Thread: 8k synthetic options?

Originally Posted by celticcrusader

Butzy, as long as it the one I'm showing in the photo then I'm sure you will be OK, don't buy one unless it's that particular one, It's a really hard stone that needs very little water and it never needs to be soaked.

The old ones look very very similar but have the stamps in slightly different locations relative to the edges. They discontinued these and the current ones are supposedly the same thing, but I have seen a report of someone saying that they feel different... though i've only heard one person say that so i figured i'd ask. purely a question of curiosity!

yea I have heard same thing about new ones. Just going to wait and see if anything pops up in BST, not in a rush to get another one

I have Norton 8k (full size hone, 5 years old Mexico not USA) a Suehiro Cerax 8k and a Naniwa snow white.

Cerax is fast similar to the snow white for speed but not as hard and need way more water (not loads, just the the Snow White really dont need much)
I do like my Norton the edge looks more polished than with the snow white imho under the loupe, But I have not used the Norton since getting the snow white.

I could do with getting 2 identical razors and use the Norton and Snow White in a shave off, I do have a twin set hone up Hmmmm.

I will try and do this this weekend, and now I am interested to find out for myself, (Plus I have not shaved off an 8k edge)

Maybe not the stones you was interested in but some available options for you to consider I suppose.

Good luck with what ever you choose,

But the bonding the Slim Norton 8k onto something seems like a winner to me, esp if you like what the 8k has done for you, why spend more?

Anyone a fan of the Kitayama 8k? Apparently, it can be used soaked for a muddy, hazy effect, or briefly soaked, splash-and-go, for a more polished effect.

I had a suehiro cerax that I had when I first started honing and now I regret selling it, was a great stone

Originally Posted by celticcrusader

M favoured 8K, without doubt, would be the Snow White I love it couldn't live without it.

Attachment 282026

I have this Snow White 8 k I swapped it for the naniwa sp 8 k . Having used the Snow White not any where near jamie I feel under 60x the edge looks kind of hazy and polished to the naked eye. Where as the 8 k naniwas sp looks more polished under 60 x I am not sure if I noticed much difference.

Jamie do you see a hazed polish under magnification ? Just wondering if I have the same Snow White as you I did buy from exact sam.e guy as you....

Originally Posted by gary haywood

I have this Snow White 8 k I swapped it for the naniwa sp 8 k . Having used the Snow White not any where near jamie I feel under 60x the edge looks kind of hazy and polished to the naked eye. Where as the 8 k naniwas sp looks more polished under 60 x I am not sure if I noticed much difference.

Jamie do you see a hazed polish under magnification ? Just wondering if I have the same Snow White as you I did buy from exact sam.e guy as you....

I did mention the same findings in my post Gary, regarding the snow white, the Norton 8k for me looks more polished, the SW does have a haze to it.

Originally Posted by alpla444

I did mention the same findings in my post Gary, regarding the snow white, the Norton 8k for me looks more polished, the SW does have a haze to it.

If I go from 3 k pro which looks pretty hazy then to 8 k jun the scratch pattern smooths out into more of a haze. Then when I move to the 12 k naniwas I can see that polishes very quickly and less haze.

To be fair I get smooth shaves after 12 k so it must be working well. I remember the norton 8 k polished pretty bright it’s a nice stone loved the feel of it.

I must say I love the feel of the Snow White and to be fair it seems to leave the haze of a natural stone and all us natural stone honers , well in my experience mirror polished edge are not always super smooth.

Have you tried shaving of the 8 k jun?

I did try once and it was not bad. Also not fantastic, I remember the odd time I had some lovely shaves of norton 8 k but that was a while ago. I do find the 12 k naniwas really does makes a difference.

In the US, Chef's Knives to Go sells the original Naniwa Snow White.

Do be aware that these stones have a reputation for cracking, I have a friend that went through 4 of them (yes he liked them). I have one that I lacquered the sides and back and also loosely wrapped it in a kitchen towel after use to slow the drying a bit and it has not cracked. So I sent it to my friend to see if he could break it!

My personal fave is the Shapton Pro/Kuromaku or the Shapton Glass HC.

Cheers, Steve

They are 2 very different stones, I have been contacted by people I know very well who have purchased the wrong stone, then once they buy the right stone they have been shocked at the difference, here are the two stones both are completely different, the Snow white I have is as good as a Chosera 10K. PS the first link is the wrong stone the second link the correct stone.

https://www.chefknivestogo.com/nasnwh8.html (WRONG STONE)

https://www.chefknivestogo.com/ornasnwh8k.html (CORRECT STONE)