I am currently interested in a higher end board and I live in Japan, so I have access to a variety of vendors. I am having a problem, though, understanding the differences between all the types of boards and there seem to be a lot of conflicting accounts of the wood types. I read through a lot of information, but I am still confused about a few points, particularly because there are conflicting views.
For instance, Kiseido derides Chinese Kaya and says it is inferior to Japanese Kaya. While it may be true that Hyuga-kaya is one of the best wood types for boards, is Kiseido overstating the poor quality of KAya? For example this guy,
http://www.maekawa-kayagoban.co.jp/ builds boards in Japan and most of his kaya boards are made from Chinese Kaya. He says on his website that there is really no difference and that even Chinese Kaya is now increasing in price because it is becoming a bit more scarce. Note that his boards are dried over a 10 year period, so the quality is very high. It is not as if the boards are being mass-produced in some factory somewhere.
Thus my first question: Is there a really noticeable difference between boards made from Chinese Kaya and Japanese Kaya if they are produced using very high level expertise?
I am also wondering about the importance, benefits and costs, of having a single piece board versus a composite board. For me, I really love having a single board. I just enjoy the look a lot more. However, there are some composite boards that seem to do a really good job on the board face and it is barely noticeable that it is a composite board when looking down on the board. So, again, I am torn between whether it makes sense or not. If you need to know I am looking at about a 2 or 3 sun table board. So, it is a little thick but not very thick.
Thus my second question. Does it make a difference in the way the boards warp over time or are there any other costs/benefits to having a composite board versus a single wood board? I read through previous posts and there seems to be some idea that composite boards warp less, but if I buy a high quality aged and dried single wood board, I should also not have any problems. Is this accurate consensus?
Finally, for anyone familiar with buying from Japanese vendors, i notice several different designations of the wood style. Some vendors say 本榧 (hon-kaya), but do not specify any more information than that. Should I assume that it is Chinese Kaya in that case? Because usually if it is Japanese kaya, they will specify that it is 日向榧. Other times, though, the vendor says it is 本榧(日本産) (Hon-Kaya Japanese Origin). In that case, it does not specify that it is Hyuga, so what should I assume about the origin? Is it simply that they cannot know the type, but it is definitely kaya or should I just not trust it and assume they are lying and it is actually Chinese Kaya?
Thank you for all your help.