Barber Coticule, grooved by rounding off spike points?

Recently picked up an old "barber's coticule," about 5" x 2.5" x 0.9". I like this size very much for hand-held honing, and look for them when I can.

Anyway, I noticed that the stone has deep grooves or cuts, on the sides only, and only in the BBW portion. These appear to me to be deliberate and not the result of abuse, because both honing surfaces are intact.

I read somewhere on the forum recently that in the heyday of spike point razors, some barbers would round off the sharp points of their customers' spike razors by using the area on the sides of their honing stones. This made perfect sense to me, but I haven't seen an example of it in person until I got this stone (I think...)

So what do y'all think went on here: abuse, or spike-rounding?

http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j2...CotiOrig05.jpg

http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j2...CotiOrig04.jpg

I would think a skilled barber would round spikes by lifting the tang and/or spine during honing, but who knows how it was commonly done.

We can only speculate, but I speculate that is not from muting spikes.

Major congrats!
I woulnt mind one like that sometime.

Mac

My bets are that his wife commonly used it to keep a nice point on her sewing needles. As Holli4 pointed out, a skilled barber would likely mute the spike differently. I have seen a bunch of old barber hones with marks like that all over the back of them. I would guess the side would be the best place for that kind of sharpening on a combo coticule.

either from sharpening needles or fish hooks

From page 18 of Shaving Made Easy, Circa 1905: "If you have a razor with a sharp point, you can round it off, on the edge of the hone. You should not use the top surface of the hone for this purpose, for if you do you are quite likely to scratch the hone and spoil it. Use water freely otherwise the blade will become heated and that would quickly spoil its temper" (italics in original).

Tim, obviously you've got a problem. CAD. I can help you if you'll let me. Send me all but one of your coticules . The first step is admitting you have a problem. :deal: Then it is staying away from people places and things. :rock:

Quite interesting theory. I would look at that and assume it was from whatever tool was used for extraction of the stone or think it was a natural groove. Am interested in learning more about this.

Thanks for the feedback guys. I was debating whether to keep the marks or lap them out. Grooves from sharpening fish hooks are a possibility, since it came from an Atlantic coastal town. And coticules were apparently quite cheap at one time; one coticule natural I have came in an old box originally marked "Belgian Hone - $4". So someone back then might sharpen their fish hooks on a coticule as readily as a carborundum or arkansas stone. But I would never think to sharpen fish hooks on a coticule that I also used to sharpen razors to shave with.

The grooves are a perfect fit for a 5/8ths spike point I have, but that really doesn't mean much. A knife blade for a very small or fine knife could leave the same marks and have the same fit. Perhaps it was used for taking chips out of pocket knife edges before sharpening them.

HAD is a progressive disease. It starts with simply using the stones, then it progresses on to looking at them under strong light, contemplating them. :hmmm:

I'd say leave them as is. I wouldn't think they would affect the functionality of the hone, and removing them would leave you with a narrower honing surface.

Back in the 60's I bought a 3 LINE SWATY from my barber. This stone had a Carborundum 118S companion stone to flatten the Swaty.

There were grooves along the side of the carborundum stone where spike points were removed so the barber would not cut the customer. This was very common practice.

I include a photo of the grooves. I don't know why this point removal is so hard to believe for some people. Razor knowledge was basically "word of mouth" until the internet came along in the 1990's.

Any info you have acquired in this modern technological age is a direct result of information shared by us old guys who got our knowledge prior to the electronic age. Pay attention to the old guys...:)

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by mrsell63

Back in the 60's I bought a 3 LINE SWATY from my barber. This stone had a Carborundum 118S companion stone to flatten the Swaty.

There were grooves along the side of the carborundum stone where spike points were removed so the barber would not cut the customer. This was very common practice.

I include a photo of the grooves. I don't know why this point removal is so hard to believe for some people. Razor knowledge was basically "word of mouth" until the internet came along in the 1990's.

Any info you have acquired in this modern technological age is a direct result of information shared by us old guys who got our knowledge prior to the electronic age. Pay attention to the old guys...:)

---

Hi Old Guy. I was trying to think what are the techniques which would have been better suited as has been suggested.
If you wish to knock off the point to keep from accidently nicking a patron there is no need for it to be sharp.

Overall seems us hobbyist do not like the look and find good use for the spike.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by kevint

Overall seems us hobbyist do not like the look and find good use for the spike.

---

The old barber, Frank Natal told me about rounding the point and, like Kevin, I could never bring myself to do that even if I was to risk a nick. :) If I was shaving other people one after another maybe I wouldn't be so reluctant.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by mrsell63

Any info you have acquired in this modern technological age is a direct result of information shared by us old guys who got our knowledge prior to the electronic age. Pay attention to the old guys...:)

---

Thanks Jerry. Sound advice. :beer1:
I think maybe that in the barbering golden age, razors were looked upon as very personal tools, not historical items to be preserved. Comfort and personal preference, along with convenience, would trump preservation.

I've not had many issues with using spike point razors. But I do round off the corners of all my hones with a lapping plate, to make them more resistant to chipping at the corners. I'm sure that makes some people's skin crawl and they might consider it defacing the original sharp cut of the stone, but I really like the way it make the stone feel in the hand. Same deal with lapping rare stones.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by FatboySlim

I do round off the corners of all my hones with a lapping plate, to make them more resistant to chipping at the corners. I'm sure that makes some people's skin crawl and they might consider it defacing the original sharp cut of the stone, but I really like the way it make the stone feel in the hand. Same deal with lapping rare stones.

---

+1 I've been surprised to receive vintage hones from some members that weren't rounded that way but I do it with all of mine. :shrug:

very nice stone. Keep it as is.

I did that to "Tiny Tim," a coochie razor I made for my GF. I made Tiny Tim from an old Wedge brand razor that had bad chips in the front. Cut it in half w/a variable speed drill, cutting wheel, ice water, & lots of patience. This operation left Tim with a vicious spike point. Last thing I did was grind the tip of the spike off using some sandpaper. Seemed like a sensible precaution.

It looks to me like natural fissures. I would think if it was used to modify razors or other pointed items the lines would be more uniform. Of course that's just a guess.

It was probably for sharping needles and fish hooks. My grandfather had a stone in his tackle box that I would now say was probably a barber hone with a couple groves on each side. He would draw his hooks threw the size groove he needed before he baited it.

Personally I prefer to listen to old guys. They mostly tell it like it is except of course walking to school 5 miles uphill both ways in the snow with no shoes, and most fishing stories.