First off, great service from Paul as always. That goes without saying so let's get that out of the way. As for the stone... Superb as always from Naniwa. I have all of the Pro stones up to 3k. 5k and 10k are just too expensive for what they give you. Of the 3k and below grits, I pair them as one-two punches as follows: 400 with the 1k, 600 with the 2k and 800 with the 3k. For softer steel, the 400/1k combo + strop w/ compound is enough. For harder Japanese steel, 800/3k and strop is great. You can go higher than 3k grit but there's no or very little APPRECIABLE performance difference (at least for my knives). BUUUUT... Hands down the most versatile combo is the 600/2k (and strop of course, never skip stropping). A 2k finished edge is such a versatile, smooth but toothy edge that you can still appreciate on softer German steel if you realign it every now and then with a ceramic honing rod AND, I'd say it brings out 90 to 95 percent of the potential of Japanese steel (unleash 100% potential of your jknives at 5k to 8k). Knowing what I know now and knowing what knives I have in my household, if I have to start a whetstone roster, I'll start by getting the 600 and 2k Naniwa Pros. Fantastic, just fantastic!