OHIRA TOMAE

INTERPRETATION OF THE STONE

This Ohira has a very buttery smooth feel across the entire stone, a dark grey to almost black  slurry is easily produced after a few strokes producing a matte Kasumi finish on the soft cladding with a darker hazy mirror like finish on the core steel. 

Of medium hardness a bit on the softer side, fine grain with very good ease of use this stone is well suited to both single and double bevel kitchen knife polishing.. With its slightly softer hardness it could make a thick mud perfect for a thick Kasumi finish but still keep good contrast between soft iron and steel. 

Tested on Tamahagane Honyaki, Genkai white 1 Honyaki, standard soft Sanmai white 1 from Sakai, Nantetsu and Kato Sanmai as well as Ginsan Sanmai. The stone performed well across all steel but i felt pairs well with single and double bevel carbon clad knives, wrought iron and similar iron. With its smooth and softer hardness but strong polishing power it worked well on Honyaki as well as Ginsan. 

Best used with a normal amount of water but not to wet, for both polishing and edge sharpening. I tend to start most of my stones with a surface texture from a worn 600 grit Atoma. With little water a thick mud can be made, using more water in your slurry will make a darker mirror finish on the core steel. 

Over all a very versatile and easy stone for both polishing and edge sharpening. suitable for all levels of sharpeners, but those with some natural stone experience will get a lot more from this stone.