Water or Oil, no does not matter. I use water, even on stones that were traditionally “Oil” stones because of the mess and smell of oiled stones.

But on some stones, to max out the performance, oil does work just a bit better, it is a matter of personal preference.

What does matter, is the level of finish a razor will require over knives and woodworking tools. Having done all three for many years, knives work well at 1K for most and possibly up to 4-5k, wood working tools 1K to 8K max.

8K for razors is a minimum finish level. At 8K and beyond the edge is very fine and fragile, pressure and technique play a very large part in performance.

The biggest difference is the comfort, that must be built into a razor edge, that you do not have to contend with for knives and tools, it is not just about sharp.