Naniwa Economical Hones??

Does anyone have any experience with Naniwa's economical stone offerings? I was hoping to save a few bucks this holiday season when I treated myself to some stones to learn on, and a combo 1k/3k is only $24. I know they are smaller but what else is different between them and the traditional stones Naniwa offers?

I have already gotten recommendations for the Naniwa SS and chosera stones but as a father of 5 the holiday season means I have to save money on my hobbies so they can have more and better. I was hoping to learn to hone this winter while I was shut up inside. If these stones are good enough I will start with a DMT combo 325/600 and the combo I mentioned earlier and upgrade after the holidays with the Naniwa specialty 8k and 12k. I know that I will be unable to get razors to shave ready with a 3k stone but I have 6 blades that need a lot of work so I can use the month or two between one order and the next to get those blades in good enough shape to use a finer stone. As long as the economical stone isn't a complete waste of money I may get one even if it's not great then upgrade at a later date to a chosera 1k and specialty stone 3k.

Thank you so very much for any responses. I have asked about these stones on another forum but no one there has used them so I'm branching out to find more information.

You may be better off with a Norton 4/8 then get a finer finisher when funds allow. You may be surprised how smooth a shave you can get from the 8k. Get a king 1k of the bay for like $25 shipped. Save a few more $ by using wet/dry sand paper and a piece of glass or flat tile to lap them and presto you may be in it for like 110-120 depending on how good a price you can find the Norton.

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Originally Posted by DduckyMark

Does anyone have any experience with Naniwa's economical stone offerings? I was hoping to save a few bucks this holiday season when I treated myself to some stones to learn on, and a combo 1k/3k is only $24. I know they are smaller but what else is different between them and the traditional stones Naniwa offers?

I have already gotten recommendations for the Naniwa SS and chosera stones but as a father of 5 the holiday season means I have to save money on my hobbies so they can have more and better. I was hoping to learn to hone this winter while I was shut up inside. If these stones are good enough I will start with a DMT combo 325/600 and the combo I mentioned earlier and upgrade after the holidays with the Naniwa specialty 8k and 12k. I know that I will be unable to get razors to shave ready with a 3k stone but I have 6 blades that need a lot of work so I can use the month or two between one order and the next to get those blades in good enough shape to use a finer stone. As long as the economical stone isn't a complete waste of money I may get one even if it's not great then upgrade at a later date to a chosera 1k and specialty stone 3k.

Thank you so very much for any responses. I have asked about these stones on another forum but no one there has used them so I'm branching out to find more information.

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Maybe you'll have to spear head this pioneer mission!!!

If worst comes to worst you're out 24 bucks and will always have sharp kitchen knives. What is to lose?

I was going to go with the norton combo stones but I was talked out of it. I was told that the quality on the 4k nortons has gone the way of the dodo bird and that I would be better off starting with Naniwa. I probably will end up with the economy combo stone to try since no one knows much about it. I can't hurt the blades I have that need work any more then they are already. one has a frown and 3 have mild chips. I'll start with those and if it seems to do alright I'll move on to the better blades in my junk box. If it works out I'll have to make scales for all these razors.

I don't know about the 1/3 hone but I have the 3/8 and love it. The 1K when I bought it wasn't that expensive so I started out with the 1K 3/8K naniwa. I also bought a Norton 4/8K hone and used it a short time. I found that the naniwa worked better for me. Each to his or her own.

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Originally Posted by rhensley

I don't know about the 1/3 hone but I have the 3/8 and love it. The 1K when I bought it wasn't that expensive so I started out with the 1K 3/8K naniwa. I also bought a Norton 4/8K hone and used it a short time. I found that the naniwa worked better for me. Each to his or her own.

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I think the 3k/8k hone is the specialty series and I looked into that at first when Gssixgun suggested the Naniwa stones to me on the other forum. From what I've been able to see it looks like the economy stones are cut down stones from Naniwa's traditional line. If I don't end up liking the economy I may still get the 3k/8k combo since it's cheaper than those stones separately.

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Originally Posted by DduckyMark

I think the 3k/8k hone is the specialty series and I looked into that at first when Gssixgun suggested the Naniwa stones to me on the other forum. From what I've been able to see it looks like the economy stones are cut down stones from Naniwa's traditional line. If I don't end up liking the economy I may still get the 3k/8k combo since it's cheaper than those stones separately.

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Each to his own. When I started out with the hones I watched many of the videos out there. More than one of the best really liked the naniwa hones. I know for me they make honing my razors easier. I get a hold of a few with chips. for along time I used the 1K and then I dropped down to the 400 naniwa. It removes the chip quickly and then I go to the 1K. I really don't know how long my naniwa hones will last but at my age I don't believe I will wear them out.

I'm excited to start. I was going to use the DMT combo to work out chips and frowns. 325/600 seems like it would work well for that and I can use it to lap whatever stones I get as well. I'm going to try really hard to only have a minimal setup since I will only ever do my own razors. I don't want any duplicates. They make it hard to sell this hobby to my fiance when she sees the costs of everything.

