Thread: HELP!!! Please help verify if stone is Karasu

it's very very hard to tell a good Karasu from a photo alone. They're all pretty, but not all hone the same.

I have several Japanese naturals with Karasu figuring, because I'm a sucker for it and I think it's very pretty. But only two of them are Nakayama Karasu. They were a lot more expensive (4X+), and a lot better. Both the true Nakayama Karasu came from OLD_SCHOOL, and both the non-Nakayama mined Karasu-figured stone came indirectly from another seller, who originally purchased from 330Mate.

The non-Nakamaya Karasu are both very pretty (I think), and are actually serviceable hones that i don't regret buying, for their price. I would put them in the neighborhood of a low-end Coticule in terms of grit, and they are priced similarly. They have the nice "Karasu tug" feel when honing.

But they are much softer than the Nakayamas. Also:
- They show a noticeable difference (darkening) in color when wet, the Nakayamas do not.
- They have little to no red "skin" on them, especially their reverse side. The Nakayamas seem to have very extravagant red skin. This may not be unique to Nakayama, but just associated with higher-end stones.
- And the Nakayama Karasu are really, really hard, which can't be "felt" from a photo. A trusted seller who is knowledgeable about both Japanese stones and razors is needed to give a true evaluation for how a stone will work with razors.

Here is a set of 4 photos showing the surface and backside of two Japanese naturals with Karasu figuring, but are not Nakayama Karasu. The second stone may actually be Uchigumori rather than Karasu. I'll show photos of the two Nakayama Karasu I have in the next post: