a stretch, but certainly workable. I'd finish on the 6K with some feather-light strokes on clear water, then go to the Naniwa.