Please school me on natural hones

[Straightandproud]

I have as of late figured out my Norton 4K/8K waterstone and am getting a very sharp and acceptably smooth shave from my razors. I have been looking at and considering a naniwa 12K as my next step up, but the purist in me is interested in natural stones as a finisher. many here talk about the endless varieties and there are just as many preferences. It seems that "HAD" is a real danger for me. But, I am just getting started and have several shaving related addictions to feed. As a result, I am seriously considering the natural finisher route. It seems that one can drop as much $ as desired on the various options available but I would like to purchase a GOOD stone for an affordable price. Being new at this and drowning in the endless posts about Cotti's, Jnats, Belgian Blues, Apache Strata's and Arkie's, I find myself wondering what the real difference is. What would be recommended as the next step from a Norton 8K that won't break the bank? Belgian Blues and Arkansas stones can be purchased for much less than the others but do they perform at the same level? Are the Jnats and Cotticules better or just more collectible? And then there are approximate grits.

Please help me clear this up and put me on the right track to a high quality yet affordable finisher.

[thebigspendur]

What you ask, you could write a book about, a very big book.

Best to read the posts about the different kinds of media.

You will get many opinions and realize hones are a hot subject and everyone will argue for their favorite type. To me in the end the right hone no matter the type or cost will hone your razors just fine. It's only if you get hone crazy that you'll want the ultimate whatever that is and it's a moving target.

[mainaman]

I would like to purchase a GOOD stone for an affordable price.

There is a lot of high demand for naturals which are considered top tier. This drives price pretty high, so finding quality at affordable price can be tough.
You can luck out at flea markets or garage sales.
Belgian Blue stones are not finishers by the way. For Arkansas stones you have to find the right grade, not everyone will be a finisher.
J-nats is the same thing, you have to find the right grade of hone. All higher grade hones will cost money.

[Phrank]

I have as of late figured out my Norton 4K/8K waterstone and am getting a very sharp and acceptably smooth shave from my razors. I have been looking at and considering a naniwa 12K as my next step up, but the purist in me is interested in natural stones as a finisher. many here talk about the endless varieties and there are just as many preferences. It seems that "HAD" is a real danger for me. But, I am just getting started and have several shaving related addictions to feed. As a result, I am seriously considering the natural finisher route. It seems that one can drop as much $ as desired on the various options available but I would like to purchase a GOOD stone for an affordable price. Being new at this and drowning in the endless posts about Cotti's, Jnats, Belgian Blues, Apache Strata's and Arkie's, I find myself wondering what the real difference is. What would be recommended as the next step from a Norton 8K that won't break the bank? Belgian Blues and Arkansas stones can be purchased for much less than the others but do they perform at the same level? Are the Jnats and Cotticules better or just more collectible? And then there are approximate grits.

Please help me clear this up and put me on the right track to a high quality yet affordable finisher.

Don't forget Escher's....

[Haroldg48]

FYI and reading pleasure, I just typed natural hones in the Google Custom Search box at the upper right of this page, and got 10 pages of links to posts on the forum here.

[gooser]

assuming you get into reading all the threads you will find on here I will add my onion on choice of naturals ..lol..

i prefer the coticule and love there edge !! my only issue i have is that instead of learning one coticule i kept buying them ..lol.. sure it is fun to play with all those stones but but out of 7-8 coti's i use i think 2-3 i feel comfortable with r have learned enough to get that edge i like almost every time where as some of the others im going back to hone more .. so when you decide i think you will benefit the most by learning your natural through trial and error before you try another , kinda like synthetics ... least that's my un-professional thought on the natural

[RezDog]

There are many ways you can go. To help you narrow it a little you can get a budget number and then wonder about what fits in that number. On the high end you can find very predictable labeled vintage hones. They would be Eschers, Japanese naturals, and Coticules. The Eschers are a small field and easy to navigate but very big money. The Coticules and Jnats you need to buy from someone that knows the hones and knows your intent. The new hones tend to be a little more price conscious as there are some out there for low entry dollars. Currently there are some slates from the UK and the Chinese hone and the Zulu and the Apache. Those are the ones being commercially produced. There are a number of rock hounds that will make hones here and there. There is also the vintage hones from the UK. I know little about most of them, other than they are there. I have a couple of labeled Eschers and a couple of Coticules that were picked for me. I think that if you were to go to one of the larger meets you would find a lot of them there and the people who have them would show you and tell you all about them. That is actually the best place for most to start their natural hone obsession. It is a long rabbit hole in general. There are a few that find what they like and stay the path. Good luck.

[Blistersteel]

first decide if you want an oilstone or waterstone .
next set a budget that you can live with conscious wise.

as far as Arkansas stones go feel free to ask me about them anytime .cam.

[Basetta70]

first decide if you want an oilstone or waterstone .
next set a budget that you can live with conscious wise.

as far as Arkansas stones go feel free to ask me about them anytime .cam.

Usually staying on low budget "you get what you paid for".
For examples dimension of the stone: it will be cheaper to buy a small one but usually the result is harder to reach and at the end you will discover that a bigger stone works better and you have wasted money on the small one.
THere is nothing more expensive than cheaper tools.

[Blistersteel]

Usually staying on low budget "you get what you paid for".
For examples dimension of the stone: it will be cheaper to buy a small one but usually the result is harder to reach and at the end you will discover that a bigger stone works better and you have wasted money on the small one.
THere is nothing more expensive than cheaper tools.

what low Budget ? I said conscience not go cheap.cam.