Thread: Need help IDing a J-nat stone

One of the local woodworking stores is selling out of their J-nat stones so I picked one up for cheapsies.

Top view


Close up of the sticker


Bottom view

(NB I have flattened the bottom a bit so it will sit level)

It is a hard stone, harder than a coti but not as hard as a PHIG
It has a pale green slurry
It feels smoother than a coti, but maybe not quite as smooth as a PHIG

If it's cheap it's not likely a finisher by Jnat standards but may/should better than a PHIG speed wise.
WAG, it's a tool stone that may double as a razor prefinisher. Looks like Asagi colour. Could be from any number of mines. Asagi stones have a huge variance in quality.

I don't think it was originally a cheap stone, just that the store is getting rid of their stock.

It was the smoothest of the stones they had available, getting to a satin/semigloss kind of look.

I'll try it out tomorrow and see how it performs. I'll try it between the coti and the PHIG.

No offence, Jnat finishers usually start at 3 figures, often with a 2 or 3 in front of them & that's for razor size. If you got it from Carbatec & it looks a fairly large stone, I'm guessing it wasn't in that price range but it may well be better than a PHIG. Only you can tell

To be honest I'm not expecting earth shattering results, but paying under $50 for an 8x3 (I actually measured it) Jnat stone is a gamble I'm willing to take.

At that price it's a natural stone that's cheaper than a synthetic.

If it ends up being lower than a coti I'll slip it in between the coti and BBW and leave my 6K synthetic for my knives.

I have about 10 of those carbatec stones I've grabbed over the years (if they still have the information sheet there with the kanji and translations, that was me - you can thank me later... ). I'd be surprised if it is not a Narutaki of some sort - most of them seemed to be. The olive green coloured stones are somewhere around the 6K range, maybe up to 9K if you are lucky. It's very hard to tell from look and feel - you have to use them to find out. Most of those stones I think are really more for tools than for razors - they are quite soft. A mild amount of slurry can help things along.

I hope you got a good one - it looks nice. You'll be cursing So for not replying quicker soon - these are gateway stones!!

James.

It's a Narutaki.

The top line on the label reads 鳴瀧 (naru-taki) 礦 (mine) 山 (mountain) 産出 (product). It further has 品質 (hin-shitsu, product quality) 優良 (yuu-ryou, excellent), 正本山 (shou-hon-yama), 砥石 (toi-shi, whetstone) and 京都特産 (Kyou-to toku-san, Kyoto special product).

The lower stamp reads 最上級 (sai-jou-kyuu, highest grade).

Excellent call Oldengaerde, Naurtaki it is. The Narutaki was one of the original mines close in to Kyoto and they did produce some excellent stones. Softer is not bad if the cutting action is fast and the stone fine, so hopefully you will discover the best technique to use it. If it is a fast cutter a lighter hand will help and try to balance and count the number of strokes on each side as you go along. have fun, Alx

Originally Posted by Oldengaerde

It's a Narutaki.

The top line on the label reads 鳴瀧 (naru-taki) 礦 (mine) 山 (mountain) 産出 (product). It further has 品質 (hin-shitsu, product quality) 優良 (yuu-ryou, excellent), 正本山 (shou-hon-yama), 砥石 (toi-shi, whetstone) and 京都特産 (Kyou-to toku-san, Kyoto special product).

The lower stamp reads 最上級 (sai-jou-kyuu, highest grade).

Originally Posted by Pauly

To be honest I'm not expecting earth shattering results, but paying under $50 for an 8x3 (I actually measured it) Jnat stone is a gamble I'm willing to take.

That's not a bad price . Must ring up my local store

Wow for that price I want one! Lol doubt my local carbatec would stock them though.