I've used Hone Rite from Bora on my stones and found myself wondering if it was common place or do most people just use clean water? The stones are brand new to me and I've not used them without the Hone Rite so I don't know the difference, really. The thought of hindering rust sounded good to me, but at 30 bucks for a bottle and seeing how quick it will go after one session with it, I would skip it next time if I knew it were going to be a non issue.