Matthew N. Masail
06-03-2014, 12:37 AM
As always, I am posting this purely as a reference in order the help future shoppers with their decisions, so feel free to let me know what you think.
The curiosity of stones makes it fun too.:)
I didn't buy this stone for me, a friend of mine bought it while I was in America and I brought it back for him. because of this I only put it through it's passes on a couple blades, one in rough shape needing considerable bevel work, others needing only regular sharpening, so that is why I'm calling it a 'limited review' because I do not have long term experience with the stone, however I think I have used enough stones to be able to give (I hope) a clear idea of what a stone is like.
Starting off. this is a combo stone, the 1000 side is twice as thick as the 8000 side, a wise move in by book, however both sides are so hard I think it hardly matter. the combo works very well together if terms of how big a leap it is between grits.
The stones are harder than the Chosera stones. and both sides need only a light splash of water to get going, even letting the water sit on the stone it does not absorb to any noticeable amount, unlike the Chosera that do absorb water. the Ohishi are true no-soak stones.
the 1000: for those who know, this stone is reminiscent of the 'new' king 300. it's blue gray in color, very very hard, doesn't dish much.
Performance: despite the hardness, it's quite effective and has good cutting power, it will get the job done nicely for routine sharpening and require very little care. however, due to the hardness it's is slower than some other 1k stones (still faster than the 1.2 sigma, which I love despite everything) and is not the most capable in terms of considerable material removal.
Feel and Loading: it didn't seem to load much, if at all, which was great. the feel is a cross between the Bester 1k\2k and the Chosera. natural and sandy like an Arkansas but smooth, I like it very much.
Conclusion: for someone looking for a low maintenance no soak 1k stone, this is a good option. It is not as capable as my new Chosera 800, but also requires less care. someone who was used to an Arkansas stones will love this because it has a similar feel, is very hard but much more capable and fast than a soft ark.
I have no idea how it compares to the Shapton 1k
the 8000: cream colored stone.
Performance: the stone impressed me is how quickly it took out the scratches from the 1k on a wide A2 bevel. it took just a little while to work up a bright polish, and a smooth sharp edge (with very fine scratches). it cuts very cleanly, the edge off this stone is very favorable to any 8k I have used before. the edge also responded very well to a light stropping. again, it does seem a little limited in capability because it is so hard.
Feel and Loading: the feel is similar to above but smoother and more creamy. it does start to load slightly, but that comes off easily. some of the pores do clog with black dots, which makes the stone work finer and doesn't seem to effect it too badly, I would leave it and see if it works out or needs a quick lapping, but for sure you could do several blades (at least the way I do them) before cleaning it with a nagura or diamond plate.
it has the usual stickiness when working a wide area of a blade back.
Conclusion: as with the 1k, this stone does it's job. it will polish an edge and give a good smooth and sharp edge. it is one of the few finishing stones I have used that isn't coarser than I expect it to be. I don't think I would buy it for 95$ when you can find a Naniwa snow white 8k (search 'Naniwa IF-0001') for less than that. but if you got it in a combo stone, you'd have to work hard to convince anyone why you need something else\more.
The curiosity of stones makes it fun too.:)
I didn't buy this stone for me, a friend of mine bought it while I was in America and I brought it back for him. because of this I only put it through it's passes on a couple blades, one in rough shape needing considerable bevel work, others needing only regular sharpening, so that is why I'm calling it a 'limited review' because I do not have long term experience with the stone, however I think I have used enough stones to be able to give (I hope) a clear idea of what a stone is like.
Starting off. this is a combo stone, the 1000 side is twice as thick as the 8000 side, a wise move in by book, however both sides are so hard I think it hardly matter. the combo works very well together if terms of how big a leap it is between grits.
The stones are harder than the Chosera stones. and both sides need only a light splash of water to get going, even letting the water sit on the stone it does not absorb to any noticeable amount, unlike the Chosera that do absorb water. the Ohishi are true no-soak stones.
the 1000: for those who know, this stone is reminiscent of the 'new' king 300. it's blue gray in color, very very hard, doesn't dish much.
Performance: despite the hardness, it's quite effective and has good cutting power, it will get the job done nicely for routine sharpening and require very little care. however, due to the hardness it's is slower than some other 1k stones (still faster than the 1.2 sigma, which I love despite everything) and is not the most capable in terms of considerable material removal.
Feel and Loading: it didn't seem to load much, if at all, which was great. the feel is a cross between the Bester 1k\2k and the Chosera. natural and sandy like an Arkansas but smooth, I like it very much.
Conclusion: for someone looking for a low maintenance no soak 1k stone, this is a good option. It is not as capable as my new Chosera 800, but also requires less care. someone who was used to an Arkansas stones will love this because it has a similar feel, is very hard but much more capable and fast than a soft ark.
I have no idea how it compares to the Shapton 1k
the 8000: cream colored stone.
Performance: the stone impressed me is how quickly it took out the scratches from the 1k on a wide A2 bevel. it took just a little while to work up a bright polish, and a smooth sharp edge (with very fine scratches). it cuts very cleanly, the edge off this stone is very favorable to any 8k I have used before. the edge also responded very well to a light stropping. again, it does seem a little limited in capability because it is so hard.
Feel and Loading: the feel is similar to above but smoother and more creamy. it does start to load slightly, but that comes off easily. some of the pores do clog with black dots, which makes the stone work finer and doesn't seem to effect it too badly, I would leave it and see if it works out or needs a quick lapping, but for sure you could do several blades (at least the way I do them) before cleaning it with a nagura or diamond plate.
it has the usual stickiness when working a wide area of a blade back.
Conclusion: as with the 1k, this stone does it's job. it will polish an edge and give a good smooth and sharp edge. it is one of the few finishing stones I have used that isn't coarser than I expect it to be. I don't think I would buy it for 95$ when you can find a Naniwa snow white 8k (search 'Naniwa IF-0001') for less than that. but if you got it in a combo stone, you'd have to work hard to convince anyone why you need something else\more.