Questions regarding: Hones vs. paste and Shaptons

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Either the Naniwa 12k or the Shapton 16k will do everything you will want.. combine that with the SRD hard felt strop and some selective pastes you will be unstoppable for what you want... I really don't think you need the 30k but YMMV

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Reading through Glen's Paste Experiment (along with some other threads), I'm going with a Naniwa 12k and CrO (I am going to build a balsa bench hone instead of strop--I think I'll feel more comfortable with it than a strop for this).

Hopefully, it will be here this weekend because I have "discovered" why one's razor (an extra hollow ground) needs to have a very good edge when using it on a more coarse beard. :)
[Really bad when you get a crappy shave, irritation and a nice cut--Note to all the newbies like me... you can't do your upper lip with a dull blade. Well... you can but you'll give yourself a nice cut you'll get to explain in the lab the next morning :) ]

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Don't rule out Diamond Spray. I find it the best all around finishing product there is. I finish ever razor on it and I know so does Lynn. It is much more consistent then paste and brings out the best in an edge.

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:eek:
Don't say that Don, I just ordered some CrO from you! :confused:

I don't think one can use diamond spray on a bench hone? Yes, no??

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Originally Posted by holli4pirating

All I can really chime in with is a note about pastes. Pastes are great for smoothing out an edge or giving you a touch up, but they will round the edge slightly. This means that, while you can maintain an edge for quite some time using paste, at some point it will get to a point where you will have to return to hones (just the paste won't help anymore). The slight rounding that pastes leave is part of why blades off paste feel very smooth as well as sharp.

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The rounding effect of pastes give a smoother shave IMHO. It is desirable, and on some razors it's not neccesary to ever go back to the hones. All razors have different angles and steel quality, so everyone's mileage may vary. I just never found it neccesary to go back to hones. I finish on 0.25 and 0.10 micron diamond pastes on balsa wood, after honing with the Naniwa 12k. Finishing on the 12k could shave well but not as smoothly.

What is your budget? That would be the biggest deciding factor. You will also need a strop imo. But what would be the ideal setup will vary greatly depending on your budget

I would get some stones, by makers of your own choosing, in the 4k, 8k and 12-16K, a strop, and a felt pad (home depot) and the .25 diamond spray from SRD. You could maintain your own razor without assistance for a long time with that, many years.

Some people don't even go as high as 16k, I find it makes a big difference. I personally would go for a greater quantity of less expensive stones than a lower quantity of higher priced stones.

The 30k is a luxury imo. And if you are springing for that luxury, get a nakayama instead.

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Originally Posted by stygian

:eek:
Don't say that Don, I just ordered some CrO from you! :confused:

I don't think one can use diamond spray on a bench hone? Yes, no??

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No not well, sprays are really made for fabrics. Your Good