Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

This is a pretty good stone. I like the dual grits because let's face it, not everything we sharpen needs the same kind of edge or starts from the same degree of dullness. You can use it dry, with honing oil or with water. Over many years I have found that water works best with a stone this coarse, (actually, my father taught me that and I just simply verified what he told me over the years). Using it dry will cause premature wear and your stone will not last as long as it could. So choose whether you can work best with honing oil or water. Even though this stone has what it calls a medium grit, it's still not nearly as smooth and hard as an Arkansas stone or something of that nature that normally requires oil. If you use oil on this stone, it will clog the pores and eventually have an affect on how well it does its job. Water on the other hand does just as well or better and does not clog. It washes out and the stone can stay clean for the next time you need it. As far as being messy I have not found that to be a problem. A small amount of oil or water is all you need anyway, and you can always add more when you need it. Just enough to cover the surface of the stone is all that is necessary and when it dries up or soaks in, just add some more. It's not that complicated. Clean it after each use to keep the surface fresh and get rid of metal particles that will collect.