Narutaki Tomae Ikimurasaki Kan Namazu koppa Japanese Whetstone

This exceptional Japanese whetstone was selected and purchased by us directly from Japan, then thoroughly tested and coated with cashew lacquer on sides and back to protect the stone for long term use.
It measures 130 mm (5.12 inches) long × 120 mm (4.72 inches) wide × 40 mm (1.57 inches) tall, and weighs 823 g (1.81 pounds).

Hardness 3.4
A beautiful soft koppa from the Hon Narutaki Mine. This stone was obtained from a sword polishing supplier with the intent of making Jiyuza fingerstones for sword polishing and finishing. This stone is mined from an upper Tomae layer and it's rich purple colored base is refered to as Ikimurasaki (purple) in Japan. The stone also features lovely pink colored Namazu patterns (catfish) and Kan circles (rings) from the top of the stone. These colored Tomae stones can range from very soft to quite hard but this one is on the softer side. Water only honing yields a rich pink slurry with moderate cutting speed. Thime stones slurry is very uniform and feels quite fine. The stone leaves a rich hazy finish on the bevel and a sharp edge in need of a bit more refinement from a harder stone to shave with optimal comfort. For knives, this stone is great for following Uchigumori as it's soft nature retains the even and consistent haze left by the Uchigumori. It refines this haze and brightens up the overall polish. A very versatile stone that be used for razor pre finish/finish, knife polish/sharpening, tools and swords.