Thread: Best Sharpening Stone

I'm considering switching to a straight razor but before I jump in with both feet I need to make an informed decision on one or two things. The first is to decide on a sharpening stone to purchase. Hence, my question to you folks. Is the Norton 4000/8000 water stone the best stone to use for sharpening a straight razor? Is there something on the market even better? What do you pro's use? Where is the best place to buy it? Thanks, and I look forward to your helpful replies.

Since I'm new to this group perhaps I should give a little background info so you'll know something about me. I began wet shaving about three months ago using a Futur safety razor and a super badger brush. I'm getting good shaves and I'm enjoying it. Now, however, I'm thinking about stepping up to a straight razor in hopes of getting an even better shave. For ten years Prior to three months ago I had a full beard and didn't shave at all. And, for thirty years prior to that I used an electric shaver. Needless to say I never looked forward to shaving with my electric for two reasons. I never seemed to have time for a leisurly shave and I had not then discovered wet shaving. Now that I'm retired I find I have an abundance of time to devote to shaving and I actually look forward to my next shave. So here I am, venturing forth into unchartered waters. With your help I hope to make the right decisions on the purchase of equipment so that this new venture will be a most lasting and satisfying one. Thanks again.

Duke

Duke,
Welcome to the group. I'm thinking that most people here would recommend the norton 4/8k wetstone. It's pretty costly, but it's a sure thing and inexpensive compared to Belgian Coticules. If there is a Woodcraft store in your area it can be purchased there which will save on shipping, but you'll have to pay local sales tax. There are many internet locations to purchase this stone, including woodcraft.com. My recommendation is the 3" wide stone. If price is no object, then I'd recommend a yellow coticule stone as well or a paddle strop with diamond paste for sharpening beyond the 8000 grit stone.
BTW-I really don't consider myself a sharpening pro, but I can get most razor's shave-ready.
Congrats on retirement and welcome to the group!
-Fred

Hi Duke,

Welcome to the group, and I hope you'll find your best shave here

To the hone. The standard hone here is the Norton 4000/8000 combination stone. It is widely accepted just because of the consistency of the results grit standards, and it is still manufactured, unlike various barber hones that are discontinued in production, and are not marked in grit. I have heard good things about Shapton Pro series. They are way more expencive than the Norton stone. For centuries natural stones were used on razors, like Belgian Coticule, and are considered good sharpening stones.

Nenad

I started out by buying a few shave-ready razors from members here. Once they started dulling (more by my lousy stropping than from actual use, I'm afraid), the setup that got me going again was a 3" Norton 4k/8k stone and pasted strops with 1 and .5 micron pastes.

Some people (including me) have found that their norton's needed lapping to get them smooth enough to hone well, I marked mine with a pencil and lapped it with fine sandpaper on glass until all the pencil marks were sanded off. Experienced honers can get a razor sharpened just fine with the 8k side of the norton, but inexperienced honers like me find that using the pasted strops after the norton gets the razor shaving well with a lot less effort and worry.

I second the pasted strop option. I never got the Norton simply because I already had a 6K japanese waterstone. After asking a similar question to yours on this site I opted for the pasted strop from Tony in order to touch up the blade after my hone. The pasted strop was expensive compared to a fine barber hone, but cheap compared to a coticule. The other advantage to the pasted strop is that it works quickly, is easy to learn (unlike the barber hones), and has a variety of grits making it ideal for many different levels of sharpening needs and thus postponing the time consuming hone.

Like others I'd say the Norton is your workhorse and abrasive pastes can really add to that. If you're just looking to touch up a razor then you could go for a heck of a long time with just the pastes if you have enough of them. The question is how much do you want to work at anothter skill (honing) beyond te shaving and stropping you already will be working on? If the answer to that is 'not much' then I'd say a 4-sided paddle strop is in order for you. If 'bring it on' is the answer then you'll likely want that Norton and maybe a nice Belgian coticule too.

X

Whichever route you go consider this.
The initial investment you make in hones and strops is a very long term investment. You will probably not wear the hone out in your lifetime (Unless you get into restoring old razors or go pro). You won't have to go to the store to get blades. You won't have to buy a new razor or pay $15 for 10 cartridges. If you travel you can always have a fresh blade with a few laps on a paddle strop and or hone.
I bought an inexpensive strop (Tony Miller "seconds" which would do well as "firsts") I butchered my first one learning to strop. I am not alone in doing that It also rolls up into a neat little ball and the leather strings tie it up into a neat roll you can hold in your hand and put in your shave kit. Tie the strings around towel bar or door knob and you have a hanging strop. I now have one his heirloom strops w /linen now that I am confident in my stropping.

