Thread: How many hones do you need untill you can say have have a HAD

I'm still fairly new with straight razors although I and have acquired enough razors and hones to keep me going for a while in that short time. So now what i want to know is....

1) How many hones do you have?
2) How many do you need until you can say you have hone acquisition disorder?
3) How many is too many?

And while we are at it what are your favorite hones... Whether it be a nice looking hone, you most expansive hone or you best finishing hone i would love to know!

How about some photos of your NO.1 hone too!

i have 3 but as 2 are combi stones, tecjnically 5, and they're purely utilitarian nortons and a naniwa finisher. I don't think i have HAD, even thoguh i'm interested in a coticule just now. That's mainly because i've been reading up on the one stone honing methods and the smooth edge they give. call it an evolution in my requirements.

I don't have a favourite hone i duess as the are all part of the progression and all required. I'll spare you the photos am sure everyone has seen norton combis and a naniwa 12k

For razors I have 4 and a DMT for lapping.
I have a couple of miscellaneous others for my axes etc. I didn't include those for this purpose. I bought them at junk sales and use the for things (like an axe) for which I don't have to keep them flat and whole.

Too many....
Too many is if you buy them just for the sake of buying, feeding an addiction.
If you are doing hone research and buy different types of hone for the sake of seeing what they are like, there is no 'too many'.
If you just buy coticules because you love coticules. Or Jnats, or whatever, then it is a disease.

From a functional point of view: if you just want to maintain a razor, you need just 1 or a pasted strop.
If you do some restoration work, you need a bevel setter and a hone. So that would be 2, but perhaps as much as 4 for convenience sake.
You don't ever 'need' more than that.

as soon as you have more than the minimum necessary to get a razor shave ready to your liking you have HAD.

but what if you're a honemeister? at that level of experience is it HAD or is it different tools for different jobs?

Dave Gilmour has over 100 guitars in a room at his house (mansion), countless amps and pedals too, but he regards them purely as tools that give different results.

Originally Posted by tekbow

but what if you're a honemeister? at that level of experience is it HAD or is it different tools for different jobs?

Dave Gilmour has over 100 guitars in a room at his house (mansion), countless amps and pedals too, but he regards them purely as tools that give different results.

I do not think that one needs to have a full closet of stones to hone a razor successfully.
IMHO a synthetic progression such as Naniwa SS, followed with either Escher, Jnat, fine Coti pretty much rounds up all stones that one will ever need to hone a razor. Of coarse instead of SS one can use a norton 4/8k, or Shapton GS, but the point is there is no really a need to have many many stones to be good at honing.
The having many stones part at least for me comes from me wanting to try different stones and progressions to see how they work, I do not see nothing wrong with that.

There is an equation.

If H is the number of hones you currently own and N is the number of hones you need then

N=H+1

The same equation can be applied to razors, brushes, soaps etc.

Originally Posted by tekbow

but what if you're a honemeister? at that level of experience is it HAD or is it different tools for different jobs?

Dave Gilmour has over 100 guitars in a room at his house (mansion), countless amps and pedals too, but he regards them purely as tools that give different results.

There are hundred's of different hammers out there that can bang a nail. Each of them are tools that can do it slightly differently.

The "normal" construction worker will need only a few to build anything he desires.
The construction worker with HAD (Hammer Acquisition Disorder) will "need" them all.

All this "different tools for different jobs" or "different results" thing sounds like an excuse to not feel guilt after purchasing yet another "tool".

Originally Posted by Jeltz

There is an equation.

If H is the number of hones you currently own and N is the number of hones you need then

N=H+1

The same equation can be applied to razors, brushes, soaps etc.

I like that, always +1

I do seem to be collecting a lot of natural and/or old barber hones lately to see how they hone compared to my other stones.. I don't feel the need to buy synthetic stones any more just the more rare stones, natural stones or old barber stones.

So i think I'm starting to develop a slight HAD...

Originally Posted by tekbow

but what if you're a honemeister? at that level of experience is it HAD or is it different tools for different jobs?

Dave Gilmour has over 100 guitars in a room at his house (mansion), countless amps and pedals too, but he regards them purely as tools that give different results.

As someone who restores razors with piece of the blade missing: you only need a couple of hones to cover for any scenario.
You don't NEED more than a bevel setter and a standard hone.