I guess it is possible that we may have a member willing to put the long hours in the Negev desert searching for
the indications of certain stones. This would probably be after some serious education about what to look for.
These stones do not meet any criteria as overpriced, at least to me, yes you certainly could spend $500 but you can also spend $100 or less and receive a very nice Negev desert hone. You can spend thousands of $ on Japanese natural hones as well as Couticles. Check the story on artisanshaving.com there is a thread there where TC offers the stones and there certainly is no reason to buy the box if you do not want
the box. There is also a very real account of what is actually involved in searching the Negev desert for hones. These hones have a serious following by some gentlemen who are master honers.
I would hope that members who may have an interest in the stones would take the time to educate themselves as we recommend when considering any wet shaving related purchase. TC and his better half are accomplished artists in their own right marketing beautifully crafted jewelry, various sculptures and even straight razors and superbly crafted knives. For me this is just another hone in the arsenal of the great stones available to us.