# Blue Aoto vs Green Brick



## dreamsignals (May 15, 2011)

So, my trusted king 1000/6000 fell into the sink and broke.

I'm thinking bester 1200 and either blue aoto or green brick to replace it and be my new sharpening setup.

i don't want more than 2 stones for now. i'm mostly concerned about the upkeep of my gyutos, as i don't use my single bevels nearly as often.

thoughts?

thanks!

-Thiago


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## aaronsgibson (May 15, 2011)

Can't say much about a blue aoto, would like to get one myself and may soon, but the green brick is a hell of a stone if you ask me. Large and almost like a aoto in that it will start at a 2k but finish in the 4 or 5k if you ask me. For the money can't really go wrong.


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## Citizen Snips (May 15, 2011)

ive never used a green brick but love my blue aoto. it leaves a bite on my konosuke hd while giving it a much cleaner polish than anything ive ever used in the 2k range. it is muddy, very muddy, and delicate. a small drop or mishandling and it could chip or even break. i perma-soak mine and it loves it. the mud, although messy, is what makes this such a wonderful stone. it is one of those stones that you could finish with and end up with a beautiful polish and a wonderful edge that still has enough bite for kitchen knives. 

the blue aoto 2k is worth every penny and is in my 3 stone setup along with a beston 500 and arashiyama 6k.


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## dreamsignals (May 16, 2011)

round one: tie

so, they're pretty interchangeable?


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## dreamsignals (May 17, 2011)

one more question: i'm going to get another combo stone to take with me on trips (i'm not a professional cook). it's just easier to sharpen people's knives than bringing my own, specially to avoid checking luggage at the airport. i'm leaning towards another king/ice bear/togiharu 1000/6000. Any other suggestions?


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## Citizen Snips (May 17, 2011)

i dont think one is better than the other. from what ive heard about the green brick, its faster while the blue is finer, muddier and softer. they both act as a 3-5k stone so its really just preference from the previously mentioned qualities. i really just bought the blue aoto because i wanted some experience with a really muddy stone. that is what i got for sure. after using it and learning how to work the mud, it became one of my favorite stones. im sure that will happen to you whether you go with blue or green

as for the combo stone, i would think that any of those 1k/6k would be just fine to travel with, just be careful they dont get thrown around too much or you will have a breakage problem


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## Pensacola Tiger (May 17, 2011)

dreamsignals said:


> one more question: i'm going to get another combo stone to take with me on trips (i'm not a professional cook). it's just easier to sharpen people's knives than bringing my own, specially to avoid checking luggage at the airport. i'm leaning towards another king/ice bear/togiharu 1000/6000. Any other suggestions?


 
A "splash'n'go" might be better for travel. You wouldn't have to worry about drying it out. Maybe a Gesshin 1000, Naniwa Superstone or a Shapton Glassstone and a strop? You'd probably not need a higher grit stone for the sharpening you'd be doing.


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## aaronsgibson (May 17, 2011)

Same thing about the 1k6k combos, both are about neck and neck. Also depending on what you're looking to spend the brick is a awesome value at about 40$ and will last a LONG time. But Citizen is right which ever you choose to go with I'm sure you will be happy with. I've thinking about picking up a Aoto just to see the difference myself.


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## dreamsignals (May 18, 2011)

CKTG is out of the green brick. anywhere else i can get it? if not, then the decision will have been made for me.


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## Ichi (May 18, 2011)

dreamsignals said:


> CKTG is out of the green brick. anywhere else i can get it? if not, then the decision will have been made for me.



http://www.japanwoodworker.com/product.asp?s=JapanWoodworker&pf_id=02%2E005%2E5&dept_id=13120


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## Dave Martell (May 18, 2011)

Ichi said:


> http://www.japanwoodworker.com/product.asp?s=JapanWoodworker&pf_id=02%2E005%2E5&dept_id=13120




That's where I got mine way back when. They've got Chosera 400x's on bases too. :thumbsup:


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## rockbox (May 18, 2011)

The Gesshin 2K stone is really nice also. Its at least twice as fast a the King 1K and puts finish higher than a normal 2K. I love it.


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## dreamsignals (May 19, 2011)

Dave Martell said:


> That's where I got mine way back when. They've got Chosera 400x's on bases too. :thumbsup:



yikes, it's twice the price...

dave, don't you have one just laying around? or anybody else


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## vicv (Feb 2, 2013)

Old thread bump but I just ordered one for $83 plus $15 shipping. More money than any stone or kitchen knife I've bought. We'll see how well it works


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## pleue (Feb 2, 2013)

ordered one what? I have the synthetic blue aoto and I love it, I can usually do one 2-4 knives a session on other stones if they need them, but I could sharpen on this one all day.


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## vicv (Feb 2, 2013)

The naniwa


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## ThEoRy (Feb 2, 2013)

That seems a bit high... I remember grabbing mine for like $45...


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## vicv (Feb 2, 2013)

I'm in Canada.... I know **** sells for about 50. I believe JWW is 83 though. Up here there's a huge markup on stones and knives but with the gouging international shipping from American vendors it works out to the same


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## Pensacola Tiger (Feb 2, 2013)

vicv said:


> .. gouging international shipping from American vendors ...



Shipping costs are not under the vendors control. It costs more than double to ship something to Canada. And it works the same way going from Canada to the US.


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## vicv (Feb 2, 2013)

I may have written that wrongly as it wasn't meant to put down the vendors. Shipping is ridiculous between our countries. I've bought things from overseas which were larger and heavier for much less money. A thin nakiri for $30 I think is a bit of gouging though. Look at eBay. Two different sellers selling the same thing. One charges $25 for shipping the other charges $5. And Koki from JCK charges $6-7 I believe for shipping as a flat rate. Makes you wonder. But I don't ship things so I really have no idea


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## franzb69 (Feb 3, 2013)

i find it odd that shipping is that bad between your countries, since it's literally a stone's throw from each other.


