Remember who sold it to you Ryan....LOL....! I have several Coticules, each are unique and can be used as a finisher, can you go further?, absolutely, My new favorite finisher is the Naniwa Superstone 12k. As a matter of fact, I shaved right off it, no pastes at all, I did strop, then shaved. Everyone has their favorite hone. You have Shapton People, Japanese Natural people, Eshcer People, even some who shave off a Norton. I feel the Coticule is one of the most versatile hones out there because of the Garnet properties. There is no other hone like it. The Garnet's are as unique as each hone. This is when I wish Bart were still here. Can you shave off your Coti, Yes,? can you go to an Escher, yes,? or a Nakayama,? or a Naniwa? It depends on you, and your blade and your skill. If your not honing correctly, it doesn't matter what you use. As Hunter asked, The harder, the better finisher. A good test is the Scratch test. Scratch your Coticule, If it leaves a deep visable scratch, you have a soft one, If it leave nothing, it's very hard. Something in between this would be medium. this test makes more sense when you have several coticules. They are a wonderful finisher and a small piece of history that will one day go by way of the Escher....It's a rock worth keeping....
P.S. As Jimbo said, I'm using mine as an itermediate hone, right now...But have used Coticules as a final finisher, Oh Yes.....