Thread: Shapton Glass stones vs.Traditional or "Pro": What's the right choice?

i have the shapton 5k pro stone and the 16k gs stone right now i can say i like the pro stone really cant compare the two ones a finisher and the other is not but i do like the pro i also have a dmt diamond plate 10x4 as long as you keep water on the plate and not let the slurry build up it wont stick . also with the pro the case can be used as the base with the gs you have to buy a base

I currently own and use:

Shapton Professional

• Pro 2.000 (Green)
• Pro 5.000 (Purple)
• Pro 12.000 (Cream)

Shapton Glass

• GS 1.000 (white)
• GS 4.000 (gray)
• Gs 6.000 (gray)
• GS 8.000 (gray)
• GS 16.000 (white)
• GS 30.000 (white)

Because I have no Pro 8.000 I usually put the Naniwa 8.000 between Shapton 5k and 12k.
I have used the Pro 8k and liked it.

Both the GS and the Pro are extremely well suited for razors.
The GS 16k as well as the Pro 12k leave a very good, highly mirror polished edge,
without serration and with positive HHT (for me). Off of both stones you can shave.

There is no significant difference, both are just fine. Buy whatever you like more.
I can recommend both systems. I would also recommend the DMT 325 for lapping.
It works fabulous, especially with the finer stones you will benefit from flatness,
even though wet/dry paper in 320 and 600 on a flat surface will do just fine

I began honing razors with the Norton Starter Kit. I soon added a Shapton Pro 15k and a DMT D8C 325 lapping plate. Because I had gotten the 15k pro from a friend I decided to go with the other stones in the Pro line and got all of them from 1 to 30k. I also got the Shapton GDLP lapping plate. Not long after that the Naniwa SuperStones came out and got great reviews. I had gotten good results with the Nortons and with the Shapton pros but was intrigued by the Naniwas. Business was good in those days and I bought them too.

After a couple of years of using all of the above I found that I liked the Norton 4/8 the best and I sold all of the naniwas and most of the shaptons. I kept the 15k and 30k pros and the lapping plate. I recently added the Chosera 1k to the mix and that has become my go to bevel setter when I need to go that low. I don't use a 1k unless I need it. Many times a 4k is sufficient. So having used all of these my personal preferences ended up being Chosera 1k, Norton 4/8 and either an Escher or a Nakayma Asagi to finish. I rarely use the 15k pro or the 30k.

The GDLP lapping plate is great but there is nothing wrong with the D8C and you can buy 8 of them for the price of one GDLP. It is true that stiction can be an issue with the DMT but I lap in the kitchen sink under running water so that takes care of that 95% of the time. The above preferences are mine alone and no reflection on the quality of the stones. A honer who knows his stones , you have to learn whichever stones you use, can get stellar results from any of them.

If you were to try them all, nuances of feedback on the stone and the feel of the edge of the razor would , over time, determine which ones are your particular favorites. Any of them are good for getting the job done. All of these stones were designed to sharpen plane and chisel blades. The pros are 15mm thick and the glass are 5mm. A few years ago when I was in your position, agonizing over which to buy, a vendor in the Northeast told me that Pros were being discontinued because the glass were superior. I had a feeling that was BS because he carried the glass and not the pros. Sure enough, three years later the pros are still for sale on Shapton's website along with the glass. So, they are all good, whichever you select IME.

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

I began honing razors with the Norton Starter Kit. I soon added a Shapton Pro 15k and a DMT D8C 325 lapping plate. Because I had gotten the 15k pro from a friend I decided to go with the other stones in the Pro line and got all of them from 1 to 30k. I also got the Shapton GDLP lapping plate. Not long after that the Naniwa SuperStones came out and got great reviews. I had gotten good results with the Nortons and with the Shapton pros but was intrigued by the Naniwas. Business was good in those days and I bought them too.

After a couple of years of using all of the above I found that I liked the Norton 4/8 the best and I sold all of the naniwas and most of the shaptons. I kept the 15k and 30k pros and the lapping plate. I recently added the Chosera 1k to the mix and that has become my go to bevel setter when I need to go that low. I don't use a 1k unless I need it. Many times a 4k is sufficient. So having used all of these my personal preferences ended up being Chosera 1k, Norton 4/8 and either an Escher or a Nakayma Asagi to finish. I rarely use the 15k pro or the 30k.

