# King Stones



## Cnimativ (May 22, 2011)

Saw these 2 King sharpening stones at my local market at very low price, in teens. But what are the difference between these and the one that's carried by the cutlery/woodwork stores?

King Home Whetstone. #1000 Grit. Model K-45 






and King Combination Whetstone. #330/#800 Grit? Model K-80.


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## Seb (May 22, 2011)

Size?


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## Cnimativ (May 22, 2011)

Didn't measure, but pretty standard sizing, I think. Around ~20cm/~7cm/~2cm? K-45 has a plastic stand and K-80 is obviously thicker since its double sided.


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## MadMel (May 22, 2011)

Authenticity?


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## Seb (May 22, 2011)

Where is your local market then?

Can't read the kanji, btw.


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## Cnimativ (May 22, 2011)

MadMel said:


> Authenticity?



No way for me to tell since I never own any whetstone worth more than $10 and I do not know the website for King.



Seb said:


> Where is your local market then?
> 
> Can't read the kanji, btw.



SF Bay Area.

On the top picture:
King
Home Whetstone
Stainless, normal sharp object use.
Grid #1000, medium/high.

Bottom picture is too blurry. I blame my 4 years old camera phone. The grid # is probably all wrong.


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## Lefty (May 22, 2011)

King stones are cheap to begin with, so they could well be authentic and just brought in as an off-sale or perhaps the market got them in combination with other items.
If you're doubting them, just get a real one at a reputable dealer. You really won't drop much money going the safe way anyways.
I'm really against fakes, so rather than potentially help a vendor push a knock-off, I'll go somewhere that I know it's authentic.
In my opinion, kings are a great way to go for your first Japanese Waterstone. They're affordable, reliable, and you can really learn a lot on them, such as how to vary a finish with different amounts of water/slurry and playing with your techniques, as they aren't super aggressive cutters.


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## MadMel (May 22, 2011)

Lefty said:


> King stones are cheap to begin with, so they could well be authentic and just brought in as an off-sale or perhaps the market got them in combination with other items.
> If you're doubting them, just get a real one at a reputable dealer. You really won't drop much money going the safe way anyways.
> I'm really against fakes, so rather than potentially help a vendor push a knock-off, I'll go somewhere that I know it's authentic.
> In my opinion, kings are a great way to go for your first Japanese Waterstone. They're affordable, reliable, and you can really learn a lot on them, such as how to vary a finish with different amounts of water/slurry and playing with your techniques, as they aren't super aggressive cutters.


 
+1 on that. The grit sizes you choose would depend on how hard the steel on your knife is. I would take a 1k/6k King combo.


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## Dave Martell (May 22, 2011)

If I'm correct in my understanding.....

Letter = Grit

Number = Size


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## rockbox (May 22, 2011)

That K-80 is not the same as normal 1000 grit king stone. It does not get nearly as muddy. I bought it at SLT out of curiosity. I don't know about the other one. They sell King stone under the ice bear brand and woodcraft.





Cnimativ said:


> Saw these 2 King sharpening stones at my local market at very low price, in teens. But what are the difference between these and the one that's carried by the cutlery/woodwork stores?
> 
> King Home Whetstone. #1000 Grit. Model K-45
> 
> ...


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## Dave Martell (May 22, 2011)

You can check out King's complete line of stones here...

http://www.matsunaga-corp.co.jp/kakutoishi/01.html


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