Thread: an easy question for all you honing veterans

I am very interested in learning to hone my own straight razor blades. What is the bare minimum grit hones I will need? And where do you all suggest getting them from?

Thank you so much everyone for your input

Beginner's Guide to Honing - Straight Razor Place Wiki

What hone(s) do I need? - Straight Razor Place Wiki

have fun and beware of the HAD
Cheapest ,I think, you can find Norton set on Amazon
Amazon.com: Norton Waterstone Starter Kit: 220/1000 grit stone, 4000/8000 grit stone, SiC flattening stone: Home & Garden

Bare minumum depends on what you plan to do with them. Are you going to hone from start to finish? Do simple maintanence on professionally sharpened blades?

I'll start with going from start to finish:
You will need at minimum the following grits: 1K, 4K, 8K
Whether these grits be Norton, Naniwa or naturals is inconsequential, but that is the bare bones of hones.

For maintenance, all you will really need is an 8K, and it would not hurt to throw in a 4K stone. A barbers hone is a good choice for this also.

As you said, these are the bare bones. 12K is the preferred final stone by most, but is considered a luxury. Many follow up with Cr0x straps.

If you are interested in a recommendation, I would suggest a belgian yellow cotcule with a slurry stone. They are some of the most versatile hones available, being capable of both finishing as well as setting a bevel. Check out http://coticule.be if interested.

As always, check the WIKI!!!

Originally Posted by mainaman

Beginner's Guide to Honing - Straight Razor Place Wiki

What hone(s) do I need? - Straight Razor Place Wiki

have fun and beware of the HAD
Cheapest ,I think, you can find Norton set on Amazon
Amazon.com: Norton Waterstone Starter Kit: 220/1000 grit stone, 4000/8000 grit stone, SiC flattening stone: Home & Garden

That seems a great price. But would the 220 ever be used? And how does the Nortons compare to DMT's of the same grit for bevel setting? Norton 1000 vs DMT 1000. And does a DMT need lapping? Looks like a plate of metal.

Originally Posted by rickboone

That seems a great price. But would the 220 ever be used? And how does the Nortons compare to DMT's of the same grit for bevel setting? Norton 1000 vs DMT 1000. And does a DMT need lapping? Looks like a plate of metal.

220 probably is useful for some big chip repair , I personally use a 500 grit for that kind of stuff.

Ok... this kind of question is always difficult without more information. When you say bare minimum, what do you mean? Are you wanting to restore razors from eBay, refresh edges that have slightly deteriorated, full bevel resets, etc? You don't "need" anything more than a barbers hone if you only want to refresh and edge and do basic, maintenance honing... You can do all your honing with a Coticule (add a low grit hone for removing chips, frowns, etc.). Are you looking for something easy (relatively speaking of course), predictable, and consistent? If so, you'll likely be happier with a synthetic system. Or do you want something zen, connecting you to a piece of earth, developing a feel for and getting to "know" your special stone? If so, naturals may be the route for you. What grits? Also depends on you. Want to have a utilitarian set? 1K, 4K, & 8K is all you "need" (and it could be argued that a 4K isn't necessary either)...

Answers to these types of questions are going to lead you to the "correct" answer. I hope this helps. You are the only one that can "really" answer this

I began with the Norton starter kit with the 220/1000 and 4000/8000 combo stones and the lapping stone. Sixty or so hones later.... I was honing on my Nortons. I keep them at work and hone if I feel like it when it is slow. I love all of my hones but I was thinking that if I had never bought another hone after that first set I would be fine. Nortons, Naniwas, Shaptons, naturals .... they are all good. It isn't the arrow, it is the Indian.

Originally Posted by jcash1

I am very interested in learning to hone my own straight razor blades. What is the bare minimum grit hones I will need? And where do you all suggest getting them from?

Thank you so much everyone for your input

Yes, how sharp are your own blades now? A Chineses finishing hone would be just fine if they already shave.

A Norton 4/8K would cover most everything else.

I like to think of it like this in terms of grit ranges:

220 - 500: Major edge repair and removing chips
1k - 2k: Setting a bevel
3k - 5k; Sharpening the edge
8k: Polishing/ touch ups
10k+: Finishing the edge/ touch ups
Paste (0.5m CrOx or diamond): Final finish before stropping/ touch ups.

Basically, you'll need to pick stones in those ranges depending on what you're going to be doing with the razor.

A good "full set" would be either the Norton set from Amazon, or the 1/5/8/12k Naniwas, or the 1/4/8/16k Shaptons. This will give you everything you need to hone a razor.

So it really depends on what you want to be doing...! You can also get a barber hone for touch ups if you dont want to sink the moolah into the hones.

In terms of where to get them, Amazon for the Norton set, SRD for the Naniwas or the Shaptons. Steve at The Invisible Edge here in the UK also sells the Naniwa stones.

Good luck!

Bare and minimum? 1k and pasted (one side) hanger