Thread: I'm confused

Originally Posted by bjorn

You can get a BBW here: Ardennes Coticule which is the mine or at The perfect edge which is US based

Does size matter? No I see stone sizes ranging from 4x2 to 10x4, would I be fine just getting the 4x2?

And another question, this BBW stone will be fine alone or is it meant to be used with another type of stone?

Originally Posted by ben.mid

Those are both great choices. I went with the BBW/Coticule myself.
The coticule makes a fine polisher with water.

If you wanted something more affordable get a BBW & the Chinese (12k as it was formerly known!) hone. It's a very affordable polisher that can be made more versatile with the use of slurry.

Tell me more about the Chinese 12k and where I can get that as well.

Originally Posted by BYUTexan

I have 4 old razors I got off Ebay that need to be restored. I think I can save $$$ by cleaning them up myself with some Brasso from Home Depot and then get me a stone to hone them myself. BUt the problem is that these are different razor types and honing stones are expensive, so I can only afford to get one that will have to do for all the razors I get.

One razor, I need to de-frown, one has a tiny chip on its edge, one just needs honing, and the other was supposed to be shave ready when I got it off classifieds but seems like it can use honing because it was very slow when I shaved ATG

You cannot do that with one hone. You need a full set, one on the 1000 grit level, one on the 4000-5000 and then one around 8000.
A coticule could do it all if you are willing to spend the time, but a much smarter way would be to instead work any minimum wage job and buy a few fancy custom razors with your earnings.

I wouldn't go for a stone shorter than 6" and 2" wide.

In a hone progression the BBW would take the place of the 4K step, generating the need for a finer stone before hitting pastes or a high grit finisher. If you are looking for a one hone setup a coticule could get the work done, but it would be more expensive.

IMO, the Norton 4/8K is the most consistent stone when it comes to learning how to hone. If you use the pyramid in the WIKI for the norton, you can't go wrong. It's actually my favorite stone to hone on as the pyramid works every time. You can then use a coticule for finishing if you feel you need to, or just get a pasted strop with Chromium Oxide. The BBW and coticule are beautiful stones, but they're harder to use as they're not as consistent and take more experience to tell how much honing you'll need.