Vintage Unknown Awasedo Nashiji Hand-Sawed Fine Grit Japanese Natural Sharpening Stone 1lb. 4.7oz. (587g)
208mmX78mmX15mm
I do not know where the stone came from, but I guess it looks typical Nakayama Kiita Nashiji stone, or mine near-by Nakayama mine.
The sharpening surface has Nashiji dots, and it is well-used thin stone, and it must be great stone.
It is very heavy stone for the size, so it should be very condensed stone.
I found it here in Hawaii.
Hawaii has a long immigration history from Japan (it has been about 160 years), so Carpenter, barber, cook, fish cutter, butcher, etc. needed good sharpening stones, especially carpenter and barber needed high-quality fine grit stones in old days.
Hardness-------------8.9
It raises good amount of black slurry quickly, but it is very hard stone.
It is smooth and easy to sharpen my blade.
It looks it does not need tomo nagura or the device to raise the slurry (worn Diamond lapping stone).
(Scale; 1 to 10, 1-3 is soft, muddy, rough grit whetstone 3-6 is soft medium grit whetstone, 6-8 is hard medium grit whetstone; 8-10 is fine grit whetstone)
Particle Size----------9.0
It makes my Swedish pure carbon steel kasumi blade knife Jigane became frosted silver color to semi-mirror finish, and Hagane became mirror finish.
(Scale; 1 to 10, 1-3 give deep scratch marks to the steel, 3-5 is delete the 1-3 scratches, 5-8 makes 3the steel cloudy, 8-10 makes the steel semi-mirror finish or mirror finish)
Natural whetstone has wider capacity than artificial whetstone, and actually, we do not know until sharpen blade on the hone for a while. Because artificial whetstone molecules do not break down to smaller sizes, but Natural whetstone molecules are possible to break down to smaller sizes, and those molecules are mixed with sharpened steel molecules, and make Jigane as suitable Jigane color, and Hagane as suitable Hagane color. It is natural mystics.