Thread: which stones to buy?

Originally Posted by mainaman

I started with Naniwa stones, because I had them already when I got my first straight.
I used a mixed progression of Naniwa Chosera and Superstones, they are made of the same abrasive so the consistency in my opinion is preserved.
I finish on Nakayama Asagi and I like the results very much.

My progression used to consist of 1.3.5.8.10k synthetic and Asagi, but I wanted to cut down on the number of stones involved so I got Yanoshigima Suita to bridge 3k to Asagi, and the stone works superbly well.
Based on my experience so far, I prefer natural stones over synthetic , both because of better finish and fewer stones that I use.
I am very interested in trying other natural stones too.

A piece of advise to those that are looking for a Japanese natural stone, make sure to buy for a reputable seller with a lot of experience with stones. You will get the most for your money, and not waste funds on expensive but useless for you stone.

I was about to specifically ask whether one could mix stone types in the overall honing process. I've got a set of 5, 8, 12 on the way, but need a 1K and wondered whether deviating from the medium/method for the 1K would create problems.

Originally Posted by BobKincaid

I was about to specifically ask whether one could mix stone types in the overall honing process. I've got a set of 5, 8, 12 on the way, but need a 1K and wondered whether deviating from the medium/method for the 1K would create problems.

In my opinion it will not matter at all, bevel setter is a bevel setter by the time you get to your 12k the 1k scratches will be long gone. One thing you need to consider is how fast the stone is, and then there is the personal preference of which stone feels best to your liking. The most important stone in the set up is the finisher.

I mix up my hones. I use a Norton 1k because it is a fast and aggressive bevel setter. I then go to a Naniwa 5k and 8k, which I love because they are fast and really smooth out the edge. Then I finish on my Asagi because I love the cutting speed and the feedback it gives.

Originally Posted by mainaman

In my opinion it will not matter at all, bevel setter is a bevel setter by the time you get to your 12k the 1k scratches will be long gone. One thing you need to consider is how fast the stone is, and then there is the personal preference of which stone feels best to your liking. The most important stone in the set up is the finisher.

Being way more of a Restorer than a Honemeister I would beg to differ

I never do more than 20 laps on my finishers no mater the type...

I might grow almost intimate with my bevel setter as I correct years of bad honing, multiple bevels, or damage on a blade...
The finisher has no use, if the bevel wasn't set right first

I actually did a thread on this at one time about how every single person always says the establishing the bevel is the most important part of honing a razor, but we all only brag about how great our finishers are, and then argue between each other which is best... it is all about the bevel baby hehehe

Himmmmmmmmm
This is catch 22 Glen.
if you wont set the bevel you wont get the final edge right.
if you will not finish the edge then your blade will shave crappy. End result is same.
gl

Originally Posted by gssixgun

Being way more of a Restorer than a Honemeister I would beg to differ

I never do more than 20 laps on my finishers no mater the type...

I might grow almost intimate with my bevel setter as I correct years of bad honing, multiple bevels, or damage on a blade...
The finisher has no use, if the bevel wasn't set right first

I actually did a thread on this at one time about how every single person always says the establishing the bevel is the most important part of honing a razor, but we all only brag about how great our finishers are, and then argue between each other which is best... it is all about the bevel baby hehehe

Originally Posted by hi_bud_gl

if you wont set the bevel you wont get the final edge right.
if you will not finish the edge then your blade will shave crappy. End result is same.

Actually, end result is different. Glen's got an excellent point here. I have shaved with razors that were finished on all sorts of hones, pastes, and sprays. At the end of the day, it is all in the skills of the guy using the hones.

I do totally not subscribe to, or believe in, the finishing hone hype. Finishing an edge is relatively easy. Setting a bevel is what can be really difficult. And when it comes to finishes, a lot of it is personal preference. Some people swear by .25 diamond spray, I hate it. Others love Eschers, but I have been able to compare finishes with an Escher (and old and good one) and a Coticule (mine, also allegedly one of the better ones) on the same razors, and I always liked the Coticule edges better. Does that make the Coticule the better hone? Negative, just the guy who used it knows more about Coticules than Eschers (and also more than most people I know).

Whatever.
Robin

What i mean by end result is this.
if you wont set bevel right your end result will be bad honed blade right.
Now
if you don't know how to put the final edge to the blade result will be bad honed blade right?
this is what i mean
end result is same.= bad honed blade.

Originally Posted by BeBerlin

Actually, end result is different. Glen's got an excellent point here. I have shaved with razors that were finished on all sorts of hones, pastes, and sprays. At the end of the day, it is all in the skills of the guy using the hones.

I do totally not subscribe to, or believe in, the finishing hone hype. Finishing an edge is relatively easy. Setting a bevel is what can be really difficult. And when it comes to finishes, a lot of it is personal preference. Some people swear by .25 diamond spray, I hate it. Others love Eschers, but I have been able to compare finishes with an Escher (and old and good one) and a Coticule (mine, also allegedly one of the better ones) on the same razors, and I always liked the Coticule edges better. Does that make the Coticule the better hone? Negative, just the guy who used it knows more about Coticules than Eschers (and also more than most people I know).

Whatever.
Robin

I actually use my Naniwa Super and Chosera 1K the most for bevel setting. If I am doing some restoration, I will drop down to the 220 Naniwa super and then use tape. That said, if I need more abrasion, I will use the Norton 220 or 1K. I normally do not tape with the 1K, but will with the Norton because it eats up spines. Without a properly set bevel, you are heading into a world of frustration and a lot more honing than a razor will normally need to endure. By the way, I also restore a ton of blades and right here is where the rubber meets to road to bringing them back to shavability, especially when coming off the buffers.........

From the bevel set or 1K, I normally use either Naniwa Supers or the Norton 4K/8K combo followed by either Naniwa Super 12K, Escher or Asagi. I don't like to have to do more than 10 strokes on a finishing stone and find that the stones mentioned are the most reliable and consistent out there. The Shapton on Glass can be used interchangeably here too. I almost always follow the finisher with .5 diamond spray on felt too, but that is just my preference. Yeah, there are a lot of other hones out there and I have tried almost all of them. These mentioned have been the most successful as I continue on this journey of education.

Have fun,

Lynn

Originally Posted by gssixgun

Being way more of a Restorer than a Honemeister I would beg to differ

I never do more than 20 laps on my finishers no mater the type...

I might grow almost intimate with my bevel setter as I correct years of bad honing, multiple bevels, or damage on a blade...
The finisher has no use, if the bevel wasn't set right first

I actually did a thread on this at one time about how every single person always says the establishing the bevel is the most important part of honing a razor, but we all only brag about how great our finishers are, and then argue between each other which is best... it is all about the bevel baby hehehe

I did not mean it this way but it came out wrong I guess. Bevel setter is important because if the bevel is not set right then all other stones are useless, no question about that.

Honestly it was just a minor point, no offense meant any direction...

But it does seem to me we spend the most time "Discussing" that final 20-30 laps on the entire process, whether they be on stones, pastes, naturals, synthetics, or newspaper, for that matter, when in all actuality those last 20-30 laps regardless, what they are on, are really the most personal part of honing...

We seem to agree on the whole process right up until the razor starts to shave (about 8k) then, bam!! we all start to argue about what is best following that, for those last 20-30 laps.. I think that depends on each person's face, combined with the razor in hand, and that is why none of us can agree on the ending...

So therefore to finish my thought that does make the bevel setter the most important stone ...

(really guys just having some fun here)