Is a Nakajama woth spending a lot of money in?

Hallo

i am thinking of buying a Nakajama Maruka for my collection, i want know are this stones worth spending so much money in them? i can also buy 2 oohzukus for that money but i have to think a lot aboud the stones and i mostly want one becouse they interest me much

i want use the stone mostly for sharpening razors but also for my kitchen knives and tools. (i have a oohira, oohzuku, Wakasa, Shoubudani, a lot of eschers, a lot of coticule.... and a lot more stones in my collection)

can you help me with my dessicion of buying one? maybe there are some good shops you can name for

thank you much

daniel

Naturals are tricky unfortunately. Nakayama is just a mine. You'll get good rocks and bad from any mine.

My Nakayama is one of the best stones I have ever owned, so if you could find one identical to mine I would say it is well worth the expenditure.

It also depends on why you are buying it - if you are going to use it, then perhaps it is not necessary to buy a Nakayama stone explicitly - there may well be stones from the cheaper, less popular or well-known mines that perform just as well. You do pay a bit for the name with Nakayama IMO.

However, if you are buying it as a collector's item, then that is a different matter altogether and I would suggest that no Jnat collector worth their salt would not have a few Nakayamas in their collection. Just make sure if that is the case that you are buying the genuine article. Stamps can be forged, for example. A reputable seller is a must.

James.

Hi

Thank you James, i want the nakajama for my Collection and for use. I have a several other Stones here and a nakajama is the Last One wich is felt in my Collection

I also want a Hard smoth Finisher for Perfect Edges on razors and Kitchen knives

So is the nakajama the right Choice? And could you Name some Good Stellers?

Thank you

Daniel

Hello Daniel
I think that not a few buyers of Nakayama stones that are hoping that they can use the same stone for razors and kitchen knives are usually somewhat baffled by the fineness of them. A stone fine enough and hard enough for razors use is usually too slow for kitchen knives. Also it is an extraordinary kitchen knife that has the metallurgical structure fine enough to warrent the use of a really fine razor hone to sharpen it. If you have laminated carbon steel japanese hand forged knives then we are talking something different, but for stainless steel knives or Henckels kitchen knives then the razor hone stone would be overkill and the steel would not support the fine edge capable off a ultra fine razor hone. Better to have two dedicated stones in my opinion.

Also I would suggest that no matter who you buy your Nakayama from that they have a no hassle money back guarantee. good luck,
Alx

I don't think you'll find a Nakayama, that's the mine btw, for razors that's also good for your kitchen knives imo. I have several, including a Maruka. You do need to exercise caution when spending the money your about to. A Nakayama Maruka, a real one can be very expensive, four figures. I would contact mainaman, he's a mentor here and know's his way around a Jnat and the dealers. Send him a pm. He may be able to help you.

I've been out of the Jnat buying business for some time now.

I too have different stones for my knives & seldom go over 3K for any knife I own.

A no hassle guarantee & reputable stone seller is the ONLY way to go...I got smoked once myself.

Hi

That is the Good Thing on Germany we have a Law here, that Garantes us to gave all Items back in 2 Weeks...

I mostly use the Stone for my razors... The coticule creates a verry nice Edge on my Kitchen knives... But the Perfect Stone for me should create Good results in razors and knives...

Can i say that of i buy a Asagi that it is a nice Hard Stone? Good for razors (mostly)

Hello again
One problem with sharing a stone with razors and knives is that the sharpening stroke for knives is harsh on a stones surface, and if it is a large knive you are usually spending a good amount of time on the stone which will leave the stone when you are done somewhat less than flat. Razor honing is best done on a perfectly flat stone, knives there is some leeway. How about a Nakayama stone that is lapped on both the front and the back, one side for knives the other for razors?

Alx

Your German law (a good one by the way) will not help you on international sales I hope you know.

I have yet to own or even handle a knife that could justify using a finisher, you must have some great handmade knives.

Alex is dead on with my reasoning on not using knives on razor stones.

Shooter's right on all counts. Remember, Paypal is your friend.

I find Arkansas stones to be great for knives. That's all I use on mine. YMMV.

On my kitchen knives I stick with the DMT 325 mostly. If I really want to go whole hog I'll go up to the DMT 600.

For my pocket knives I do my Arkansas stones. Washita followed by a soft arkie. I have hard ark, translucent and black hard ark but I rarely take a pocketknife beyond the soft ark. No need for it IME.

I've had a good nakayama asagi in the past, sold it, but it was a really good razor hone. I wouldn't dream of putting a knife to it. A waste of irreplaceable rare rock when there are many alternatives that are cheaper and replaceable.

Just to toss the monkey wrech into the discussion here gents..

First NO I would not use my Nakayama for knives nor any other of my finishers, my idea of a sharp knife is one that slices Tomatoes with simple ease and I can achive that any day in minutes without ever touching anything over a 3k..

BUT

Here comes the monkey wrench, why would a Knife guy be limited by the "Fineness of the J-nat" we razor guys are not, we simply use a set of Tomo Nagura and we can change the cutting abilities of the stone...
If I wanted to sharpen a knife on a very hard very fine J-nat I could without much issue by the judicious use of the proper Nagura..

As has been said it really depends on the knife & what you call 'sharpening'

If you just use the stone for a couple of strokes to create a micro bevel on a knife, well maybe, but slightly softer stones are recommended for knives especially if you are after a kasumi (hazy) finish on the bevel surface & not just touching up the edge. A j/knife is more than just a cutting tool & the hard razor stones will not give the cosmetic finish desired even with Nagura. The curved bevel on j/knives tends to concentrate the stone to a small area so scratching is very easy with an overly hard stone.

If we are talking softer tempered western style knives I can't see any reason to use a razor grade stone. First few cuts into a chopping board & that edge is history.