Just out of curiosity, do you really think 8x2x1 to be a small stone
I do not think that is very small, I am just used to the lager bench stones that I have. being new, I am just a little nervous about tilting the blade and catching the edge on the corner and having to start over. I am more comfortable with a wider stone right now. BTW, the stone that I saw on eBay were 150 mm long which is about 6" if I am not mistaken. Not that that really matters as I am more concerned with the width. Thank you for the suggestions, if there are anymore, please keep them coming!