Quote Originally Posted by tintin View Post
i have about 5 different barbers hones and have not found one that i like. Just like has been stated already "when the razor starts to seem dull is the time to use it" i have found that it always takes more than the recommended 2-3 strokes to make a difference and than it is always a scratchy rough feel, rather than an improvement. always make visible scratches on the edge. is that commons? (i'm actually thinking of selling them since i don't use them anyway).
Depends on the stone. My Swaty is about 8K and leaves scratches about like a Norton 8k - visible in the right lighting. I have others that are finer and improve an 8K edge. Then I have a glass hone that changes performance based on what kind of slurry is used with the hone. Quite an interesting little creature that bucks the assertion that barber hones are good for maintenance but not for honing. I can make an 8k edge with barely visible scratches, a hazy edge, or a 12K+ edge with the glass stone.

They're just something you have to tinker with and learn individually. Small tip, a little bit of wet shave lather can go a long way with a barber hone. I've used that trick with most of mine and get a pretty good edge. I usually do 5 to 10 licks, then check the edge if I'm just going for a refresh. If unhappy, then I do 5 to 10 more and so forth until it's as good as I can squeeze from the stone.

I'll second Slawman on the Raven stone. The Celtes is equally good, I suspect them to be made in the same factory perhaps for different distributors. I also have a 2 sided Pike that's decent, if a little on the small side.