Thread: Salm Rock/Old Rock Coti's vs Other vintage Coticules

Originally Posted by Utopian

Sorry, but the honer to which he is referring is very far from lazy and I guarantee that he took the time to get in tune with each and every hone, because that is what he does. It's simply a matter of his standards for what constitutes a good hone are much higher than those of most.

I agree with that assessment, for whatever that is worth .......

Originally Posted by kcb5150

It's a completely asinine statement... I'm sorry, but it is.... I respect someone having extreme standards, but it's exceedingly uncommon to come across one that won't provide an excellent shave that is comfortable.... If he would say "3/100 charnleys are suitable razor finishers" or "3/100 of the carbos you find in the wild you could put a razor to" or "3/100 vintage barber hones you tend to come across aren't rubbish" I'd say fair enough, but I have had A LOT of these things at this point and from my experience they all can be shaved off of with some effort... BBW is a different story... maybe 15-20% of those aren't a waste of time..

I also agree with the above assessment ......... FWIW ........ when he said it, I thought it was an 'asinine statement' ..... but we all make them from time to time ......

I mean, the only outright BAD ones have quartz inclusions that are toxic... There are some I wouldn't shave directly off of personally, but they can have real good speed and be nice in a progression to a different coti or something else entirely. The overly chalky, soft ones tend to be blah, but how often does ardennes let those out the door...

IMHO, it really depends on each individuals definition. There are no absolutes of "Best".

I also know the person referred to. He honed one of my Filarmonica #14's with his Japanese hones. It shaved very well...but my edges, using chrome Ox paddle strop, suited me better.

Just my 2¢

There's nothing wrong with charged stropping if a paste edge isn't harsh to you. My two personal criteria for a good edge are: cuts well with no chatter or bogging down, even atg, and not harsh. I've had mellow coti edges meet it, and crazy sharp edges off of La Lunes and Eschers meet the criteria. They all felt radically different, but all are good and enjoyable to use.

I've owned only about a dozen coticules. 2 stamped "Choice" coticules (including the one above), a LPB that I still use, A boxed Pike (also I still use), and lots of different unlabeled ones. I've found that I get really great edges off some but found others to be better suited for mid grade work.

As far as the gentleman they're referring to (I've watched the video where he makes that statement) goes I also thought it was ridiculous as was his statement that you can't use Coticules for one hone stones. However his standards might be far higher than mine when it comes to shaving edges. I have several eschers, and other thuringians but still enjoy shaving with a coticule edge that might not be as refined but is far more comfortable for my face.


Also, fantastic looking stones!!

In my opinion, there are a lot of coticules that are not practical for one stone honing, and it would be "ridiculous" to claim otherwise. I have about 35 coticules. I have experimented with them extensively. I don't care who declares my statement to be "asinine." The reality is that not all coticules are practical for one stone honing. I can shave off of every single one of them, but the edges they produce do vary dramatically, as does their cutting speed.

That is the fun of natural hones. They all have personality, and my hones are all better than yours!

I have 2 vintage coticules. Neither is labelled. Each is different and I use them for different types of razors. One is 1x5 inches and the other is 2 1/2 x 5 inches . Different speeds too. I'm not too hung up on coticules if they have a label or not. When you talk about other stones....that is what throws me for a loop. What is legit and what isn't. If someone is selling a hone and says it is "X" hone..... How do I know what it really is unless it has a label on it. And some of hones go for too much money with a label IMHO. I can understand collecting them for the labels, but some people actually want to use a certain hone and know that it is the real deal. Unless a person can find them a flea market or yard sale or someone they know sells them at a good price, trying to pay market price for some hones is an expensive venture.......Coticules are easy to identify when seeing.....unless you get into the vein types.

Agreed, and I am perfectly content in declaring that I don't know from which vein any of my coticules came. In fact I only know from which mine only one of my coticules came, as I bought one of them from Ardennes.