Honyama stones @ Lee Valley for 40 bucks...

Man that was mean... I should say that the larger and better stones have all been sold out. The B1 stones are all that's left... did anyone here give these a shot when they were in stock? I would have jumped on one of the larger ones if available. I heard about them on the japanese woodworking forum over @ Shapton's website.



I'm still on the fence about getting a B1 stone..... anyway, here's the link so we can all kick ourselves for not trying these when the larger ones were still available.....

Natural Finishing Water Stones - Lee Valley Tools



Ben

Yeah, I wavered on getting one, then found one day that the one I wanted was out of stock. So I got one of the B1 stones.

It's not a bad stone, probably around 9k, very very soft (but two natural stones will never be exactly alike), and puts a nice mirrored finish on the blade. It doesn't cut as fast as a coticule and since it's a comparable grit, it's not really a better option.

But it is a very nice stone and I have enjoyed using it, if you've got the money to spare, it's a decent buy.