Thread: Do I really need a lap stone?

(for about the fourth time) I have a 3-line Swaty, and will be getting Nortons or the like. I will also be getting a German finisher (most likely Thuringen), but that will come lapped.
My question is, will I really need to lap the hones initially? the Swaty yes, but the synth workhorse hones? I don't think I will be using them too much, just an ebay razor now and then and light touch up on my own (probably achievable on the Swaty or Thruingen though)
So if I just sandpaper my way through the Swaty, will I need a lapping plate soon? Do factory hones need to be lapped? How often do you think Thuringens need lapping? The factory hones? In number of razors, and please consider that I am not aspiring to have a hone flat to .00000000001" every time I sit down to hone, I am saying the point where I NEED to lap.
Currently I'm looking at getting a 10x4 DMT X/C, but if I don't really need it, well, thats cash in my pocket.

Most any hone will benefit from lapping. If a supplier says it is pre-lapped, I'd check it with a straightedge first anyway. JIC.

Every Swaty I've had received some lapping. They are hard and diamond works well on them. Once flattened, a Swaty will stay that way for a long time.

You could get by with wet/dry paper. In the long run, a plate can be cheaper if you do much lapping at all.

Hmmm. This is problematic... Do I invest $100 now, or use paper and wait... I'll probably buy it eventually, so if I buy it now, I'll have it this time around... But $100...

Originally Posted by khaos

(for about the fourth time)
So if I just sandpaper my way through the Swaty, will I need a lapping plate soon? Do factory hones need to be lapped? How often do you think Thuringens need lapping? The factory hones? In number of razors, and please consider that I am not aspiring to have a hone flat to .00000000001" every time I sit down to hone, I am saying the point where I NEED to lap.
Currently I'm looking at getting a 10x4 DMT X/C, but if I don't really need it, well, thats cash in my pocket.

The Swaty, likely never. The Thurigien will hardly need it, since you will just be finishing. But the Nortons need frequent lapping. No you don't need it to be, nor will you be able to lap them to that degree of flatness, but they work best lapped before each honing session. 10x4 is hardly necessary, an 8x3 DMT8C will do. But if you will be sticking to Nortons, this would be a very good buy. Or get a DMT 8K and you will never need to lap at all.

I just ordered an 8x3 DMT8C from SRD...it should be coming Friday/Saturday - it was less than $45...it should be worth it, as I have been using wet/dry sandpaper, and while it works, it is messy and somewhat time consuming. If I can cut the time and do the lapping in the sink with the water running, the convenience alone will pay for itself. And it will never need lapping itself (unlike the Norton flattening stone).

I will either be getting the Nortons or a set of Henckels. And I read somewhere that the Norton lapping plate breaks down.

Originally Posted by khaos

My question is, will I really need to lap the hones initially? the Swaty yes, but the synth workhorse hones? I don't think I will be using them too much, just an ebay razor now and then and light touch up on my own (probably achievable on the Swaty or Thruingen though)
So if I just sandpaper my way through the Swaty, will I need a lapping plate soon? Do factory hones need to be lapped? How often do you think Thuringens need lapping? The factory hones? In number of razors, and please consider that I am not aspiring to have a hone flat to .00000000001" every time I sit down to hone, I am saying the point where I NEED to lap.

You will need to lap all your hones initially. You will also want to lap when the hones start to load up. Yes, this will probably be infrequent with the finest grits. None the less, you will be faced with lapping as long as you are honing razors. Some of the synthetics will distort very slightly between uses and benefit from a few passes on the lapping plate before each use.

As was discussed in one of the other recent threads about lapping, the DMT 8C works well for most guys who have one. You could even say that it is probably one of the most popular solutions to a common problem. I wouldn't get one of the DMTs with the perforated screen surfaces. You want more diamonds, not less. The 8C size is not a problem even when lapping a larger stone. Again, sandpaper will work ...a GDLP works better. Pick what you can justify (in terms of expense) and start using it. It's really not as complicated a decision as you think it is.

Originally Posted by Bill S

It's really not as complicated a decision as you think it is.

Thanks for the encouragement. I just don't want to **** something I paid a lot for up.

I have 7 Norton hones. Every single one of them desperately needed to be lapped before its first use. They do not come flat. They are not even close to flat. Even if they did, with use they become dished so you need to have some kind of lapping method in place.

The DMT8C is adequate for lapping but if you want to lap a barber hone, or anything else that is hard or of low grit, do yourself a favor and put a piece of coarse wet/dry sandpaper on top of the DMT plate (remember, it's a flat surface) and lap with that to save your diamonds.

Originally Posted by Razorburne

I just ordered an 8x3 DMT8C from SRD...it should be coming Friday/Saturday - it was less than $45...it should be worth it, as I have been using wet/dry sandpaper, and while it works, it is messy and somewhat time consuming. If I can cut the time and do the lapping in the sink with the water running, the convenience alone will pay for itself. And it will never need lapping itself (unlike the Norton flattening stone).

Exactly right!