Thread: Finishing hone

Like many members before have stated. I've used Nani12K as a finisher for a couple of years until I was able to purchase SG20K last month.
Nani is still in my progression and now I finish on 20K, the edges that come from this progression sastify my needs.
Cheers.

Originally Posted by Speedster

Honestly, I could happily shave off any of these 3 hones and be quite content.

How would you compare the difference going from the Naniwa 12K SS to the SG20K? SG20K and Escher are probably the next two that I'd want to acquire, but I have had really good results with the 12K that I wonder how much better it can really get. The siren song of the JNATS hasn't captured me, yet anyway.

As to the original poster, I'd ditto the 12K SS. Its the ease of use and consistency that make it staple. I suspect that as newer guys like myself develop their skills, they venture off into other finishers, so that's why you don't hear about the 12Ks--it doesn't mean that they're not around, used, and a standard finishing hone any many guys' setups.

Originally Posted by jseitz

How would you compare the difference going from the Naniwa 12K SS to the SG20K?

I haven't honed quite enough razors on the SG20k to be fair, but I believe the difference to be small enough that the price makes it difficult to justify. Or, possibly I need to become more familiar with the hone since it's noticeably harder than the Super Stone. Since I saved about $100 on the purchase, I'm quite happy to continue experimenting with the 20k.

And, thankfully, I am not inclined to venture down the path of Jnats...at this point in time.

Like many of you, my first finishing hone was a Naniwa 12K. I got keen edges off the hone, but my sensitive face did not consider the edge to be smooth enough. I still have my 12K, but rarely use it. When using a full sequence, I often use Naniwas up through 10K and then switch to natural stones. I still get keen edges, but I get a smoother edge.

Conversely, I love the smoothness I get from a Coticule, but the edge never seems keen enough for my tough beard, so I always follow up with another natural finisher after the Coticule.

I don't think that Glen has posted to this thread but I like and will quote his signature line.

"No amount of money spent on a Stone can ever replace the value of the time it takes learning to use it properly"
Very Respectfully - Glen

How much better does the Gok20k shave in comparison the Naniwa 12k?

About $150 better.

Originally Posted by Utopian

How much better does the Gok20k shave in comparison the Naniwa 12k?

About $150 better.

At about $00.15/hour learning how to use it.....

Not a fact but think about it anyway!

I've used a Naniwa 12k, Escher, Ark Black and chromium oxide and got very good edges. I recently got a Zulu Grey and add water and glycerin and find the edges are amazing. Brings the edge up a notch or two for sharpness but really gives a smooth shave. It is now my finisher of choice.

Originally Posted by gcbryan

It's similar to talking about Coticule edges. Does anyone actually finish on a Coticule? It seems that there is always an Escher or Jnat used after that so what is the attraction to the Coticule?

I'm not being snarky here. I really am interested in the answers.

I often shave off of coticule edges. All the coticules I own (5) give a good shave.

I think there are plenty of people who finish on a coticule, I do pretty much exclusively.

Bear in mind that this forum is not the be all and end all in wet shaving, as it is rather USA centric. Nothing wrong with that per se, but for instance, as far as I know, in Europe the coticule is still relatively popular.

I also often wonder how people on the forum that find coticules lacking use them. For instance, if you are to go through a synthetic progression, say up to 12k and then finish on a coticule, but find the finish lacking in comparison to an exclusively synthetic edge, it's quite likely that something went wrong previous to the coticule; most coticules really do not do all that much on water only, apart from smoothing out an edge.

Best regards,

Pieter