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Originally Posted by DduckyMark

I'm excited to start. I was going to use the DMT combo to work out chips and frowns. 325/600 seems like it would work well for that and I can use it to lap whatever stones I get as well. I'm going to try really hard to only have a minimal setup since I will only ever do my own razors. I don't want any duplicates. They make it hard to sell this hobby to my fiance when she sees the costs of everything.

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I know what you mean on selling the hobby. I wonder what she would say if you ask what the cost of the beauty shop is each time she go's. also all the make up. you know the face powder shampoo conditioner lip stick eye liner eye braw pencil hand cream boddy location perfume hair spray nail polish and this is the short list and add this up over a year or two. then we look at the hand bags shoes different out fits for what ever comes up and she's never got anything to wear. I brought this up to the wife a bout a month ago. i'll let you know what she said when she starts speaking to me again. come to think of it maybe i'll bring it up again.

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Originally Posted by rhensley

I know what you mean on selling the hobby. I wonder what she would say if you ask what the cost of the beauty shop is each time she go's. also all the make up. you know the face powder shampoo conditioner lip stick eye liner eye braw pencil hand cream boddy location perfume hair spray nail polish and this is the short list and add this up over a year or two. then we look at the hand bags shoes different out fits for what ever comes up and she's never got anything to wear. I brought this up to the wife a bout a month ago. i'll let you know what she said when she starts speaking to me again. come to think of it maybe i'll bring it up again.

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Mine doesn't wear makeup except for special occasions, doesn't go to beauty shops except for inexpensive haircuts a few times a year and wears chuck taylor low tops with everything. She said she would wear them at our wedding too. She tends to be an inexpensive woman to have around and I'm so very lucky to have her. She fully supports this as a hobby because she thinks it's neat but I try not to push my luck on expensive things.

Only going to mention it once , so have an open mind , if money is tight it's a lot cheaper to just send them out to a real pro and get a great edge every time. Since I really learned to strop , my blades don't need to see a stone . So what stones I have really don't get used enough to justify the cost , the only one that sees anytime is the finisher and that's only 4-5 laps every 12-14 shaves , mostly it's the strop. Now if your restoring and selling and moving lots of razors it's a different game , but most don't we only shave with them, just a thought. Tc

I personally would avoid the Norton hones, as mentioned above the quality has really slipped as of late. I bought and returned two for grittiness before buying a set of Naniwa hones, which I really like. I have several of the superstones in high grits but do have the economy in lower grits (I think 400?) and they work well but seem to wear quicker.

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Originally Posted by tcrideshd

Only going to mention it once , so have an open mind , if money is tight it's a lot cheaper to just send them out to a real pro and get a great edge every time. Since I really learned to strop , my blades don't need to see a stone . So what stones I have really don't get used enough to justify the cost , the only one that sees anytime is the finisher and that's only 4-5 laps every 12-14 shaves , mostly it's the strop. Now if your restoring and selling and moving lots of razors it's a different game , but most don't we only shave with them, just a thought. Tc

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Any high quality razors will likely get sent to Gssixgun. I want to eventually do all of my own work on my razors and since I have a few razors that need a massive amount of work I decided that this winter when I was stuck hiding from the snow I would learn to hone and refurbish some of the cheap <$10 razors I see on eBay all the. I got a Wostenholm and a Wade and Butcher both in decent shape with bad scales but they were in lots with crummy chipped blades. For the fun of it I'm going to rebuild them all as a learning experience. I might have some 3/8 and 4/8 razors but that's ok.

Regarding the naniwa 1/3 combi stone, I had this hone before I started straight shaving for kitchen knives. When I first started with straights I got them honed professionally and just touched them up when they needed it with the naniwa 10k. After a while I brought razors that needed a bevel reset and used the combi stone to great effect. They are quite soft and can load up quite quickly but does what it needs to. Ive now got the chosera 1k but in all honesty the amount of bevel setting I do I could have stayed with the combi stone.

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Originally Posted by Ernie1980

I personally would avoid the Norton hones, as mentioned above the quality has really slipped as of late. I bought and returned two for grittiness before buying a set of Naniwa hones, which I really like. I have several of the superstones in high grits but do have the economy in lower grits (I think 400?) and they work well but seem to wear quicker.

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That's good news that the economy stones work well in a lower grit. It makes me hopeful for the combo stone.

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Originally Posted by Ernie1980

I personally would avoid the Norton hones, as mentioned above the quality has really slipped as of late. I bought and returned two for grittiness before buying a set of Naniwa hones, which I really like. I have several of the superstones in high grits but do have the economy in lower grits (I think 400?) and they work well but seem to wear quicker.

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I wonder what Lynn would have to say about this?

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Originally Posted by markbignosekelly

Regarding the naniwa 1/3 combi stone, I had this hone before I started straight shaving for kitchen knives. When I first started with straights I got them honed professionally and just touched them up when they needed it with the naniwa 10k. After a while I brought razors that needed a bevel reset and used the combi stone to great effect. They are quite soft and can load up quite quickly but does what it needs to. Ive now got the chosera 1k but in all honesty the amount of bevel setting I do I could have stayed with the combi stone.

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Great news for me. I think this will stay on my list now.

