Japanese Natural Toishi Finishing Whetstone - Nakayama Tenjou Tomae Ikimurasaki

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 162 mm (6.38 in) long × 62 mm (2.44 in) wide × 12 mm (0.47 in) thick, and weighs 422g.

Stone Testing Details:

Hardness: LV 4.7
Beautiful Nakayama Tenjou Tomae. This stone is quite hard for a shallow layer Tomae but has a very gentle feeling when using. Its shape is a standard 100’ rectangle. The stone is Ikimurasaki (purple) all the way through. It is a fast cutting stone for its hardness. 
Water only honing for razors has satin like granularity with smooth, fast moving feel. The stone will not self slurry.
Diamond plates slurry speeds up the cutting and black swarf is released immediately darkening the purple slurry. The resulting edge is crisp and toothy, ready for further refinement. 
Mikawa Nagura progressions are great and while the stone releases a bit of itself into the slurry, the feedback is still discernable.
For knives, this stone is buttery smooth for a harder stone and glides while still removing a lot of steel. The finish is a bright but semi hazy Kasumi finish with great contrast.

A photo of the resulting polish left on a high quality Japanese knife is shown.