I'll say one thing.With over 9,000 posts,you sure have a lot of will power. ...I , on the other hand am always trying for something new and maybe just to gain a new experience which takes me places where I really shouldn't go on a limited income,while being retired.But,I am like that with most things and especially with my various hobbies,of which I have many.I can give at least one opinion of this particular stone though and that is,I have no regrets in buying it.I have synthetics that have cost me more but for some reason,that I can't quite put my finger on because of my limited use with this Aizu,we have some sort of pleasant connect together.Love at first sight,so to speak.I only have done two knives with it,starting with a King 800,Kohetsu 2000 and then this stone.It gave me an edge that I just wanted to stop with.With the three finger test,it told me that it has a good set of teeth with just enough bite but yet I didn't dare to slide my fingers across the blade,knowing that I would be hunting up the band aid box.I know the few green peppers that I cut for pizza took a nice cut.
You need one.
Ray