Thread: Hones in New Zealand?

I have been preparing to shave with a straight razor for a while now but I am lacking a few necessary items.

I need a hone (my razor is currently being sanded with 80 grit paper).
I also may need a brush, however I may have one lying around.
And finally I need some good soap.

My main concern at the moment is the hone, as I know where I can get a brush and soap when the need arises, however I do not want to pay too much for a it.

I have been looking on New Zealand's online classifieds Trade Me – New Zealand online auctions and classifieds. Browse, buy and sell online on trademe.co.nz but I have been unable to find a suitable hone. My local knife shop (The House of Knives) has a 6000 grit oilstone for $100 (NZD), I do not wish to pay this much for a hone, but if I have to I will.

Any tips are helpful,

Joundill.

Hi Joundill and welcome!


If you haven't already done this - go to the top of this page and click on the Wiki button. Here you'll find a bunch of useful info.

In the Razor maintenance section is the following: What hone(s) do I need? - Straight Razor Place Wiki

I'd suggest you first get your razor honed by one of our members - see the Classifieds under Member Services: Member Services - Straight Razor Place Classifieds

If you're keen to restore razors, by all means go for it - but it's worth having a properly honed razor that you can compare to.

You really only need a strop and maybe a barber hone (pretty common and inexpensive) to keep your razor in good shape.

Also - don't underestimate stropping, it really makes a difference.
Have a read through the relevant sections in the forums eg. Strops - Straight Razor Place Forums. I also like the 'stropping is king' thread: http://straightrazorpalace.com/strop...ping-king.html and the following: http://straightrazorpalace.com/begin...important.html

Regarding original question - check out local suppliers for hones, but don't forget to compare these to overseas suppliers. Sometimes it works out cheaper to get it from overseas!

Well - hope that wasn't an overload!

Let us know how you get on.

All the best,
Michael.

You might also be interested to know that there are some hones that are found in your part of the world. Hone-slate and Lydian Stone (a very fine-grained stone that can be used as a hone) are found in Kaikoura and Kakanui; and whetstones are found in the vicinity of Otago, although I haven't been able to find a more precise location thus far.

Kindest regards,
Alex

Originally Posted by A_S

You might also be interested to know that there are some hones that are found in your part of the world. Hone-slate and Lydian Stone (a very fine-grained stone that can be used as a hone) are found in Kaikoura and Kakanui; and whetstones are found in the vicinity of Otago, although I haven't been able to find a more precise location thus far.

Kindest regards,
Alex

That's fantastic Alex. I'll be sure to look into these stones. I live at the bottom of the North Island and Otago is quite an expensive journey, so I'll be sure to research it on the internet and get in touch with some people.

Also, thanks for the information Michael, it is quite useful. I have already used the wiki and I am planning on buying a cheap razor soon, so I'll be able to send it of for honing for comparison.

I'm in Dunedin, and I've just bought my stuff off this site or from an internet vendor - it appears to be the best way to get some items (like a J-Nat or coti, for example - not that I own either). When shipping and exchange rates are factored in, it still often is a better deal to buy internationally than from NZ shops. Since you haven't used a straight before, I'd also recommend you get the razor professionally honed before you start so you have a known target point to aim for when you hone it up yourself- there's a couple of guys in Oz who hone razors (Onimaru being the only one I can remember off the top of my head). Even if you have a second pro-honed razor, honing is not something you can just jump into - start out with a pro-honed blade, use it til it needs re-honing, THEN look at honing it yourself, by that point you should know what's sharp or not, and how that razor should feel when sharp.

You'll also definitely need a strop to keep the razor sharp, try ruprazor's filly strop, or a Fromm strop off Amazon, or one of the vintage strops from the SRP classifieds.

If you're working on your razor with 80 grit sandpaper, you're gonna need mre than one hone to get that back to shave ready.

If you're concerned with spending money at this point in time, I would consider making/buying a pasted balsa strop, and picking up a leather strop, and have your razor hones by someone else.

If you really want to pick up a hone, look into a barber hone (plenty of them show up on ebay for good prices.)

Good luck

I already have a strop, and I have 1000 and 2000 grit sandpaper which I can place on a block if I want to attempt to cut a V into the blade. It seems that 2000 grit sandpaper can get the edge fairly sharp (it will cut hair, but it pulls) and I think a Norton 4/8 will do the rest. I was just wondering if there is anywhere in New Zealand which sells hones.

One option is abrasive film on something flat like glass.
Look on carpentry sites and shops. The flats and films
they use for wood chisels works wonders. One advantage
of film is that it is light and can ship via common air-mail.

Also it is possible to make hones with loose abrasive or pastes
on soft and hard wood. Rock polishers often have these
pastes and abrasives in bulk. These are the same abrasives that
amateur telescope makers use. If there is an astronomy club
give them a visit (bring a couple of small jars in case you get lucky).
I have a couple ounces of 8000 grit that I use for a lot of sharpening
purposes, not much just a pinch like a pinch of salt on wood or leather.

Originally Posted by niftyshaving

One option is abrasive film on something flat like glass.
Look on carpentry sites and shops. The flats and films
they use for wood chisels works wonders. One advantage
of film is that it is light and can ship via common air-mail.

Also it is possible to make hones with loose abrasive or pastes
on soft and hard wood. Rock polishers often have these
pastes and abrasives in bulk. These are the same abrasives that
amateur telescope makers use. If there is an astronomy club
give them a visit (bring a couple of small jars in case you get lucky).
I have a couple ounces of 8000 grit that I use for a lot of sharpening
purposes, not much just a pinch like a pinch of salt on wood or leather.

Wow, that's very helpful. I'm sure I won't have trouble finding some rock hounds, and I think I know somebody who may have the loose abrasives you are talking about.

If you end up using cerium oxide to finish your razor edge, don't breathe the dust. It's not at all good for your lungs.