Bare Bones Minimum

**barbiesdude** · 03-05-2012, 03:04 AM

OK, I'm a newb. Got a really cool beast of a blade from my father-in-law that I am restoring. In the mean time I snagged a little dudley's barber vintage that is in ok condition to get by. I also scored a vintage from a neighbor who has been a barber for 45+ years. I was quizing him on honing and stropping. When asked if he used 1000-8000 stones, coticules, jap/chinese water stones etc, he just looked at me like I was silly. He said all he ever used were barbers hones and a good strop. What gives?
I wanted to get into the SR thing to keep from buying stupid mach 40 11 whatevers at $16 a whack, plus I think SR shaving is neat and It should be a skill to keep around in this high tech gizmo dominated world. When I started researching what it is involved in getting started - WHOA! all these guys on youtube and in articles, they've got hundreds maybe thousands in stones, hones, strops, paddles etc.
How did the old school barbers do it? I wouldn't think they spent that kind of money, or that kind of time in getting a razor sharp enough to split an atom, would they?
Again, I am new, so just trying to get my feet wet in this SR/wet shaving thing, but I don't want to get drowned. Any advice would be appreciated. As I grow in this deal, I may end up one of the guys that has all the "stuff" but right now I just want to be a do-it-yourselfer and not have to send my razors out either.
Look forward to hearing from ya'
Jamie

**Thirdman47** · 03-05-2012, 03:33 AM

I just picked up a barber's hone on ebay last week but I'm going to need some guidance on how to use it. I'm a newb too, but I think the stones are for more serious restoration of a blade. I could be all wrong on that, though.

**mcgyver74** · 03-05-2012, 03:55 AM

You don't need to use the 1000/etc stones normally. They are for re honing a razor, for day to day shaving all you need is a razor and a decent strop. You use a barbers hone to bring the blade back every so often when it starts to pull or tug but you can also use a piece of pasted balsa.

We like our toys and we are always chasing that perfect shave hence more and more high tech stones etc, but at a min all you really need is a razor and strop.

Good luck

**dave5225** · 03-05-2012, 04:13 AM

Originally Posted by barbiesdude

I was quizing him on honing and stropping. When asked if he used 1000-8000 stones, coticules, jap/chinese water stones etc, he just looked at me like I was silly. He said all he ever used were barbers hones and a good strop. What gives?

That's all you need to keep a sharp razor sharp . It's really THAT simple . It seems to be human nature , to take the simplest things , and complicate them to the farthest degree .

**oldsCool** · 03-05-2012, 04:49 AM

Glen, aka gssixgun, has a great video on you tube on using a barber's hone. It's easy to follow and helps a lot. Just go to you tube and type in using a barber's hone; it's there.

This link may or may not work due to my technical limitations:

gssixgun Barber Hone.wmv - YouTube

**thebigspendur** · 03-06-2012, 11:29 PM

You have to remember many of the folks on this site are in to this stuff as a hobby or have an obsession over differing aspects of it.

People were shaving and maintaining straights when it was the only way to shave and they did it with one simple hone. Really, if you have a Norton 220/1K and a Norton 4K/8k you can do everything from full restorations to touchups and never need anything else.

Once you become taken in by this stuff you become a slave to it and wind up on and endless road to find the ultimate.

Happily I never fell for all of that. Har har.

**1OldGI** · 03-06-2012, 11:54 PM

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

You have to remember many of the folks on this site are in to this stuff as a hobby or have an obsession over differing aspects of it.

People were shaving and maintaining straights when it was the only way to shave and they did it with one simple hone. Really, if you have a Norton 220/1K and a Norton 4K/8k you can do everything from full restorations to touchups and never need anything else.

Once you become taken in by this stuff you become a slave to it and wind up on and endless road to find the ultimate.

Happily I never fell for all of that. Har har.

I also come in on the minimalist side of things. Three years ago when I converted from safety razors and shavettes to straight razors , I picked up a vintage horse hide strop and a simple coarse/fine wetstone from a local hardware store. The stone was intended to just "get me started" and would soon be replaced by the Norton 4K/8K rig in due time. As time passed however, it became apparent that the simple hardware store wetstone was all I would need. It has rescued at least two dozen Flea Market razors to date and I seem to log pretty consistently effective and enjoyable shaves. If a razor begins to pull, I just give it a few laps on the fine side of the stone and I'm back in business. No, not top shelf gear by any stretch of the imagination but hey, if it ain't broke, why fix it?

**syslight** · 03-07-2012, 12:08 AM

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

You have to remember many of the folks on this site are in to this stuff as a hobby or have an obsession over differing aspects of it.

People were shaving and maintaining straights when it was the only way to shave and they did it with one simple hone. Really, if you have a Norton 220/1K and a Norton 4K/8k you can do everything from full restorations to touchups and never need anything else.

Once you become taken in by this stuff you become a slave to it and wind up on and endless road to find the ultimate.

Happily I never fell for all of that. Har har.

Sadly when we go far enough down the acquisition route many of us learn that we have gone too far... even though some of my razors seem better off the shapton 16k & 30k really they are not all that much better than off my old reliable coticule. and somedays i wonder what all the stone and plate fascination was all about. one lives and learns.

**bondpunk** · 03-07-2012, 12:20 AM

Doing this as a hobby we can tend to take it farther than we need. Do I need 11 razors to shave with? Nope. Do I still get razors when I am out and about and see one I fancy...Yep. If it is what you wanna do then do it. It is fun to get new razors, try new soaps, see which stones give you a better or more comfortable edge.

**Slartibartfast** · 03-07-2012, 12:24 AM

Back in the day barbers were not buying the equivalent of an ebay special either.

Coticules were not uncommon... I believe the barbers manual mentions some synthetic hones and other naturals like eschers

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