Thread: My Honing Process - Ideas to Improve?

My current honing process is getting my razors in very sharp, close shaving condition. I just got this all figured out, and was hoping to post what I am doing for feedback. Good, could be a little better if you did this, etc. . .

My razors are sharp, so just honing to keep them that way:

1. Naniwa 12K
2. Balsa hone w/white lapping paste
3. Balsa hone w/chromium paste
4. Leather strop

Also, I have a 4/8 Norton and only had to use the 8 one time to get an edge on a newly acquired razor.

Should I squeeze in a 16K Shapton after the 12K, or would that be pointless? Also, I was thinking about diamond pastes, but the Shapton 16 is .92 micron, as small as one of the diamond pastes I was looking at.

I don't want to complicate this any more unecessarily. Any feedback would be much appreciated.

Greg

Don't waste the money on a S16k after a Na12k doubt if you get any improvement and yes I have both, and use both, but never together...

What is White Lapping paste????
and which Chromium paste????

That sounds like a fine setup for maintaining your razors.

So long as the razors you are purchasing are shave ready, that setup will be fine. Should you want to be able to hone a razor from start to finish, I would recomend picking up a 1K stone, maybe norton or naniwa.

IMHO, if you are experiencing less that awesome shaves, try going down to the 8K norton for 20 or so passes, followed by 50-75 on the naniwa 12K. Follow up with ~10 -15 passes on the crox (I am assuming it is crox...), and 50 linen & 60 leather passes. Not sure about the white paste, never used it.

IMO, unless you really want to try the shapton, it is not essential. 12K is the "standard" grit for finishing, and works for most people.

Sounds like you have got it down! Keep it up!

IMO you are more than set on gear; you just need to learn how to maximize your results through a progression and technique.

I agree with the above. I wouldn't bother with the 16k. IME diamond paste on balsa or diamond spray on an SRD hanging felt is real good for getting sharp razors to another level if that is what you're shooting for. Here is a tutorial on the pastes that helped me understand them initially.