Quote Originally Posted by khaos View Post
The thing is, I think his stones are a little out of my budget, but I think there are a couple cheaper options, I just need to figure out if they are right or not.
Right, and there is no way to find out without trying them yourself or have somebody with experience try them out and tell you. In my opinion that's well worth the extra cost. Hones are expensive in Japan as well and generally you get what you pay for, unless you get really lucky and the person who sold you the hones are a bit clueless themselves.

Anyway I look at it, just doesn't seem worth the risk.