If you want a good, relatively inexpensive 1k/3k, I would recommend the Suehiro trad. synth combo. Beyond this, if you want to be a spendthrift, you could pick up an Inigo Jones piece of Welsh slate and call it a day. These will get you there. The rest is just lapping and stropping. Oh, and shaving... ;-)

I've seen that my reduced cost list is only $40 less then getting what was recommended to me by Gssixgun so I'll just stick to his recommendation and maybe later get the economical stones to play with on kitchen knives and shop tools. Thank you all for the replys.

Way I understand it , the economical series are just not the same thickness , which won't mean a thing to the man honing his own , and even those honing a bunch of them won't wear it out that fast , tc

If you are learning, buy a wide stone, a full 3 inch if possible, it will make learning to hone easier, especially if you are doing repair work and honing.

A Norton 1/4k is $60, so you’re not saving all that much and giving up a lot. If you want to save a few bucks, buy a King 1k for $20 and a Norton 4/8k or Naniwa 3/8k and your set for life. There is nothing wrong with new Norton’s, I have lapped a few recently, they work just fine.

An 8k edge stropped on quality Chrome Oxide is a fine shaving edge. You can easily bevel set an edge on a Norton 4k, it will just take a few more laps, but for $20 you can’t beat the King 1K.

Buy the best quality you can afford and more importantly, set yourself up for success, why hobble yourself?

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Originally Posted by Euclid440

If you are learning, buy a wide stone, a full 3 inch if possible, it will make learning to hone easier, especially if you are doing repair work and honing.

A Norton 1/4k is $60, so you’re not saving all that much and giving up a lot. If you want to save a few bucks, buy a King 1k for $20 and a Norton 4/8k or Naniwa 3/8k and your set for life. There is nothing wrong with new Norton’s, I have lapped a few recently, they work just fine.

An 8k edge stropped on quality Chrome Oxide is a fine shaving edge. You can easily bevel set an edge on a Norton 4k, it will just take a few more laps, but for $20 you can’t beat the King 1K.

Buy the best quality you can afford and more importantly, set yourself up for success, why hobble yourself?

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I have been talked into buying a DMT D8C, and a 1k,3k,8k,and 12k naniwa specialty stones. It adds up to $288 so only about $40 more then my sad little list from before. If I upgrade anything later it will be to go up to the Chosera 1k and to add a 5k naniwa specialty stone to the mix. Spending the extra $40 isn't worth the hardship using the lesser stones would cause. Like you said why hobble myself? I'll just buy the set I've seen used the most and been told the most about. I haven't heard much negative about the Naniwa SS stones so I'll drop the extra cash on them. I also don't want to use the razor stones on anything else so I'll pick up one of those economical combo stones to play with in the kitchen and workshop for tools.

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Originally Posted by DduckyMark

I have been talked into buying a DMT D8C, and a 1k,3k,8k,and 12k naniwa specialty stones. It adds up to $288 so only about $40 more then my sad little list from before. If I upgrade anything later it will be to go up to the Chosera 1k and to add a 5k naniwa specialty stone to the mix. Spending the extra $40 isn't worth the hardship using the lesser stones would cause. Like you said why hobble myself? I'll just buy the set I've seen used the most and been told the most about. I haven't heard much negative about the Naniwa SS stones so I'll drop the extra cash on them. I also don't want to use the razor stones on anything else so I'll pick up one of those economical combo stones to play with in the kitchen and workshop for tools.

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$288 !! I knew there was a reason I abandoned water stones.. If that's in USD :gth

I'm happy you're going big or going home !!! You my friend are going big. At least you'll have some of the best stones around to learn on :)

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Originally Posted by DduckyMark

I have been talked into buying a DMT D8C, and a 1k,3k,8k,and 12k naniwa specialty stones.

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The biggest cost is the 12k, so if you want to save money you can skip it. You could also skip the d8c and lap with sandpaper on a flat tile or glass, but the dmt is much nicer.
I have the 5k instead of the 3k, which is probably slightly more expensive. Theoretically it's a little bit more efficient but 3k should work too as these are pretty fast hones; you'll be working a little harder on the 8k while I do it on the 5k.

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Originally Posted by gugi

The biggest cost is the 12k, so if you want to save money you can skip it. You could also skip the d8c and lap with sandpaper on a flat tile or glass, but the dmt is much nicer.
I have the 5k instead of the 3k, which is probably slightly more expensive. Theoretically it's a little bit more efficient but 3k should work too as these are pretty fast hones; you'll be working a little harder on the 8k while I do it on the 5k.

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I have some blades that need reshaping. The DMT isn't just for lapping. I may end up getting a 5k as well since its bundled with the 8k and 12k for not much more than the 8k and 12k separately. I know I don't need the 12k but its a good finish for a great shave so why not. The reason I was told to go with the 3k and not the 5k out of the gate was that newbies stuggled with bevel setting and the 3k would help bring along a poorly set bevel. Like I said, if I'm breaking this into multiple orders anyway I may get the 5k as well. The worst I can do is decide that I'm not interested and give some new guy a chance to score nearly new stones for less than new prices.