Thread: Most aggressive set of hones

I also think that for any equal grit size, few materials are as aggressive as the DMT diamond hones.

I like the Shapton Glass Stone for fast metal removal My 1k eats old wedges right quick, but you have to rinse off the swarf (it's all metal) regularly or you start grinding metal swarf onto the blade and no stone contact.

Shapton GS are also hard and don't wear very fast so you can go longer without flattening.

Just my input

Has anyone tried using the Smith Diamond Sharpening system? I noticed they had one at Lowes that when I looked at the back said it was equivalent to 750 grit. It looks similar to the DMT.. here is a link to one that is on ebay at the moment

SMITH'S #DBSF DIAMOND SHARPENING STONE-FINE 750 GRIT - eBay (item 300368973726 end time Jun-17-10 11:47:39 PDT)

Just wanted to update you all that I found some diamond plate hones at Harbor Freight. Knowing that it is hit or miss there I decided to grab them mainly because it was a block diamond plate with a 200, 300, 400, and 600 side.

I now have my 2 almost wedge Sheffield razors ready for a test shave. Since the block was on sale for only 10 bucks I may go back and see about getting another one to use for flattening my synthetic hones.

The last time I used a HF diamond hone I washed it with hot running water and soap. It came unglued!

FWIW.... I use 3 layers of tape on the spine for all old wedges with significant hone wear. This increases the angle of the bevel, makes the bevel thicker just behind the edge which makes it stronger and less likely to develop microchips and gives a narrower width of bevel thus it hones faster.
I also have found that wet/dry sandpaper, cut to fit on top of a hone, is very effective and easier on the edge than a DMT. For removing small visible nicks or rusted edges I start at 325 grit, otherwise I start at either 600 or 1000 grit.

Hope this helps,

I definitely concur that for serious metal removal DMT is the way to go. But of course a 1K waterson with slurry can do some damage as well.

Speaking of DMT, has anyone used the "high-end" japanese diamond hones, like Atoma? A certain japanese hone dealer swears by them, and thinks they are far superior to DMT. They're pricey, though not crazy - e.g. ~$100 for a large 1200 grit. (One thing you've gotta give DMT, they are economical.)

I was given a Wade and Butcher in terrible condition. It was actually rust-glued to another razor in a box of "throwaways." I decided to use it as a restore project, although I didn't think I would get a clean bevel out of that corroded steel. Shame, because it was (is) a 7/8 wedge with very little hone wear. It might have been unused when it was originally "stored" in a leaky barn.

Long story short, I picked up a coarse carborundum about that same time at a flea market for $10 IIRC and, since I was experimenting, decided to set a prebevel with that dry. It took about half an hour to work out the chips and -- lo and behold -- I had a clean bevel with no corrosion. Another 15 minutes on a Norton 1K, then quickly up through my progression, and it shaved wonderfully! I used it this AM for maybe the fifth time, and it is on a par with any other razor I own.

I think there are a lot of coarse carborundums out there, and a lot of folks don't see any role for them in modern honing. Anyway, I've used it for a couple of other blades with major damage, and it is my go-to stone for this purpose. Much faster than my Norton 220, or anything else I've used in this way.

Maybe worth a try.