They're relatively cheap, simple, low maintenance (they need very little lapping except for cleaning @ the pressures we use for honing) & reliable. They're not the best @ any one thing, but they're excellent all-rounders. That & practically everyone has used them so there's lots of advice if somebody new runs into a problem. Also, you can get a very good shave straight off the 8K.

Quote Originally Posted by infamous View Post
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Also, do nortons use japanese or american grits?
Pretty sure they don't use JIS--I think I remember reading the 8K Norton is about 6K JIS.