Thread: Buying a Polishing Hone, but which one?

Originally Posted by BeBerlin

These are European razors. So they should be honed on a European hone. Preferably an Escher. Or a nice Coticule/BBW natural combination stone. One of the fastest ways to burn money in any event.

I am not sure if you are being serious or not.
Will you rid yourself of non-european synthetics?
Or why not close the borders further; only german hones on german razors

Originally Posted by kevint

I am not sure if you are being serious or not.

Absolutely not.

I went from a Shapton 8K to a Shapton 16K just recently. I'm very happy.

Not tried the other "finishing" stones. And don't know if my experience would directly translate into a Norton 8K to Shapton 16K situation.

I know the Shapton 16K cuts plenty fast. First time I used it I made some passes, tested..."NICE!!!!!!!!!" Made a few more passes, tested..."Ugghh?" So dropped back down to the 8K, and then up to the 16K and as soon as I had "NICE!!!!!" again I called it good.


My experience in "finishing" stones is limited solely to Shaptons though, so YMMV

The rarest most expensive one!

Seriously... for availability/bang for the buck I'll continue praising the "Chinese 12k" (about 1 micron) forever, in this sea of expensive "exotic" finishers. It's tough to beat... 20-30$ and quite versatile but can be kind of slow if you don't use it with slurry.

Else, I'd consider the naniwa 12k (~8x3" / 72$) or Shapton 16k (~8x3",95$) if you prefer bigger stones.

It seems like you're only really looking to get your razors sharp and enjoy a nice shave so I wouldn't really recommend the Japanese naturals to get like... 0.000000112% more smoothness out of them...

Originally Posted by v76

The rarest most expensive one!

Seriously... for availability/bang for the buck I'll continue praising the "Chinese 12k" (about 1 micron) forever, in this sea of expensive "exotic" finishers. It's tough to beat... 20-30$ and quite versatile but can be kind of slow if you don't use it with slurry.

Else, I'd consider the naniwa 12k (~8x3" / 72$) or Shapton 16k (~8x3",95$) if you prefer bigger stones.

It seems like you're only really looking to get your razors sharp and enjoy a nice shave so I wouldn't really recommend the Japanese naturals to get like... 0.000000112% more smoothness out of them...

I do not think that is true. I have Asagi that is fine enough to skip the CrO strop, the edge off it is just amazing.

I think I've narrowed it to Naniwa 12k, Belgian Coticule, or maybe the Thuringen Timber Tools sells. Any thoughts? I wouldn't mind spending $1200 on a Japanese stone if it was definately the perfect stone, but I don't want to experiment with a $1200 stone that might not be what I want.

Any votes?

Originally Posted by joes978

I think I've narrowed it to Naniwa 12k, Belgian Coticule, or maybe the Thuringen Timber Tools sells. Any thoughts? I wouldn't mind spending $1200 on a Japanese stone if it was definately the perfect stone, but I don't want to experiment with a $1200 stone that might not be what I want.

Any votes?

So at japantool is the person to talk to about Japanese finishers, he has thousands of stones and will find you a nice razor finisher that will be guaranteed (and can be returned if not what you want) to work. Give him your price range and he will find you a stone. You will be surprised that you can find a great stone for considerably less than 1200.

Please, there is a very obvious, very easy answer to all of this, and a number of people have hinted around it. Here it is -- ASK ALEX GILMORE OF THE JAPAN BLADE. Alex is a dealer in Japanese natural stones. He sells some less expensive stones on eBay, but the best of his selection are only available through his store. His prices are NOT the lowest out there, but what he offers in return is, to me, infinitely more valuable -- you can actually TRY OUT A FEW STONES and PICK THE ONE YOU LIKE.

I don't know of anyone else dealing stones who is willing to take this kind of time to help you. And for the record, I bought a fantastic stone from him, which gives me a killer edge and is a pleasure to use. It was definitely expensive (around $400), but I felt that it was money well spent because it was a stone that I got to try out and experiment with before buying.

By the way, I also have a really nice Belgian combo coticule, and I don't think the coticule and the Japanese stone really compare. The coticule is very, very fine and gives a great polish, but to my inexperienced eye, it looks like the coticule removes a LOT of metal compared to the Japanese stone. The Japanese stone really takes away very little metal with each stroke and leaves your razor super scary sharp. I don't think there's anything like it in the sharpening world.

Anyway, you get the drift. Call Alex, and tell him that I (and others) recommended him. He's the guy you want.

Originally Posted by mainaman

I do not think that is true. I have Asagi that is fine enough to skip the CrO strop, the edge off it is just amazing.

That would make it similar to my "C12k", no need for CrO with that one. :P I'm not against Jnats, I'm sure they do a stellar job, but probably not 300-2000% (or even 10000%) better than a C12k...

Jnats look like infinite fun for people really into honing, experimentation and tradition... at the end of the day a smooth edge is a smooth edge and If I can make it with more $$ in my pockets for soaps, creams and razors, that's even better, IMO.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but the OP sounded like he just wanted a good and easy to find & use tool without regard to price (if well justified). I'd have a serious look at a Shapton 30k in that case. (But then 30k will probably be the same as CrO... for 300$ more - 16k would be the better deal and better after a N4k/8k)

Originally Posted by v76

That would make it similar to my "C12k", no need for CrO with that one. :P I'm not against Jnats, I'm sure they do a stellar job, but probably not 300-2000% (or even 10000%) better than a C12k...

Jnats look like infinite fun for people really into honing, experimentation and tradition... at the end of the day a smooth edge is a smooth edge and If I can make it with more $$ in my pockets for soaps, creams and razors, that's even better, IMO.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but the OP sounded like he just wanted a good and easy to find & use tool without regard to price (if well justified). I'd have a serious look at a Shapton 30k in that case. (But then 30k will probably be the same as CrO... for 300$ more - 16k would be the better deal and better after a N4k/8k)

if you understand what are you talking about then good luck to You.