This Thüringen Whetstone is somewhat of a rarity, it’s not branded, boxed, or rectangular. I believed that such stones had to exist, but until now I had never seen or held one.
The color of the large stone is what I’d refer to as being grey/blue; in diffuse sunlight there seems to be a hint of a greenish hue running through it also. After lapping the large stone flat and polishing it a bit on an extremely worn 325x DMT, the honing surface came out totally non-reflective/matte, but it’s smooth as glass also.
Compared to a typical blue ‘Celebrated Water Hone’ – this Thuri bout is markedly softer. It’s hardness reminds me a bit of the Barber’s Delight stones, but I believe this stone is markedly finer than the y/g Eschers I’ve owned/used. Don’t get me wrong – y/g Eschers are great hones, I’m just making a comparison. For what it’s worth – my favorite Escher is the blue/green variant, but that’s another story.
The slurry generated by the longer and thinner ‘rubber’ seen in the photo is extremely buttery and velvety, and it polishes slowly. The slurry coming off the stone during lapping was identical in texture. I’ve not used the thicker ‘rubber’ yet, I want to lap off the rough edges first.
This razor hone isn’t ‘perfect’, and I find it’s unique personality refreshing. The top has a ‘safe’ innocuous inclusion that can’t be felt, the bottom is riven and the top is not level. Even so - it is extremely easy to use. I suppose that my experience with honing on odd-shaped Coticule bouts factors in here, but the shape and cut are relatively easy to get along with.
During the first honing session with this bout, I did not get the sensation that I’m accustomed to from typical Thuringians or Eschers; my initial impression is that this this is another grade or type of stone or something along those lines. It is definitely a Thüringen water stone, but it’s just not exactly like others that I’ve used.
My first honing effort with this stone was a refresh of a known edge that was previously honed on a Jnat and shaved with many times. The resulting ‘refinished’ edge was equally keen, perhaps a bit keener but that’s hard to judge – the cutting efficacy did seem better but that can be due to other factors. The edge’s smoothness was definitely improved by a significant margin.
Conclusion – this is a very fine quality stone that’s soft, slow and very fine. It’s a contender that I’d put up against any finisher any day. Yes – it’s that good.
Approx. Dimensions: 4.5 x 3.0 x 0.5” / 114 x 76 x 13 mm
Weight: 11 oz / 312 g
