Thread: Best or Good stones

Hi,
I have this thing about only buying the best when I purchase any item. So as I set out in my new straight blade venture I purchased a quality DOVO razor and found the best (for me) shaving cream/soap/whatever you call it, plus a good aftershave lotion.

When I purchased my straight blade I purchased a quality strop and a quality brush. I even conscripted my favorite wide mouth Donald Duck cup into service as my lathering cup.
I've used razors to shave with since I first started shaving. Electric razors felt "weird" and chaffed my baby butt soft face so after one time with the electric I gave it away. That was well over thirty five years ago.

The first time I used a straight razor to shave with I was very impressed with the results. I actually "enjoyed" the experience!
So now I come to purchasing honing stones. I done some research on water stones "Norton" and oil stones. As I stated above, I only buy the best, or what best suites me (like my beer, the darker the better!).

I welcome any advice about which stones are better and why. Thanks!

The best? Don is selling two Eschers in the classifieds... Not sure about the grit on those two. Anyway...

You'll have plenty of choices and everyone will tell you something different. The differences between synthetic stones and naturals et al is really personal in terms of your own experience and honing style/s. I think others should be along to give you better answers and/or opinions. You'll probably want to at least check out Nortons, Shaptons, Natural Japanese stones, Eschers, Coticules, Belgians, etc.

As Alex noted, best is very subjective. For example, I am most certain that I cannot attach 'best' to your Dovo - I have many razors that I like a lot better than it.

Norton is a good stone, but many people feel that the Shaptons are better. You also need to understand that most hones are good for a very specific task and not good for another. For example the best finishing stone is completely useless to get a razor sharp - it can only get an extremely sharp razor even sharper.

Personally I like natural hones better than man-made ones, but that doesn't mean they are better. They are better for me and I have spent a lot more on coticules, eschers and japanese than I would have spent had I preferred man-made hones.

The "best" is a matter of personal preferences. What is the best car or the best Scotch?
That said I have DMT, Norton, Spiderco, Shapton, and other natural and synthetic hones and use them all.

With out being Zen like... "The Razor Chooses The Hone"

If I had to start over I would start with the Shapton Glasstones 1000, 4000, 8000, 1600. I use them 75% of the time.

Other Opinions May Vary

Welcome to the forum and congrats on your first experience. "The best"-well, that'll definitely open a can-o-worms. I too have many Dovo's- it is a GOOD razor, I don't think you'll get anyone to disagree with that statement. Best.... Look up my post and view the pics of my Joe Chandler Damascus or other members Livi's,Zowada's....you might realize there is quite difference of opinion here. That said, there is a Dovo in my current rotation that gives a great shave.

Hones and their acquisition, are a passionate subject. Many of us have started with the Norton 4/8 and then progressed to natural stones,DMT's and Shapton's. The escher's are coveted and can literally cost $1000's of dollars.

In short, buying the BEST hone or razor is like buying the BEST automobile, the BEST wristwatch etc.,etc..IMO, you would be better served by WHAT would SERVE YOU-at YOUR current SKILL level.

One thing I can say with absolute conviction- you could literally spend $2500,give the UPS guy a sore back-and turn a "good" razor into junk. Buying the BEST is at BEST- a pie in the sky. Good Luck.

Originally Posted by Lt.Arclight

In short, buying the BEST hone or razor is like buying the BEST automobile, the BEST wristwatch etc.,etc..IMO, you would be better served by WHAT would SERVE YOU-at YOUR current SKILL level.

+1 on this one.

The Norton 4K/8K is probably the most used "beginner" hone due to the length of time it's been around, so it should be the easy to get help on it, but the Shapton GS series is quickly gaining popularity and it seems to be quit a lot of members using those also, so it should be easy to get support on the GS stones.

Choose a hone that will match your skill level, after all the result will be the same, a shave ready razor.

What ever hone setup you decide upon, be sure the spend enough time on learning to use each hone to it's full potential instead of "rushing" through the grit's in search of a decent edge.

In my opinion the best are Brunette's with green eyes, although a Blonde with blue eyes is right up there on my list too.... Oh were talking hones???
same difference



BTW here is an interesting link http://straightrazorpalace.com/works...torations.html

I recommend the Norton 4/8 and the Chinese 12K . Reason being they work well and they are cheaper then the Shapton Glasstones, Coticules, Eschers etcetera. If you stick with this you can move on to the more expensive options. Bottom line is that the only way to find our which hone you will like the best among the many available is to try them. That can get expensive so I would say dip your foot in the water before you dive in.

You will need a progression of hones depending on what you want to do. Only you can decide whether you want diamond coated plates like the DMT series, manufactured hones like the Shapton hones or natural stones like the yellow coticules, Eschers, and Japanese hones. ...or some combination of the above. Everyone has their preferences. If you just need to maintain your razors you could get by with a yellow coticule and a Nakayama Japanese hone and the Nakayama is really optional.

gugi at the risk of hi-jacking this thread. What natural stones do you use in your honing progression?

Thanks