Thread: New to honing, where to find best instructions?

Originally Posted by GreazyThumbs

I know there is a lot of videos and reading materials. Wanted to see which ones the Cognocenti recommends? Want to learn things right to start. Thanks to everyone here I picked up a starter setup:

Naniwa specialty stones, 1000, 5000, 8000 and 12000 grit
Naniwa flattening stone
Naniwa stone holder
4 Gold Dollar 66 razors (unsharpened)

Thanks Greazy

To my way of thinking, you are at a risk to start from the wrong end.
Like a lot of techniques in straight shaving, be also also prepared for some disappointments when you learn how to hone.

Starting by trying to set a bevel and then take a razor through the entire range is in my opinion the wrong way and will make the learning process unnecessarily difficult.
I suggest to start with a razor that was shave ready and just needs some touch-up, also known as a “refresher”, after it starts to pull during the shave.
For that purpose the 12,000, or maybe the 8,000 and 12,000 grit stones suffice.
Later you might even want to expand that range to a 20,000 grit (Gokumyo) stone to do the final polishing before the razor hits the strop.

This is the range that you use most frequently when you hone your razors.

The coarser grits are more for restoration and are used less often.

Once you have mastered touch-ups it may be appropriate to start using coarser grits.

The 1000 grit hone should be used only if you want to set the bevel, which is the first, the most important, but also the least often required or practised step of the entire honing cycle.
A 1000 grit is only necessary if a razor is (still) unfit for it’s purpose. I rarely use mine anymore and for many purposes that I used the 1000 grit Naniwa for I now use the 3000.

Starting to learn the entire process right from the 1000 grit stone all the way up is in my opinion not the most efficient way to learn honing, but I fully accept that not all members may agree with me on this point.


As a principle for learning through the Internet, I suggest to watch as many videos as you can, get an idea what the majority of experts agree on and (most importantly) ignore outlier advice that sounds “off” (hence the importance to see many videos).

I found that Lynn’s videos can be a great starting point.


I should also mention that I consider some of the suggested ways to test whether the razor has taken an edge fairly meaningless (e.g. hanging hair test), but found that after setting a bevel I tend to have less hair on my arm than before , because that is where I test the bevel. Beyond setting the bevel, if you get to know your hones and discover what works for you and what doesn’t, you may eventually develop a feel how the razor responds to the hone (e.g. beginning to “suck” to the stone when honing) thereby telling you when the time has come to go to the next higher stone.

Of course, the ultimate test is a shave, so getting a razor properly honed may be a process that in the beginning may stretch over a few days, as you tweak and learn to see whether you can get the edge just a little better honed.


Good luck.



B.