Umajiyama Suita

** This stone is on the way to the annual KKF East Coast Gathering - if you are interested in this stone (whether attending the gathering or not) please contact me and I can reserve it for you **

Size (mm) / Weight

207x79x37 / 1,438g

Performance

Hardness / Fineness: 3- / 4

This stone comes close to being the ideal soft suita. It is very clean with no major inclusions, full-size, grit consistent, and soft enough to self slurry but not so soft as to be difficult to refine. The feed back is creamy and slick and with pressure you can work up a good quantity of mud that with lighter pressure can be refined. Edges are great for kitchen applications as well. This stone would also be an enjoyable pre-finisher for razors and tools.

The kasumi finish is well balanced with ample contrast, glossiness, and detail. The polish picture is a nakiri made for me by RDG, a talented young smith working out of Sante Fe, NM. 

Aesthetics & Other Notes

This suita has a deep blue-grey colored base. It is extremely uniform and not the most glamorous stone to look at. There are occasional splotches of karasu and and aka renge as well as completely benign grey lines. 

Umaji (馬路山, Umajiyama)

A Western mine located near Shinden and Ohira. This mine is best known for producing softer stones, particularly suita from shallower layers.