Chinese Guangxi Hones

The Chinese 12k waterstone, or The Peoples Hone of Indeterminate Grit, is a stone quarried in the Guangxi provence in China. The ballpark of 12k grit comes from the Woodcraft catalogue. some have rated theirs as low as 7k and some have rated theirs above 12k. As a natural stone it varies, not all being the same. Some stones are soft are produce a light slurry with use, not producing the edge desired from a high grit finisher. Some are somewhat scratchy. Others however are both hard and fine. It is considered a slow hone, requiring 100 or so strokes to finish. This can be sped up by using a slurry to start.