Thread: Which Finishing Stone or Barber's hone should I get?

Originally Posted by Hirlau

or,,,,,, he can get a Norton 4/8 & with the instructions available on SRP, he can fix any minor discrepancies with the bevel or a factory edge,,,, & touch up his edge,,,

True meet up IMO are so valuable in this hobby 2 hrs with someone can knock months off of reading..

@Iceni

So with my bevel set, would you be standing by your suggestions or alter?
Hirlau seems somewhat adamant on just getting a WaterStone and that being it.

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@Airportcopper

Thanks for the offer man, but what would your suggestion being on what to purchase? Can't necessarily run to someone else every time I need a honing can I? =p

All stones need to be lapped before initial use except diamond stones

I would not suggest getting a gold dollar to learn to hone. To many possible and likely issues which the beginner will not know how or that he needs to fix and thus may never seen an edge and get frustrated thinking he is doing it wrong.

For just touchups on a budget without delving into naturals, either a paddle strop with pastes or a quarter norton or full size norton. Or naniwa 12k. You could go the barber hone route if you want but that's up to you and I personally don't like them.

Or you can get a piece of glass and some lapping film for a tight budget

Originally Posted by Smac3223

@Iceni

So with my bevel set, would you be standing by your suggestions or alter?
Hirlau seems somewhat adamant on just getting a WaterStone and that being it.

- - -

@Airportcopper

Thanks for the offer man, but what would your suggestion being on what to purchase? Can't necessarily run to someone else every time I need a honing can I? =p

Keep in mind that my advice varies on who is asking the question,,, my advice to Iceni or Airportcopper would not be the same as my advice to you. They can already hone,,, you are new to this & I gave a suggestion that I felt would be the easiest method for you.

As they say, "All roads lead to Rome." but some can be a little difficult for one who has never visited before.

I suggested Barbers hone because in 5 or 6 strokes you can refresh your blade just fine. If you ever need more for some reason it will be possible with the right B hone. You haven't had any problems learning to strop obviously so with copper's help you could easily learn. Pastes and all that are great at a more frequent level of use but more bang for the buck on a hone. If you planned on doing restores (which I didn't hear in your post) then yes start collecting hones and a 12k would be a good start. You have been using it so I would say the bevel is set sure enough. Airportcopper has given you the best option so far. I am not sure what all he has but he can help you learn to use what ever you get and that is a very valuable help :<0)

Sunday we took a blade from chip in the heel to shave ready with a Frictionite stone. These are very expensive now but there are others that will do the same thing. There are many directions you could go but my advice is based on what I perceived in your post. You want 1 thing to keep your razor going at a low cost and I included with the least amount of hassle in my opinion.

All the answers have been great but, it is up to you to decide where your going with all this and what might work out best for your long range plans.

Originally Posted by Hirlau

Keep in mind that my advice varies on who is asking the question,,, my advice to Iceni or Airportcopper would not be the same as my advice to you. They can already hone,,, you are new to this & I gave a suggestion that I felt would be the easiest method for you.

As they say, "All roads lead to Rome." but some can be a little difficult for one who has never visited before.

I am with Hirlau.

I note that you are struggling with the why though.

Here is why I agree with "he who is Hirlau.". Barbers hones are all great. Diamond pastes are all great too. But nothing is as versatile and " intuitive " to those who aren't as experienced as some than a synthetic is.

I personally think the 10k fits the bill very well. With a stubborn blade, a bit of pressure then light strokes work great for me. Otherwise simple light stokes work well. But yeah - a 12 or 8 works to.

"Knowing your rock" is key - getting to know a synthetic 9 times out of 10 is easier than most other methods... But there is always that 10% lol!

Good luck and welcome to the forum! Glad to have you here!

Is any of the previously mentioned suggestions available in that I won't have to flatten them myself? Come pre-flattened I suppose.

Honestly I was hoping to just be able to find what kind of stone --man made or synthetic, to use and be done with it, but the more I look into all these suggestions the more I find people say they never get a flat stone, that they have to do it themselves which to me...means having to purchase additional objects. =[

Is there no one that sells ones already flat and level so they can just be used without worry?

Originally Posted by Airportcopper

My friend I'm about 20 mins from you.. Any help u need ill help u out and hook u up,with the local guys that meet quite often.. Feel free to contact me

Every one on here says getting face-to-face help is THE BEST way to learn to hone. I don't have that opportunity where I live. If I were you Smac3223, I'd jump on Airportcopper's offer!

Is there no one that sells ones already flat and level so they can just be used without worry?

You flatten the stone to set a datum. That been something constant and universally flat. Without doing it you add into the mix another set if variables. If your stones are flat then everything you do on those stones is a reflection of that flatness. If your stones are dished then you can encounter problems that are unseen. New synthetic hones tend to have a convex surface that must be flattened.

Flattening a stone is actually a simple operation, It's done on wet and dry sandpaper on a hard flat surface, or with a diamond based file.

A hard flat surface can be anything in your house that meets the requirements, From a sheet of old glass, A floor tile, Worksurface, or well finished table.

Universally most honing problems are caused when a stone is not flat if the user has a good grasp of how to hone, the second most common cause of problems been too great a pressure on the blade when you hone as this causes the blade to flex slightly changing the geometry of the razor.

You can buy pre flattened stones, but it's not needed. And as soon as you have used your hones to finish a razor then they can and should be re-flattened. If you watch any of the pro honers video's then always flatten before a razor goes on the rock, Often they do this with a diamond lap, but as I have said wet and dry @ 600-1200 grit is perfectly fine.

This is by large the biggest difference in sharpening a knife and a razor. Knives your edge doesn't have to be perfect even the softest of fruits isn't going to tell you your knife is set at the wrong angle or it's tugging a little. Your face on the other hand will tell you instantly if you have not reached perfection. I honed a razor last night while writing replies for you on here, When I took it to shave the blade needed more work and was tugging a little, So rather than continue to shave with it I put it to a side got out one of my perfect razor and finished the shave. Tonight I will sort that razor out and examine the edge. I suspect the bevel needs a full reset and my touch up of 8K, 12K, Natural wasn't enough to get the full edge ready.

Originally Posted by Smac3223

Is any of the previously mentioned suggestions available in that I won't have to flatten them myself? Come pre-flattened I suppose.

the simple answer is: No. but it's not that much work ánd you have someone who is willing to help out. believe me, you are in a luxury position

(I would advice the 10 or 12 K naniwa SS and a practice razor as well)