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## Justin0505 (Feb 4, 2013)

Haven't used both, just the blue aoto from Dave. You can't think of it like a 2k, b/c the finish ends up being much higher. It's also softer and muddier than anything else I've even used, so it took me awhile to figure out how to use it, it its just a really fun stone and does a great job of leaving even finishes over less-than-even grinds. If you get one, get the "jombo" size. Sharpening on it feels like having an empty football stadium all to yourself. It's big, but fragile so I wrapped mine with tissues paper and epoxy and attached a granite base and it's lived in my bucket ever since. 

Here's a picture of it dwarfing a Gesshin 4k (not a small stone either):


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## vicv (Feb 4, 2013)

Ya I'll probably get that stone eventually too but decided to try the green one first


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## jai (Apr 18, 2013)

cant find green bricks anywhere? got any ideas of where to look now


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## marc4pt0 (Apr 18, 2013)

I'd like to reopen this discussion if yal don't mind. I've been sharpening my knives for YEARS and this includes many other cook's and friend's knives also. Have never used natural stones but have been doing a little research the past 6+ months and still can't decipher which one(s) I should get. I thought about the synthetic blue Dave has listed on his site, but the cautions and poor reviews of the stone shattering too easily has made me hesitate. It's mainly the price point that I'm weary of in general regarding natural stones. As in I'm not trying to spend a ton...
thoughts?


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## pitonboy (Apr 18, 2013)

Kind of depends where in your progression you might like to start. If you are looking for 2K-4K would recommend an aoto from Maxsim(japanesenaturalstones.com) or the monzento from Jon (JKI.com), both of which are easy to use and the difference between them and artificial stones is obvious. If you don't end up liking them, you could also probably resell them easily.


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## franzb69 (Apr 18, 2013)

for what it's worth, i'm in the same situation as you are.


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## Slypig5000 (Apr 18, 2013)

I use the Green Brick in a progression from 500 Bestor to Green Brick to 5k Rika. If I'm patient with the green brick it will leave a near mirror finish which makes the the Rika unnecessary. In fact I prefer the edge it leaves. I'm not crazy about the feel of the stone, which is not so important, and the feel isn't bad, its just very soft. I don't have experience with the Blue Aoto, though I too have seen it online and been interested in a comparison between the two. I've wanted to put a 1k stone in this progression as the GB is not an extremely fast cutter, but the funds aren't in the budget for new toys right now. And it works without it so...

I guess in my incoherent rambling, I would recommend it, though I think that a better option might be out there, maybe it is the Blue Aoto?


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## pleue (Apr 18, 2013)

I love the blue aoto xl, been using it as my primary stone which has kept me from investing in a higher grit, though I suspect my single bevels could benefit from a step up, though they see little action. Very soft, very muddy, adapts to your pressure (cuts relatively fast with hard pressure, polishes well with soft pressure),if you are going too fast and not paying attention it is very easy to gouge but also forgiving if you do. I find it to be the exact opposite of shapton glass stones, which is to say I love it and think it's a great all around stone to refine your skills on. The wide sharpening surface is great as well for me. No problems yet with cracking, haven't done anything except keep it soaking and sharpen on a sturdy flat table. 

Progression is:

Naniwa Omura if needed (repairs, bevel setting, thinning)
Bester 700 (bevel refining)
Blue aoto (setting a good working edge)

Looking to add an akamon xl 1k instead of the bester and perhaps the rika 5k or arashiyama 6k down the road.


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## marc4pt0 (Apr 19, 2013)

I bought Dave's 3 stone set- Beston 500, Bester 1200 and Rika 5000. Great setup, but curious where the blue or green should fit in, or if I even should go that route all together...


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## WiscoNole (Apr 20, 2013)

marc4pt0 said:


> I bought Dave's 3 stone set- Beston 500, Bester 1200 and Rika 5000. Great setup, but curious where the blue or green should fit in, or if I even should go that route all together...



I have all 4 stones you've mentioned, and the Aoto is not necessary if you have the other three. I would get a Takenoko 8K.


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## Chuckles (Apr 20, 2013)

I think the brick and blue aoto are great for wailing on after thinning to get scratches out. Have never used a bester 1200 but for cutting speed to polish ratio I think these two would be tough to beat.


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## marc4pt0 (Apr 20, 2013)

WiscoNole said:


> I have all 4 stones you've mentioned, and the Aoto is not necessary if you have the other three. I would get a Takenoko 8K.



funny you should say that as I did get that 8000 the same time I purchased the other 3. read the great reviews so I wanted to try it. I only forgot to mention it previously because I actually don't use it often at all. I find it "doesn't work" so as opposed to trying to learn it I just lazily don't. I will give it a go here soon,no point in buying another stone without giving the 8k a true go at it. Do you think leaving it soaking in water will help with it? The other 3 in just leave in water.


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## labor of love (Apr 20, 2013)

For whatever reason the green brick works really really great as a finishing stone for stainless. Dont ask me why. But i prefer it for stainless over my rika 5k and 8k kitayama. Other than that, it clogs pretty easy and i always seem to accidentally chip off pieces while sharpening.


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## slowtyper (Apr 23, 2013)

My synthetic blue aoto just started cracking very shortly after I got it. I take care of the stones. I looked it up after it happened and turns out its a fairly common problem. My stone was still ussable after gluing it to a block...but I wouldn't recommend it to anyone because of this.


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