Thread: Shumate Barber Hone

Just had a barbers hone rock up and was wondering if anyone could shed a little light?
Lapped reasonably easily and seems pretty smooth when honing with lather but with just water seems a little umm I suppose rough is the best word but I only finished on 800grit.
Didn't come with instructions or a date and when I google I only find info on the Shumate razors.

Thank you Gentlemen

Vintage Shumate Razor Hone w Box (Sharpening Stone) (eBay item 370448380809 end time 29-Oct-10 11:41:39 AEDST) : Collectibles

Most barber hones, including yours, are not porous. That means water tends to bead up on them. The use of diluted lather insures that the water stays uniformly distributed on the hone by means of the lather breaking the surface tension of the water.

If you lapped the hone to 800 grit, that is more than sufficient. Your barber hone is just fine for the maintenance of a shave ready razor. Whenever you feel any diminishment in the quality of your shave, just do 4 to 6 strokes on your hone and then strop and shave. If the edge is still not up to snuff, then repeat the process on the next day.

Cheers Utopian, Wasn't too sure about experimenting but then again concidering the things others have done to the blade haha

If you lapped it and finished with an 800 grit the you will find that it becomes smoother with use. On a barbers hone I would finish up to a 2000/2500 grit. But thats just my personal preference.