I have about $200 invested in hones. But I could have done well with $34.00 with Tilly's Barber hones starter kit. I added a Swaty and a Belgian Coticule.

Norton's are more popular here, and they have a faster learning curve and if I have understood the posts correctly will achieve an edge faster than Barber Hones. I have time to learn.
Good Luck on your purchase. These guys here have wealth of knowledge and have forgotten more than I know and are always ready to help.

Welcome to the forum, Duke. I'm a bit of a hone-junky (nothing like Nenad, Randy and the rest of the truly good ones, but still) so I've tried a few and here are my impressions.
1) If you want to hone, get the Norton 4/8k 2". Yes, TWO inches. It will give you more consistent wear on the blade. I'll probably get a 2" and sell my 3".
2) Japanese stones are ok for touchup honing but they are HORRIBLE for restoration work, as they cut very slowly.
3) Get your first blade from one of the members here so you have a sharpness standard for your own honing. They will indicate if it's shave-ready. Don't shave much with it until you figure out the proper way to hone your oldies and just use it for comparison. Bill Ellis has some great pieces in various price-ranges at http://www.billysblades.com/Straights.htm 4) Do not, I repeat, DO NOT buy new razors unless they're DOVO, Thiers-Issard or custom pieces from Bill or the Maestro. Ask here before you buy.

Here's why you will save yourself some frustration/scarring (personal experience lol):
1) Norton is the easiest hone to work with and gives consistent great results.
2) Using a slow cutter to restore a blade is a sure-fire way to get arthritis. However, they will be easier on your blades once it just needs touching up.
3) Self-explanatory.. You need to know what a proper shaving edge is before you try to create one on your own. Ties into #4...
4) I'm trying to help you avoid buying Pakistani ebay razors, made of junk steel that will NEVER take a proper shaving edge. I have a few scars to prove it.
Good luck and enjoy!

Originally Posted by Duke

Is the Norton 4000/8000 water stone the best stone to use for sharpening a straight razor?

It's not an easy question to answer if we don't know what you intend to do.

For example, if you just want to learn how to shave and maintain a few razors in shave ready condition, the Norton may be overkill. It's a great stone, definitely the preferred one if you're going to restore and hone lots of razors. You need to use it at a sink and soak it before use. That's a bit inconvenient if you just want to touch up a razor once in a while. What would work best then is a pasted strop or fine barber hone (e.g. a Swaty). If you stropped before every shave (necessary) and refreshed the razor when it started to pull a little, you could maintain it indefinitely with just the strop and hone. Just as your best bet is to have the razor honed initially by someone experienced, you could similarly send it out for service once or twice a year when touching up was not enough. Many men did this in the old days, and so dod many barbers.

Since you don't know whether you will stick with str8s, you also want to minimize your present investment until you're sure. That's another reason for getting just a strop and fine hone. Or a pasted strop with 1-3 micron paste on one side and plain leather on the other would work. You can get a new one from Tony Miller at a very reasonable price. THe paddle strop will also be easier for learning stropping.

Boy, you guys are great! This was my first post here and the responses were overwhelming. You gave me so much info that I have to take a few minutes to digest all of it.

For starters let me clarify my inclinations. No doubt I will want to acquire a quality blade. Before today I narrowed the choices to DOVO or Thiers-Issard. Then I learned about Bill Ellis. Unfortunately, he sold 98% of his stock so there's not much available there. Next, the name Maestro was mentioned. I would gladly look him up if I knew who he is and how to find him. I started by asking about hones because I read somewhere that even a new DOVO or T-I does not arrive shave ready. So I assumed I would have to hone the new blade or send it to someone to hone it for me. So my next question is just how much work is needed to get a new quality high carbon steel blade ready for first use?

Let me clarify one important point about my intentions. I'm not interested in restoring blades as a hobby. I will, however, devote enough time to keeping my razor as sharp as possible for the closest possible shave. To do so I've learned that I need to strop before each shave. Therefore, I will have to buy a quality strop. Two members mentioned that Tony sells strops. Please tell me how to view his selection. So, as for honing, I am only interested in that twice a year touch up job I read is necessary. My concept then as of this minute is to use a cloth/leather strop before each shave and honing the razor about twice a year with a Norton. Does this sound about right? Other replies suggested pasted strops. Is that really necessary? Once again, your replies have given me a lot of food for thought. I'll digest it all and then come back for more. Thanks very much.

Duke