The GDLP lapping plate is great but there is nothing wrong with the D8C and you can buy 8 of them for the price of one GDLP. It is true that stiction can be an issue with the DMT but I lap in the kitchen sink under running water so that takes care of that 95% of the time. The above preferences are mine alone and no reflection on the quality of the stones. A honer who knows his stones , you have to learn whichever stones you use, can get stellar results from any of them.

If you were to try them all, nuances of feedback on the stone and the feel of the edge of the razor would , over time, determine which ones are your particular favorites. Any of them are good for getting the job done. All of these stones were designed to sharpen plane and chisel blades. The pros are 15mm thick and the glass are 5mm. A few years ago when I was in your position, agonizing over which to buy, a vendor in the Northeast told me that Pros were being discontinued because the glass were superior. I had a feeling that was BS because he carried the glass and not the pros. Sure enough, three years later the pros are still for sale on Shapton's website along with the glass. So, they are all good, whichever you select IME.

Thanks for you insight. I guess in the grand scheme of things it makes sense to experiment with a variety of stone combination to find what works. Being from the NYC area it is not in my DNA to be patient. One of the reasons I enjoy using Str8's so much is that they force me to throttle back and find some serenity-even if just for and hour every other day! Are your eyes getting misty? LOL! Back to the task at hand, do you have a good source for your honing addiction? I need a fix!

I have had a full set of Shapton Pro's and Shapton Glass stones. Personally I preferred the Glass stones a little better. I love the GDLP and feel it is the best lapping instrument out there, but it is expensive. The DMT 8C works fine but does tend to stick to the higher grit stones some, but lapping under running water helps this. I also have a full set of Naniwa Super Stones and Naniwa Chosera and both these produce similar results. I like them a lot. In addition I have all the Nortons. Really any of the sets should work well for you depending on your preference. My go to regiment for the most part is a Naniwa Chosera 1K, Norton 4K/8K and Naniwa Superstone 12K followed by .5 diamond spray on felt. My biggest variation these days is in the finishing stones as I will rotate the 12K with the Shapton Glass 16K, Escher and a few Japanese Naturals. When I experiment, who knows..........

There are a lot of choices, but when it comes down to consistency and reliability, I will usually recommend Naniwa Super Stone, Shapton Glass or Norton. There are also other stones like the Coticule which can produce very nice results with some practice and you can even do a one one method with various thicknesses of slurry using a barber hone, so it really boils down to giving some of these stones a try and seeing what works best for you. Be patient and learn from your successes as well as your mistakes.

Have fun,

Lynn

Someone had previously stated that one of the reasons the Shapton lapping plate is great is due to the gaps and raised diamond parts. Has anyone had experience with the DMT Duo-Sharp plates that seem to have the same features? If so, can you chime in as to if they work more effectively than other methods?

The 220 side had almost no stiction at all; the 325 had just a tiny bit more, but still noticeably less than the standard 325. Both work fine.

For the Shapton Pro users: how fast do the stones load w/ swarf, especially compared to the Choseras if you've used both?

Originally Posted by whitebar

Just to demonstrate once again that there are many differing opinions on all things shaving related...

I have the Shapton lapping plate and absolutely love it. Lapping with other plates like the DMT you will find that striction becomes an issue. The plate will seem to stick to the hone and this will make it hard to lap. The Shapton lapping plate has gaps between the raised diamond parts and so it never sticks to the hone. I'll admit the damn thing is way too expensive but in spite of that I have never regretted the purchase. Once I tried one I knew I would never go back. Good luck with your decision!

DMT makes interrupted plates too. Not exactly the same pattern as the Shapton, but same effect.

Hi All,
Please excuse my ignorance, but are the Shapton Glass stones that you are discussing also known as Shapton Ceramic stones?
TIA

Yes, they are one in the same. Great stones, but if you are looking to get into honing your razors I would recommend the Naniwa Superstones as they are more forgiving. I have both & use both.