Japanese Natural Whetstone Ohira Renge Suita JNAT 2092g Kyoto

Ōhira Renge Suita (大平 蓮華 巣板) is a large natural Japanese finishing whetstone from the renowned Ōhira (大平) source in Kyoto, Japan.

Dimensions: 203 × 85 × 52 mm
Weight: 2092 g
Hardness: 4/5
Approximate fineness: #8000+
Layer: Suita / 巣板
Pattern: Renge / 蓮華
Type: Natural Japanese Whetstone / JNAT
Origin: Ōhira, Kyoto, Japan
Stock: Old Stock — 蔵出 (Kuradashi)

This is a particularly large and substantial Ōhira Suita displaying a distinctive natural Renge (蓮華) pattern with reddish, pink and brown-purple inclusions and markings.

Original Japanese stamps and markings are preserved on the working surface, including:

純大平巣板砥 — Jun Ōhira Suita-to
“Genuine Ōhira Suita whetstone.”

The stone is also marked 蓮華 — Renge.

Of particular interest is the 蔵出 (Kuradashi) marking, indicating that the stone comes from old warehouse stock (Old Stock).

Suita (巣板) refers to the stone layer, while Renge (蓮華) describes its characteristic natural pattern and coloured inclusions.

Sharpening performance

The stone has been personally tested in use.

With a hardness of approximately 4/5, it combines fine finishing ability with excellent abrasive activity and cutting speed. It works very actively on steel and quickly develops a useful slurry. During testing, the slurry darkened almost immediately with removed steel particles, clearly demonstrating the stone's strong cutting action.

The approximate finishing range is #8000+. As with natural Japanese whetstones in general, this should be regarded as an approximate comparison with synthetic grit ratings rather than a fixed abrasive particle size.

During sharpening, the slurry can be progressively diluted with water, transitioning from active cutting to increasingly fine finishing and polishing.

The stone is well suited for finishing Japanese and Western kitchen knives, carbon and tool steels, chisels, plane blades and straight razors.

It can also be used to create a refined and contrasting kasumi finish on laminated Japanese blades.

Its exceptionally generous 203 × 85 mm working surface, 52 mm thickness and weight of more than 2 kg provide excellent stability during sharpening and an exceptionally long working life.