What hone/hones to buy?

Hey all, I recently decided that I want to get into honing my own razors. I want to buy, over a period of time, all the necessary hones and equipment to hone my own razor and eventually I hope to have all the equipment necessary to never have to send my razor out for honing. Right now, one of my razors is in need of honing and I want to buy the beginners necessary equipment to make it shave ready.
So my question is, what are the absolute necessities that I will need in order to make this razor shave ready? I'm just looking for the basics at the moment, and will accrue the rest over time. Thanks!

Norton 4000/8000, DMT 325 for lapping, Finishing stone (I use a Shapton 16000), 3" strop

You can start with the standard 4/8k Norton combo. That will work for razors that are in very good shape and do not require major work to fix edges, reset bevels etc. For fixing edges and resetting bevels you will need to use coarser stone, 1k range stones that are good are King, Naniwa Super Stone, Naniwa Chosera, Shapton Glass Stone.Which one you will choose is really a matter of preference, I personally like Naniwa Chosera and Shapton Glass. After 8k you might need to further smooth the edge, so CrO or 0.5 micron Diamond spray on balsa/linen/felt will do the trick.
So in summary all you really need to start honing is 1k, 4/8k stones and CrO or diamond spray. Later, when you learn how to hone, you can add a finer stone after your 8k stone.

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Originally Posted by Hirlau

Norton 4000/8000, DMT 325 for lapping, Finishing stone (I use a Shapton 16000), 3" strop

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Is the DMT 325 absolutely neccesary?

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Originally Posted by asj1991

Is the DMT 325 absolutely neccesary?

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I'm tempted to say yes, it's absolutely a must have. But you can of course lap a Norton on some flat glass or tile with some sandpaper, but that's a PITA IMO. The DMT is sooooo worth it.

My vote is for the norton 4/8k stone, its my favorite hone. Its very easy to learn on for new guys and they're all the same, unlike natural stones. It also cut fast and you can shave off the 8k side easily once you learn it.

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Originally Posted by Blix

I'm tempted to say yes, it's absolutely a must have. But you can of course lap a Norton on some flat glass or tile with some sandpaper, but that's a PITA IMO. The DMT is sooooo worth it.

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I can't agree more.

You will use it a lot, it laps/flattens hones when you buy them and can be used to restor big chips on razors, it can also make slurry on hones when you want to use slurry.

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Originally Posted by asj1991

Is the DMT 325 absolutely neccesary?

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Thanks to all. This Norton is the cheapest I could find, so I am going to get this one:

Norton Waterstone Combination 4000 8000 Grit - Norton Sharpeners

Is this an alright setup?


The DMT 325 I think I will go with from your recommendations, and this is the one I found. Is this correct? Also is it a good price? If anyone knows a better place to get these please let me know.

DMT 8'' Coarse 325 mesh 45 micron diamond stone | Knife Merchant

Thanks so much. Is that a pretty good price for the Norton?