Shapton Whetstone #12000 Kuromaku

The Shapton Ha No Kuromaku ceramic whetstones are impressively high quality and do exactly what they're supposed to—they can achieve a true razor edge with little effort. I've used the full progression (from #1000 up to #12,000 grit) and each stone is consistent and flat out of the box, so you don't have to fuss with prepping them before every use. The sharpening speed is noticeably faster than other types of stones I've tried, which is ideal if you want to get your knives back in the game quickly. That said, these are a significant investment; the price is on the high side, especially if you only occasionally sharpen your knives or tools. They’re probably not worth it for casual users who just need a basic edge every once in a while. But for anyone who really cares about maximizing sharpness or maintaining premium blades, the performance is excellent. One crucial thing to note: proper maintenance is key. Regular flattening is a must to keep them working at their best—you can’t skip this step if you want reliable results over time. Neglecting it reduces the benefit you get from these stones and can make them feel like less of a good value. Overall, I recommend this set to serious sharpeners who want reliable results and don't mind doing some upkeep. For everyone else, the high price might be a dealbreaker.

These all arrived in excellent condition. No cracks or anything like that. The instructions were all in Japanese but it's easy enough to look up how to take care of them online. Every one in this kit works amazingly well and gets your knives razor sharp. I've probably sharpened 300+ knives with these since I got them and they show no signs of stopping. Obviously i did have to re-flatten them a couple times and since I didn't want to spend ~$400 on a lapping plate I just took an equally sized grit piece of sandpaper and wrapped it around a brick to flatten the stones back out. None of the ones in this set here need it often but their 200 grit version one wears down quickly and basically needs it after each use.

Stones are amazing and they're arrived in good condition and very well wrapped! Unfortunately I didn't received those towels.... 1000 grit in reality compared with Naniwa Chosera is coarser....around 600-800 grit 5000 grit can be compared with a Naniwa 3000/4000 Good cutting speed but not so fast as Cerax compared Shapton 100 with Cerax 1010. For those who are looking for chicken sharpening you don't need more than 5000 grit! For a home kitchen they will last forever!!! Good value for money !!! At this price is hard to believe you can buy a better set !!

This is a great set of stones for doing maintenance sharpening. They arrived in great shape. Stones aere flat and have consistent grit. They produce a very fine edge. One caveat is that if you need to do some restoration or change a bevel angle you will need a more agressive stone to get the project started. I've used mine mostly for sharpening plane blades and chisels with both A2 and O1 tool steel. Both were able to achieve a very fine edge which cut like a hot knife through butter. Splash and go... no soaking or you can degrade the binder and ruin the stone!

I was taught many years ago how to sharpen knives buy 2 German butcher uncles, and backcountry outfitter grandfather. They used natural Arkansas stones, and Norton carborundum oil stones. I finally moved to Japanese soaked Whetstones. I was never happy with how they sharpen, a lot of work for not much results. It turns out that like so many things you get what you pay for. These Kuromaku Ceramic Whetstones are what is called a splash stone. You don't soak the in water before use but drop enough water on the stone to allow the knife to move in it on the stone. This is so nice because the water soaked whetstones are a mess to use. Another thing I did not realise I was missing was feeback. With these Shapton whetstones you can feel the knife moving on the stone. With this feedback you can feel your progress, and you can tell when to move to a finer grit stone, or when you are finished.

I have a mix of Henckels, Miyabi, Wüsthof, Mercer, Dexter, and custom knives. These do a great job on them all and have even the Dexters super sharp. That being said, these are not beginners stones. Do not think you'll be able to do that without training and tons of practice, as these stones are finicky on a good day. Five stars if you're a professional or very serious home cook, three stars for your average person who doesn't own higher end knives nor have the purpose for them. That being said, extremely reasonable on price.

The 1000, 5000, and 8000 stones worked really well with little issues overall great stones. However the 12,000 grit was horrible. Loads up as soon as the knife touches the stone. It actually leaves scratches on the knife. No not like a scratch pattern like heavy scratching like if someone tried polishing on the sidewalk. I tried cleaning it with a cleaning stone and the stone I think embedded parts of it in the 12,000 and created heavy scratching sounds as I was trying to polish. Since that messed up my knife more I used a rust eraser and it only helped alittle. Overall all I truly enjoyed the other 3 stones but the 12k was trash. Now with that being said it’s possible it’s just my stone is crap and others got a better batch. Either way 3 out of 4 stones is not that bad.

These stones brought every knife in my kitchen to a razor sharp and polished edge. Even after 15 knives, they didn't show any visible wear, dishing, or anything! Will probably last your entire life if you treat them well and get a good lapping stone. I'd probably recommend the 320 grit stone as well for the blades with dents or large chips in them, but otherwise this is the only set of stones you'll ever need!

Best sharpening stones money can buy.

Die Auswahl der 4 ShaptonPro Steine sind von der Auswahl der Körnungen genau richtig um mit wenig Scheif-Aufwand eine erstklassige und furchterregend scharfe Schneide auf einem stumpfen Messer zu erreichen. Die Steine haben hervorragenden "Grip", der Aufwand ist bemerkenswert gering, die Körnungen der einzelnen Steine sehr konsistent und gleichmäßig. Um gröbere Ausbrüche herauszuschleifen ist der 1000er prinzipiell geeignet, braucht jedoch mehr zeitlichen Aufwand, es sind diese Körnungen 1000 - 12000 eher geeignet eine gute, intakte aber stumpfe Klinge zu schärfen. Mesten Anwendern fur Küchenmessern wird vermutlich die Gebrauchsschärfe die mit dem 1000er Stein erziehlt wird schon ausreichend sein? Die Politur zur Rasiermesserschärfe ist mit den feineren Körnungen sehr leicht zu erreichen. Klare Empfehlung von mir für diese Profi-Schleifsteine. Meiner Ansicht nach ein sehr gutes Preus/Leistungs-Verhältnis. Ich habe mich nach dem Schärfen meines Santoku und Guyoto richtiggehend vor der Schärfe gefürchtet ;-)

Shapton, Shapton , oh Shapton. The moment I first tried you I fall in love to use it. Damn every stroke gliding to the stone is so satisfying. I tried it to my 1000 and 5000 grit it feels my knifes new again. Damn! Sharpton that why it's to it's your brand. Excellent ceramic whetstone. Great investment especially to chefs, and knife enthusiasts.

No me llegaron los trapos /

Primera vez que utilizo piedras de alta calidad y la diferencia con las de 20 euros es altamente notoria. Es un excelente producto para mantener cuchillos de calidad. Es imperativo saber utilizarlas ya que afilar no es una tontería. Se pueden arruinar cuchillas si no se sabe hacerse correctamente.