The Aoto Thread

[holli4pirating]

This stone is worth the money. If i am not mistaken it was 13.00 . i hope they will have a little larger size. it acts 2-3k level and it is a good one. Go head buy this. it is worth it.
hope this helps

Glad to hear it, cause I've got one in the mail. Mine is 65x180x35mm.

[sparq]

Good news indeed. I am waiting for the same stone.

[Pyment]

me too.

I see a pattern.

[Smokintbird]

Personally, I like my Aoto....I've had it and my Amakusa Red for a few months.

I agree with others in saying that the Amakusa Red has too many inclusions to be usefull for Razors, I love using it on knives but I have been unwilling to try a razor on a stone that has 1/8" holes that pop up out of nowhere when it is lapped. I think for razors, I will keep looking for a low grit natural stone that suits me....

As for the Aoto, the description made earlier of it feeling like "sidewalk chalk" is pretty accurate. It gets muddy almost at once when sharpening a knife, but with a razor, you can get 15 to 20 laps before it needs a rinse.

When it comes to soaking, I have always heard that No Natural stone should be soaked....so I have actually laquered the sides and bottom of my Aoto, and I usually just dip the stone in the water any time it needs wetting, the absorbed water seems to be enough.

The grit, I would characterize as between 2K and 4K JIS....I use it after the King 1200 and before the Tam O'Shanter, this gives me good results.

Overall I would say, good feedback, good price, good cutter....worth the price in my opinion.

[Pyment]

The stone that usually comes first in Japanese Sword polishing is called the Arato. This is only used on heavily rusted or newly forged swords.

The next step is called the Binsui using a stone in the 600 range the Binsuita. Which 330mate is selling on ebay and looks a lot like the Amukasa (which is the name of an island - I think).

[JimR]

Where do we find these stones for such good prices, pray?

[holli4pirating]

Where do we find these stones for such good prices, pray?

My Aoto is coming from 330mate; his website is 330mate.com. Aoto's are available from HidaTool.com with prices depending on the size. Since you are in Japan, I would suggest you check with 330mate first.

[manah]

I use Aoto stone more than one year, as the first stone in honing (including knives).
Here description:

Japanese Natural Waterstone Aoto
Fine-grit, grey sedimentary stone from the famous Honyama quarry. Very uniform structure for fine sharpening purposes.

Japanese NaturalWaterstones (Tennen Toishi)
“A blade and sharpening stone must beas perfect a match as bride and groom�according to legendary BlacksmithShigeoshi Iwasaki. Finding the idealpairing is no easy task in either case.Despite the excellent performance ofman-made stones, many experiencedsharpeners still rely on natural stonesfor sharpening their finest blades.Japanese Tennen Toishi are particularlyrenowned for their ability to harmoniouslysharpen hand-forged carbonsteels. They are able bring a blade’s fullpotential to the fore and allow thesharpening process itself to become apleasant ritual. The finest stones fromthe Honyama quarries are becomingincreasingly difficult to acquire - wetake great pleasure in still being able tooffer these rare treasures.
Natural Japanese stones may be usedwith water only and must be kept protectedfrom frost. Please note that thestones may have slight natural imperfectionsand may vary somewhat in size.

Grit 1000-2000, 185 x 58 x 38 mm.

[Pyment]

Getting mine from 330mate as well.

I think this is the one I am getting:

天然ç¥石　whetstones > 丹波éŘçÂÂ¥ [neighbor of Kyoto Tanba-mate] - éÂ�’野山å°Â�è°·ãÂ�®ç‰¹ç´Š¡Ã©Â�’ç¥　0.7-1.2Kg - 天然ç¥石 ä¼Å予çÂÂ¥ æ£本山 山城éŘçÂÂ¥ 白鷹包ä¸Â� 玄ç¿Â� 鉋 é‘¿

I have some other stones coming from him as well.

[Smokintbird]

When I bought my Aoto from 330mate, it took me more than a month to get it....the prices are decent on most things and the stones seem to be good ones, but the communication kinda sucks and the shipping is REALLY SLOW...

Next time I'll pay a bit more and buy elsewhere.