DMT extra fine hone

Do i need to lap a DMT extra fine hone right out of the box?

DMT hones dont need lapping, they come certified to a certain degree of flatness. They're also made out of metal, so they would be nigh on impossible to lap anyway..! :)

So you can just take it out the box and use it right away.

No, you can't lap them, the diamonds are only on the surface.

They do work better for our application when they've been broken in though. Give it a good going over with a chisel, plane blade, screwdriver etc.

Don't use it for lapping other stones either. That's what killeds mine.

Definitely don't be lapping with the 1200.

It's fine to use the 320 or coarser to lap, especially if you're lapping waterstones like Nortons or slurry stones like cotis, thuringians, Tam O'Shanters, etc. I've used my 320 this way for years. I would not recommend taking it to a barber hone or an oil stone like the Arkansas stones, though it might do just fine.

I'll take my DMT 120 however to anything short of kryptonite. Think of it as an emery board for King Kong's fingernails.

I wonder if you meant "break it in" rather than lap? All the DMT plates including the D8EE will become more subdued with use. I have the D8EE and have never agreed with the "cuts like a 4k and polishes like an 8k" phrase coined on another shaving site IIRC. The D8EE like all diamond hones certainly cuts. IMO it does not polish like an 8k stone.

Chris L