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Asano Mikawa Nagura - Botan, Betsu-jo #87SD342n765

Asano Mikawa Nagura - Botan, Betsu-jo #87SD342n765

$135.00 USD
$135.00 USD
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dimensions

Approx.: 70mm x 50mm x 26mm
Weight: 190g

Classification
Type:  Asano Mikawa Shiro Nagura (純三河白名倉).
Stratum/Layer: Botan (ボタン) — the initial, fastest-cutting stage in the traditional Mikawa razor/blade honing progression.
Grade/Stamp: Betsu-jo (別上) — "Superior Selected" grade, indicating uniform grain consistency and lack of toxic inclusions.
Inspection Seal: Red oval Ken-Asano (検 浅野) stamp verifying authentication and quality testing.
Physical Characteristics & Evaluation
Weight & Dimensions:  Approx.: 70mm x 50mm x 26mm Weight: 190g
Shape & Preparation: Clipped block/tapered trapezoid format with chamfered edges on the stamped face, preventing chipping during slurry generation.
Purity & Pattern: Clean, chalky-white with some grey specs and benign suji lines, free of any toxic inclusions. 
Condition: Excellent, lightly chamfered, with crisp, fully intact stamps.


Functional Description
Abrasive Action: Botan is the fastest-cutting slurry stone among the standard Mikawa layers. It releases a creamy, milky-white slurry that quickly cuts steel and establishes a clean scratch pattern before transitioning to finer stages like Tenjyou, Mejiro, or Koma.
Applications: Excels at building fast-cutting slurry on hard finishing bench stones (Awasedo/Tomae), breaking in fresh stone surfaces, refining razor bevels, and establishing soft, even kasumi base finishes on bevels and clad steels.

care instructions

1. Preparation & Water Management
Splash-and-Go Only: Never soak your natural finishing stone in a water bath. Prolonged submersion softens the natural binders and risks cracking or delamination along natural mineral lines.
Surface Wetting: Mist or splash clean water onto the working face just before sharpening. Add water sparingly throughout your session to maintain a slick working surface.
Bench Placement: Place the stone on a non-slip rubber base or a dedicated wooden stone holder with gentle clamping pressure.
2. Slurry Generation & Sharpening
Soft to Medium Stones (Hardness 2.5–3.5): These stones naturally release their own slurry under light blade pressure. Let the auto-generated mud do the work; do not wash it away mid-session.
b Use a diamond plate (such as an Atoma 1200), a clean Tomo Nagura, or a Mikawa Nagura to raise a thin, milky slurry in 5 to 10 light circular passes before laying your blade flat.
Pressure & Technique: Maintain light, even pressure. Allow the semi-rounded silica particles in the slurry to break down naturally—this self-refining action creates the signature toothy edge and cloudy kasumi finish.
Slurry Thickness: If the mud becomes too sticky or pasty, add a few drops of water. If it is too thin, work the stone lightly to concentrate the abrasive particles.
3. Cleaning, Drying & Long-Term Care
Rinse Clean: When finished, gently rinse off steel swarf and residual slurry using room-temperature tap water. Do not use dish soap, detergents, or hot water.
Air Dry Indirectly: Wipe the stone dry with a clean towel and allow it to dry completely at room temperature, away from direct sunlight, heating vents, fans, or freeze-thaw cycles.
Storage: Store the completely dry stone flat on a shelf in a climate-controlled room. Avoid enclosing a damp stone in an airtight plastic box.
Edge Lapping: Keep the working surface flat by lightly dressing it with a fine diamond plate (Atoma 1200 or 400) under running water when dish patterns begin to form. Chamfer the outer top perimeter edges lightly to prevent edge chipping during blade passes.

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