Thread: What coticule to buy for a smooth edge?

i have been experimenting a lot with various natural finishers and my edges are keener than ever. i started with a kosher cotiucle, moved on to Thuringians and ended up with several Jnats. However, the keener my edges the more razor burn below the jawline. Next week I will be visiting Ardennes Coticule. I will be looking for a coticule that gives both a keen and a smooth edge. A lot has been written about the qualities of coticules coming from different veins. Any thoughts on what I may want to look out for?

That is super exciting! I would love to visit Ardennes Coticule. I can’t say which vein you should get, but I’m pretty sure they’ll help you out considerably. Actually, I know they will.

Have a great trip!!

I'll be keeping an eye on the thread for updates.

Probably more related to fineness, but doesn't Ardennes have 'select' grade stones??

Have an enjoyable and safe trip and get pictures!

I guess I,m not up on Coticules as much as I thought, i haven't found one yet that wasn't smooth, as far as keen not had that too much from them. most aren't even 8k. mostly ive found that smooth comes from the guy doing the honing, I know a guy who can get smooth from a rock. I hope you find what your looking for, but in my opinion, if done correctly Coticules are mostly smooth and not so keen. Tc

I've never had a bad one either, but some have been better than others

Originally Posted by tcrideshd

I guess I,m not up on Coticules as much as I thought, i haven't found one yet that wasn't smooth, as far as keen not had that too much from them. most aren't even 8k. mostly ive found that smooth comes from the guy doing the honing, I know a guy who can get smooth from a rock. I hope you find what your looking for, but in my opinion, if done correctly Coticules are mostly smooth and not so keen. Tc

The verte line was noted for bumping up the keenness factor a notch. Me, I like any sort of coticule followed by a piece of Welsh purple slate. A coticule is never enough for my tough beard. Have fun in any case. Going straight to the source is always great.

Hybrid looks like marble ask Maurice he should have some laying around it’s very hard coticule

Thanks Gary, I think I have one myself. I'll check with Maruice.

You need to test natural stones as an independent stone to see if you like how they react to the razor. Coticules aren't synthetic, so they aren't the same stone to stone, like a chosera is or a Norton is. Veins don't matter much either, that's mostly marketing.

Basically you have to try coticules over and over until you find one that works for you, or keep the single one you have and use it for like a year, hone on it every day and keep honing and honing and you may learn that stone over time and get the results you want.

With that being said, I 've asked Maurice personally what veine was best for razors and he said La Vienette was. When I asked why, he didn't give me much of an answer other than it's best for razors...not sure what to get from that.

La Grosse Blanche is called skin-friendly here:
http://www.coticule.be/the-cafeteria/topic/1727.html
A good source of information for those of you who want more information on the various coticule layers.