Hey, guys! Thank you all for sharing so much useful information as I pursue my quest to find good sharpening tools without trading my house for them.
Have any of you tried the Naniwa lapping plate, which is available on SRD? I know there's a lot of DMT religion here, and yes, this Naniwa looks sort of like the much-discredited Norton lapping plate. But the DMT D8C doesn't look as simple to clean as a lapper with grooves, and I read a few tales of woe by those who didn't lap with it under running water (if I have to do that I shudder for my old plumbing), or they failed to effectively clean away the slurry. I know the Norton lapper has a problem staying flat, and am wondering if the Naniwa counterpart holds up any better to use. Also, is it really true that you cannot apply one of these (the Norton or the Naniwa Lapping Plate) to waterstones of either make, and if so can you please explain WHY? With $20 being so much easier to pass than $50, I must ask.
Thanks.