Tomonaguras etc

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ken123
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Tomonaguras etc

Post by ken123 »

Tomonaguras etc

Jokeji, Nakayama Iromono, Hakka Tomae ,Yaginoshima Asagi, Aono Aoto, plus 3000 grit Nubatama Platinum
TomosForDan1.jpg
TomosForDan1.jpg (40.08 KiB) Viewed 3868 times
TomosForDan2.jpg
TomosForDan2.jpg (34.6 KiB) Viewed 3868 times
Here's the same stones showing the lacquer finish for each stone.
TomosForDan3.jpg
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Re: Tomonaguras etc

Post by AlbuquerqueDan »

Can't wait to get those, Ken! Hopefully, you'll continue to walk this novice through my first few days with naturals...
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Re: Tomonaguras etc

Post by Kit Craft »

It is fun experimenting with tomo.
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Re: Tomonaguras etc

Post by AlbuquerqueDan »

Kit Craft wrote: Thu Feb 08, 2018 8:14 am It is fun experimenting with tomo.
Any tips?
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Re: Tomonaguras etc

Post by Kit Craft »

AlbuquerqueDan wrote: Thu Feb 08, 2018 1:23 pm
Kit Craft wrote: Thu Feb 08, 2018 8:14 am It is fun experimenting with tomo.
Any tips?
Not really, you are just rubbing one rock on another. It just takes time to understand how thick/think to get the mud for what purpose and which stone matches with which tomo depending on your tastes for the particular knife being sharpened. Really, it is all going to come down to you figuring out what you like.
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Re: Tomonaguras etc

Post by ken123 »

AlbuquerqueDan wrote: Thu Feb 08, 2018 1:23 pm
Kit Craft wrote: Thu Feb 08, 2018 8:14 am It is fun experimenting with tomo.
Any tips?
Yes. Might take several phone calls.

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Re: Tomonaguras etc

Post by mauichef »

Kit Craft wrote: Thu Feb 08, 2018 1:46 pm
Not really, you are just rubbing one rock on another.
:o
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Re: Tomonaguras etc

Post by Kit Craft »

mauichef wrote: Thu Feb 08, 2018 4:56 pm
Kit Craft wrote: Thu Feb 08, 2018 1:46 pm
Not really, you are just rubbing one rock on another.
:o
I thought I phrased that well..it could have been...er...well you know. But seriously I think that tomo and base stone combos are something one just has to work with to see what they like. :lol:
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Re: Tomonaguras etc

Post by nevrknow »

[/quote]

I thought I phrased that well..it could have been...er...well you know. But seriously I think that tomo and base stone combos are something one just has to work with to see what they like. :lol:
[/quote]


This.
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Re: Tomonaguras etc

Post by ken123 »

A good first step is to appreciate the unique qualities of EACH stone or you are truly rubbing rocks.

So let's take the Jokeji stone for instance. Middle stone, second level. This is a coarse stone. It is actually a smoked stone. The stone is smoked only during certain times of the year so it is relatively rare.A highly layered stone, reminiscent of various suita stones. It is also cut so that the unlacquered surface is left exposed. It does emit a nice smoky smell with use - an acquired taste. I find it works particularly well with coarser grits like Kyushu Ohmura or Hirashima, giving you a smoother finish than say the Ohmura alone. Other coarse stones? Just play with it but do so aware of what you are working with.

At the other end of this would be the Nakayama Iromono stone. Top row, left side. This is a stone that excells with your finest stones, most especially stones like the Nakayama Asagi. This is a very hard stone and the Nakayama Iromono makes for a superb blend versus another Nakayama Asagi tomonagura, yileding a stone with a cleaner scratch pattern on the stone surface vs the scratchier surface you get using a Nakayama Asagi tomonagura. The Nakayama Iromono is slightly softer than the Nakayama Asagi to compare. Also useful against an Ozuku Asagi. Very useful for both knives and straight razors.

Note that these stones were selected for their usage as fingerstones moreso than tomonaguras - yet another subject. They were selected to provide a very broad base for both use and experimentation.

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Re: Tomonaguras etc

Post by AlbuquerqueDan »

I got these stones from Ken yesterday and was able to do a bit of experimenting. Obviously, the learning curve is large, but I thought my first try wasn't a total disaster.

Here's my Gengetsu W#2. This photo shows the finish I got after the following progression: sandpaper from 800 to 3000 to get the edge to a mirror finish, then reform the edge with a Gesshin 1k and my new Nubatama Platinum 3k, then the Yaginoshima Asagi used as a fingerstone, then a light edge touch-up on a Gesshin 6k S&G.
20180210_204530.jpg
I also tried to use some of these nagura to build mud on some of my synthetic stones, but I did not get very good results (lots of scratches and no consistent kasumi finish). Like I said, there's a lot to learn here!

Ken, if you read this, we discussed "making my own sandpaper" out of the mud from these stones, but I didn't retain the details of that conversation. Can you walk me through that process again?
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Re: Tomonaguras etc

Post by ken123 »

Sure. Give me a call and we can go through it.

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Re: Tomonaguras etc

Post by AlbuquerqueDan »

Here's my second try with the nagura. The knife is a B2 usuaba. I really like the way this one turned out.
20180211_222019.jpg
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Re: Tomonaguras etc

Post by ken123 »

Nicely done!!

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Re: Tomonaguras etc

Post by pd7077 »

Looks great Dan! Did you use use the naguras as is, or did you break them down into fingerstones, or did you just use the harvested mud?
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Re: Tomonaguras etc

Post by AlbuquerqueDan »

Thanks, guys. This is a fun and frustrating new hobby.

Steve -- I used the nagura directly on the knife. Specifically, after polishing up to 7k sandpaper, I used the aono aoto, then the nakayama iromono.

Unfortunately, I ruined the edge with the sandpaper, so I had to go back and sharpen. In so doing, I created some unwanted and inconsistent scratches on the hagane. I have no idea how to sharpen and still get a consistent scratch pattern. Practice, practice, practice, I guess...

If anyone has any tips on any of this, I'm all ears!
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Re: Tomonaguras etc

Post by ken123 »

Here's a larger picture of the Jokeji stone, just to get a better view of the layers.
Jokeji.jpg
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Re: Tomonaguras etc

Post by loco_food_guy »

ken123 wrote: Tue Feb 13, 2018 5:38 am Here's a larger picture of the Jokeji stone, just to get a better view of the layers.

Jokeji.jpg

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What is the purpose of smoking the stone? Seriously, no puns! :D
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Re: Tomonaguras etc

Post by ken123 »

Never tried one unsmoked. Tradition I guess.

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Re: Tomonaguras etc

Post by Bensbites »

I can’t decide how I feel about this thread.

1) I am excited that this is starting to make sense.

2) I am scared I am too far down the rabbit hole if I can follow along.
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