SUEHIRO GMN200 Whetstone GOKUMYO Series 20000 Japanese Knife Sharpner Super Finishing Stone

Silky smooth with very nice feedback With just 20 light strokes, my 6" stainless HRC 63 utility knife went from around 140 BESS to 60 BESS, so I'd say that for aficionados of "let's see how sharp I can get it", this stone is well worth the price. I have yet to try other knives, so this review is just a first blush thing, but the 6" had been sharpened on 12k and stropped with 0.5 micron diamond spray. I think I had it to 120 BESS, and I had used it twice, so I tested once before and after for this stone. Another reviewer said to be sure to have a well-done smooth bevel on 10k or 12k before going to this 20k, and that makes sense (always try to use the proper grit). This 20k stone does load up a bit, like other high grit stones, and I can easily live with that since, so far, it's plenty fast enough. It does not feel "hard and unyielding" at all, so that part is a delight. Obvious note: your proficiency should not be questionable or you just kind of waste the potential and money, but so far, I'm concluding that no strop will substitute for a really fine stone. This is the highest grit I've tried. Read more

I first bought 800/3000 Naniwa Chosera stones. Then I wanted to see how sharper i go up with my knives. As a result I bought a Naniwa 10000. With it’s appearance my knives got even sharper. And as a true Russian I thought to myself, all right, my knives are extremely sharp, but can they still be sharper? There came Suehiro GMN 20000. It is a great stone! And It does add value to your sharpening result. Just a small remark for knife sharpeners: a good flattening stone is a must! If you want your sharpening process be a pleasure, get yourself a good one. You will be surprised how curved your sharpening stones are, which has a serious negative impact on the end result. Every now and then I flatten my stones to get the best from them. Enjoy! Read more

This is my smoothest synthetic stone that I have in my collection. I have been sharpening straight razors off and on for the past 7 years. This specific stone is my best synthetic stone hands down. It's a "splash and Go" stone which means that there's no 15 to 30 minute wait time so you can get started right away. The polish that this stone leaves behind is epic and the slicing capabilities is second to none. Read more

I did purchase this from another source but I’m bored so I figured I’d review it here as well. I use this to finish my straight razors. Let’s just say I own some really nice JNATS, Ozuku, Shobudani, etc. and I stopped using them after trying this stone. I have been honing for 3 years and have done hundreds of honing sessions. This stone ended my hone addiction :). I do a simple progression of 1k, 3k, 8k, 12k, then this 20k and consistently get the same or better than buttery smooth edges than I have ever gotten from my best JNATS. It literally just takes 10 or 11 weight of blade x-strokes. Knocks off more than a half hour of honing and vigorously rubbing a tomo nagura to generate a slurry on the hard JNAT. Yes it’s more satisfying on a JNAT but I just can’t believe how good the edge is. It’s like the whiskers are not there. You have to bring a completely maxed out 12k edge to this stone but you will be rewarded. Read more

(Firstly disclaimer, I didn't buy the stone here on Amazon as I found a much better price on eBay) The stone arrived not quite flat - flattening it took quite a long time with a Shapton glass diamond lapping plate (it is a very tough stone). But, eventually I ended up with a surface as smooth as glass. You end up with a kind of ultra fine grit man-made 'coticule'. Very simply, it puts an incredible edge on a straight razor as finishing stone (using the running water trick). Smoothest shaves ever, it just glides through my extra tough whiskers. Robert Read more

This is especially good for straight razors with extra hard steel. Read more

This waterstone is very easy to use as a final finisher. It tends to load up and glaze fairly quickly, but a very nice cleaning stone is included. This stone produces a very edge quickly. For those with patience, I prefer my Dan’s Black Arkansas, which costs less, but produces a keener edge. So take a look at that option too. Dan’s Black Ark is much slower, so more time and patience is required. Read more